Est. 2006
Shining a light on the green and gorgeous
Produced by Green Traveller Media
What is green travel?
Flight-free from the UK to Europe
Foot passenger ferries to Europe
UK to Ireland
Map of UK Ferry
Routes to Europe
Scotland to Europe
North of England
to Europe
Wales to Europe
Southwest England
to Europe
UK to Italy
UK to Spain
UK to France
Sleeper trains in UK
Train travel to Europe:
Eurostar Route Map
Under 5 hours
by train from
London:
Amsterdam
Brussels
Cologne
Ghent
Lille
Paris
Arrive same day by train from London:
Antwerp
Avignon
Barcelona
Basel
Bayonne
Bordeaux
Brive
Geneva
Hamburg
Interlaken
Lausanne
Marseille
Milan
Munich
Nantes
Nice
Toulouse
Turin
Valence
Zürich
Snow Trains to
French Alps
Require overnight stopover from London:
Copenhagen
Florence
Lisbon
Naples
Rome
Sicily
Venice
West Sweden
Train + Ferry:
How to travel by train from London to Amsterdam
Travel by train from London to Amsterdam in less than 4 hours on the direct Eurostar service from London St Pancras to Amsterdam Centraal station.
There’s a lot more to Amsterdam than coffee shops, canals and cyclists. Home to some of Europe’s most creative citizens, though they may be stereotyped by a laid-back approach to life the Dutch capital’s inhabitants are also known for their progressive ideology, a characteristic they have put to good use over recent years in attempting to make the city one of Europe’s most sustainable metropolises.
Flight-free travel from London to Amsterdam:
Journey Time: from 3 hrs 41 mins
Sample timetable: Depart London 11.04pm, arrive Amsterdam 4.11pm
Carbon emissions: 2.13kg (flight would be 56kg)*
Bike hire at Amsterdam Centraal station: Yes
Tickets provided by Trainline, which allows you to buy tickets for multiple train operators in multiple European countries. It does charge a small booking fee, but offers several useful facilities, such as a free email alert service to let you know as soon as bookings open for your chosen route so you can snap up the cheapest tickets when they become available.
How to book train tickets as part of a package with accommodation
If you want someone to book the whole journey for you or combine it with staying in hotels en route, get in touch with the travel agent Byway through its page for booking enquiries.
On Board Eurostar
For ticket types (Standard, Plus and Premier) and information on what it's like on board,
see our Guide to Eurostar
What's the journey like?
It's a direct train from London St Pancras International Railway Station to Amsterdam Centraal station, which is in the heart of Amsterdam. It’s about 30 mins from London to the Channel Tunnel, then, after about 20 minutes in the tunnel, you emerge for the quick onward journey through the beautiful countryside of northern France and Belgium, and on to Amsterdam. This direct service is a fast and efficient way to travel from London to Amsterdam, arriving in the centre of the city in less than 4 hours – about the same time it takes to go from London to Edinburgh!
On Arrival in Amsterdam
Welkom in Amsterdam! Almost all international services and most intercity services from the rest of the Netherlands will drop you at Amsterdam Centraal station, right in the heart of the city, between the river Amstel and the city centre. It is also the terminus of three of Amsterdam’s metro lines, as well as being a major tram and bus hub: onward travel across the city is a breeze, and if you aren’t carrying heavy luggage, you could choose to make the short walk into town.
Green Traveller's Top Tips 💚
Head to platform 2B in Amsterdam Central station for brasserie-style dining at Grand Café Restaurant 1e klas – a nostalgic fin-de-siècle restaurant in the splendid former first-class art deco waiting rooms. Designed by architect Pierre Cuypers, the grand renovated space is adorned with huge arched windows, high ceilings, ornate floral decorations and scenes from literature. Visit for coffee and breakfast pastries, lunchtime sandwiches and omelettes, or a waiter-served three-course fish, meat or vegetarian dinner.
De Kas
There can’t be many restaurants that follow the local produce ethos quite as closely as De Kas. Set in a converted greenhouse on the outskirts of the city, in what was once a municipal nursery, almost all the fresh produce served up as part of its daily three-course fixed price menu is grown in adjacent greenhouses or in the field the restaurant owns outside the city; meat is supplied by local organic farmers and fish comes straight from the North Sea. Don’t expect rustic cooking, though. A meal here will be one of the most inventive dining experiences you’re ever likely to enjoy. Kamerlingh Onneslaan 3 (+31 20 462 4562; www.restaurantdekas.nl).
Hotels in Amsterdam
Green Traveller's Top Tips 💚
Conscious Hotel Vondelpark: One of two “eco design” hotels in the city, this one describes itself as “more hip than hippy” with 81 bright, contemporary bedrooms, 100% organic breakfasts and easy access to the wide green spaces, ponds, bike paths and jogging routes of the city’s popular Vondelpark. Eco innovations include a charging point for electric vehicles, fittings made from recycled coffee cup holders and yoghurt pots, electricity sourced exclusively from renewables, the use of green cleaning products and a living plant wall. Rental bikes available. It's just 250m from Vondelpark and there are direct links to Leidse Square and Amsterdam Central Station from two tram stops (Surinameplein, Rhijnvis Feithstraat) that are within 300m of the hotel.
The Toren, Amsterdam by The Pavilions: If you’re looking for period charm it doesn’t get more tangible than at this central 38-room hotel, once the home of Prime Minister Abraham Kuiper (and, later, of the university he founded). Based in a 17th century canal house, the hotel’s plum, gold and scarlet colour scheme, rich furnishings and soft lighting set off the traditional surroundings in theatrical style. Owned and run as a hotel by the Toren family since the 1960s, the hotel sources its electricity from green suppliers and provides breakfasts packed with Fair Trade and organic produce.
Hotel Pulitzer: One of the most luxurious hotels in Amsterdam, Hotel Pulitzer is also one of the greenest, having been awarded Gold by the international eco label Green Key for its waste and water reduction and CO2 minimising initiatives (these include low energy lighting, low flow shower heads, a wine bar that stocks exclusively Terra Vinis sustainable wines and a restaurant that focuses on local, seasonal produce). It also has oodles of charm, with a structure pieced together from 25 adjacent 17th and 18th century canal houses, elegant guest rooms overlooking the city’s distinctive canals or the hotel gardens, an in-house art gallery and a vintage boat waiting to whisk guests off for water-based sightseeing.
Eco-certified hotels in Amsterdam ✔️
If you're looking for other sustainable green hotels in Amsterdam, then these have all been certified by an accredited ecolabel:
The July - Boat & Co: a 4-star hotel along the waterfront in Amsterdam's Houthaven district.
Hotel V Nesplein is also a 4-star hotel, 850m from Amsterdam's Central Station.
Hotel V Fizeaustraat is another 4-star hotel in the Oost district.
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Stayokay Hostel Amsterdam Stadsdoelen: Budget option – rooms in a dorm from £16 per person per night.
Hotels close to Amsterdam Central Station 🚉
See below for hotels that are conveniently close to the station:
Getting around Amsterdam
At Amsterdam Central station, there’s an excellent network of trams, metro and buses, though Amsterdam is one of the world’s most cycle-friendly cities, so cycling is usually the quickest, cheapest and easiest ways to get around. Nearly all the cycling lanes are separate from the road (with traffic lights especially for bikes), so for a city, it’s a safe place to cycle, though you’re advised to always lock your bike wherever you leave it. At central station you can hire a bike with Mac Bike, one of Amsterdam’s largest bike rental agencies that also provides details for bike tours around the city (open 7 days a week 9am-5.45pm; www.macbike.nl;
Amsterdam is not a huge city, and it is a pleasure to wander along its canals and cobbled streets – exploring by foot is certainly a viable option. However, it also boasts a fine integrated transport system if you want to make a longer journey or take some of the strain off your calf muscles. Whilst you can buy single tickets, if you will be making several journeys, get hold of an OV-chipkaartí – an integrated transport smartcard, which you can top up and use on public transport across the city: the city’s tourist website, iAmsterdam, has more public transport ticket information for visitors. If you plan to combine visits to some of the city’s attractions and museums with use of the public transport network, consider getting hold of an iAmsterdam City Card, which can offer huge savings – including unlimited public transport use, and free museum entry, for its duration.
The metro system is likely to be the least useful part of the transport network for visitors, serving mainly outlying districts. More useful are the comprehensive tram network and bus services, all of which are run (along with ferries) by GVB (Gemeentelijk Vervoerbedrijf), their site boasts a handy journey planner and a map of the entire Amsterdam transport network.
Amsterdam, of course, wouldn’t be Amsterdam without bikes: this is one of the world’s most cycle-friendly cities, with 60% of trips across the inner city made by bike. iAmsterdam offers cycle information and tips for visitors, as well as a list of recommended bike hire providers in Amsterdam: the choice is vast!
For more information on places to stay, eat and visit, see our Green Traveller's Guide to Amsterdam
