Amsterdam: Anne Frank & Jewish Quarter Walking Tour

Two Hours Tracing Anne Frank's Amsterdam & the Jewish Quarter's Hidden Past

You walk through Amsterdam's Jewish Quarter with a local guide for two hours, visiting the Portuguese Synagogue, the National Holocaust Memorial, and the Dutch Resistance Museum area. You'll learn about Anne Frank, her family, and the broader history of Amsterdam's Jewish community during Nazi occupation — the deportations, the hiding places, the resistance. The guide meets you at Waterlooplein and the tour ends at New Market Square, so you know exactly where to start and finish.

Is this one for you?Right for anyone wanting to understand Anne Frank's Amsterdam and the Jewish Quarter's history without arranging a guide separately — the 2-hour format fits a morning or afternoon, and the guide handles the context so you're not reading plaques on your own.

Step-by-step itinerary

Day 1 — Anne Frank and Jewish Quarter tour

• Meet guide at Waterlooplein
• Learn about Jewish community history
• Visit Portuguese Synagogue
• See Jewish deportation monument
• Discover Jewish resistance history
• Visit National Holocaust Memorial
• Explore Plantage area history
• Learn about Spinoza monument
• Walk to Dam Square and Royal Palace
• Hear Anne Frank story and tour end

The Experience

Your guide is waiting at Waterlooplein when you arrive, and within minutes you're moving through narrow streets lined with 17th-century buildings, some still bearing the marks of occupation. The Portuguese Synagogue rises ahead — a working place of worship and one of the largest Jewish structures built during Amsterdam's Golden Age, when the Sephardic community here was among Europe's wealthiest. Standing in front of it, your guide explains how this building survived the war, and then the tour shifts into the harder history: the deportations, the hiding places, the families who didn't come back.

The walk takes you past the National Holocaust Memorial and through the Plantage area, where the Jewish Council headquarters once stood. You'll hear about the February strike — when Dutch workers protested the deportations — and the hunger winter that followed. The guide points out ordinary apartment buildings where families like the Franks hid, and you start to understand how the city itself became a maze of secret rooms and false walls. There's the Spinoza monument, a quieter moment in the tour, and then you're moving toward Dam Square and the Royal Palace on Rokin, the landscape opening up as the story does.

By the time you reach New Market Square, where the tour ends, you've walked through two hours of Amsterdam's Jewish history and Anne Frank's story — how her diary was published by her father after the war, how it became one of the best-selling books ever written, and what it means that you're standing in the actual streets where she lived. The tour doesn't rush; it lets the places speak, and the guide fills in what the buildings can't say on their own.

Top questions

How long is the Anne Frank walking tour in Amsterdam?

The tour lasts 2 hours and covers the Jewish Quarter, Portuguese Synagogue, and sites related to Anne Frank and World War 2 history.

Where do I meet the guide for this Amsterdam tour?

You meet your guide at Waterlooplein, in the Jewish Quarter.

What sites are included in the Anne Frank & Jewish Quarter tour?

The tour includes the Portuguese Synagogue, National Holocaust Memorial, Dutch Resistance Museum area, Plantage, Spinoza monument, Rokin, and New Market Square.

Is the Anne Frank House included in this walking tour?

The tour covers Anne Frank sites and history throughout the Jewish Quarter and city, but the itinerary focuses on the broader neighborhood and historical context rather than the museum itself.

Can I do this tour if I'm not very fit?

Yes, the tour is suitable for all physical fitness levels. Infants and small children can use a pram or stroller.

Are service animals allowed on this tour?

Yes, service animals are allowed.

What's the best time to book this Amsterdam tour?

Book in advance, especially during peak season. The tour runs regularly and meets at Waterlooplein.

Is public transportation nearby?

Yes, public transportation options are available near the meeting point and throughout the tour route.

What’s included

Your tour includes a local guide for the full 2 hours, walking access to the Jewish Quarter and its key sites including the Portuguese Synagogue, National Holocaust Memorial, and Dutch Resistance Museum area, and the guide's knowledge of Anne Frank's story, the community's history, and the city's experience during Nazi occupation.