A Sombre Visit To The Anne Frank Huis in Amsterdam
Visiting the Anne Frank Huis is one of the most moving and best attractions to see in Amsterdam.
A mere half a day remains for me in the Dutch capital of Amsterdam, the wonderfully friendly city of canals and whirring bicycles. Nursing a fairly significant hangover from my red light waffle-eating adventures the night before, I shake off my dustiness and pack up my trusty backpack as quietly as possible amidst the snores of my similarly worn out dorm mates and make my way for the third consecutive day to the Anne Frank Huis.
This time it’s different though because I have in my hot little hand one of the coveted pre-booked tickets that ensures me entry at a specific time and lets me avoid standing in a line for hours on end. The fact that this is an enormous fluke is not lost on me and I smile as I arrive at the house and am waived straight in.
A guide to visiting the Anne Frank Huis
Getting to the Anne Frank Huis
The Anne Frank Huis is located in central Amsterdam just a short walk or bus ride from Dam Square.
The Anne Frank House address is at Westermarkt 20, 1016 GV Amsterdam.
Walk
From Dam Square, you’ll need to walk around 10 minutes through the canal rings via Raadhuisstraat and then continue on to Westermarkt.
Once you hit Prinsengracht on the bank of the canal, turn right and you’ll see the unassuming Anne Frank Huis in front of you.
Bus
If you’d prefer to take public transport, then from Dam Square, you’ll want to walk to the Amsterdam Dam bus stop and take any of the N47, N57 or N97 one stop to Westermarkt.
From there, walk to Prinsengracht and turn right to locate the Anne Frank Huis.
Where to stay in near the Anne Frank Huis
Given that visiting the Anne Frank Huis is super straightforward thanks to the venue’s central location. For those on a budget, the St Christopher’s at the Winston hostel is located right on Dam Square so is a great choice for those wanting a short walk to the Anne Frank Huis.
For those looking for a more hotel-like stay, then consider The Blossom House which is located very near the attraction.
Booking.comImportant things to know before visiting
Things to know about visiting the Anne Frank Huis:
- Book in advance. If you don’t make a booking you will have to get to the house from 3.30pm onwards and wait.
- Admission is 14 Euros for adults.
- No photography is permitted.
- The house is a memorial, so be respectful and quiet as you pass through.
What to expect visiting the Anne Frank Huis
The solemnity of the little house where Anne Frank and her family hid during the Nazi occupation is evident upon entry. The silent line of visitors stands single file as we shuffle through the bare rooms, left sparse at Otto Frank, the only surviving family member’s request.
There are no cameras permitted in the house; it’s not a tourist attraction, but a moving memorial and tribute to the little Jewish girl who wrote the world’s most famous diary in hiding and died in a Nazi death camp before the end of the war.
Scrawled on the walls and throughout the house are excerpts from Anne’s writing and it is almost impossible not to choke up reading Anne’s hopes and dreams for a future that I know full well never eventuated for her.
The steep wooden stairs that take us up level by level are almost ladder like and the famous bookcase that hid the secret annexe where the Frank family hid for more than two years sits half opened in the corner of the room where we visitors move upstairs into the hiding place.
The poky top level that housed seven people is full of more of Anne’s writings, photos and it belies belief that the Franks were able to exist in such a confined space for such a long time before their capture.
As I file back down the stairs, I pass the glass cases with the original handwritten pages of Anne’s diary into the gift shop and exhibition feeling heavy with sadness for the little girl lost and for her family.
It’s not a fall down in a heap crying kind of sadness, but it’s a horrible drowning weight like wet clothes dragging my body into the depths.
But then I walk outside into the brisk Amsterdam air and remember this quote from Anne’s diary: “I don’t think of all the misery, but of the beauty that still remains.”
The beauty that remains is alive in the canals, in the cobblestones, the parks and triangular houses and in the innocent words of Anne’s diary.
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