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Het Grachtenhuis

Herengracht 386, Amsterdam 1016 CJ, The Netherlands (Dam Square)
+31-204211656
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Ranked #35 of 250 attractions in Amsterdam
Type: Museums
Owner description: Museum Het Grachtenhuis (The Canal House) is the natural starting point for visitors to Amsterdam. It is located in one of the most beautiful... more » Owner description: Museum Het Grachtenhuis (The Canal House) is the natural starting point for visitors to Amsterdam. It is located in one of the most beautiful canalside houses. Het Grachtenhuis introduces visitors to one of the best city development projects in the world: the 17th-century canals of Amsterdam. During your visit to the multimedia, interactive exhibition, you will travel in 40 minutes through 400 years of history. « less
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54 reviews from our community

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Date Rating
Melbourne, Australia
Contributor
11 reviews 11 reviews
Reviews in 8 cities Reviews in 8 cities
3 helpful votes 3 helpful votes
5 of 5 stars Reviewed 17 May 2013

This particular canal house museum had received very good feedback on Trip Advisor, with good reason, as I discovered today. An exceptional exhibit, both interesting and entertaining. Some very switched on people must have been behind the design. The attention to detail is to be applauded.

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Brooklyn, New York
Top Contributor
547 reviews 547 reviews
41 attraction reviews
Reviews in 197 cities Reviews in 197 cities
285 helpful votes 285 helpful votes
4 of 5 stars Reviewed 12 May 2013 via mobile

Enjoyed this relatively short multimedia presentation that goes from room to room. We particularly enjoyed the presentation of the decision for expanded the canals, and learned a lot - like John Adams borrowing money from the Dutch to fund the U.S. Revolution. The docent was particularly helpful at answering questions we had about the canals, and helped us understand the... More

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See 7 more reviews by drichrx for Amsterdam
Providence, Rhode Island
Senior Contributor
25 reviews 25 reviews
10 attraction reviews
Reviews in 7 cities Reviews in 7 cities
2 helpful votes 2 helpful votes
5 of 5 stars Reviewed 5 May 2013

We were recommended to go here because my friend majors in urban planning. I wasn't sure what to expect from this museum, i thought it would be a bunch of displays of old sketches and plans of the city of Amsterdam however it was very well done. It turned out to be an interactive introduction to the development of the... More

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See 4 more reviews by missyoungtraveller for Amsterdam
Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Senior Contributor
31 reviews 31 reviews
10 attraction reviews
Reviews in 16 cities Reviews in 16 cities
18 helpful votes 18 helpful votes
4 of 5 stars Reviewed 4 May 2013

The facade of this museum understates what goes on inside. Het Grachtenhuis Museum is very modern museum, using among other things video projections to make the history of the Amsterdam canal houses come to life. The story of how the city was build is told with a sense of humor, that I think will appeal to children from 10 and... More

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See 8 more reviews by Sun1968 for Amsterdam
UK
Senior Contributor
23 reviews 23 reviews
19 attraction reviews
Reviews in 6 cities Reviews in 6 cities
3 helpful votes 3 helpful votes
5 of 5 stars Reviewed 28 April 2013

Amazing visuals - some really good for children! Wonderful holograms inside a dolls house, peep shows of the houses, what a surprise, a little gem. I found it far more informative and interesting than the Amsterdam museum even though it is quite small. Free on the Amsterdam card - if you plan carefully that card can save you a lot.

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See 11 more reviews by Pippa65 for Amsterdam
Mumbai
Senior Reviewer
7 reviews 7 reviews
Reviews in 4 cities Reviews in 4 cities
1 helpful vote 1 helpful vote
5 of 5 stars Reviewed 19 April 2013

Being fascinated with Amsterdam's canals, I was very eager to learn more about their raison de etre why they were selected as World heritage site. I was expecting Het Grachtenhuis to be a museum with staid plaster of paris models explaining the canal construction. Instead it turned out to be a stunning audio visual delivery of the canal history. The... More

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See 3 more reviews by BhaskarSohoni for Amsterdam
Brussels, Région De Bruxelles-Capitale, Belgium
Contributor
14 reviews 14 reviews
Reviews in 10 cities Reviews in 10 cities
1 helpful vote 1 helpful vote
5 of 5 stars Reviewed 2 April 2013

Very well setup exhibition retracing the history of the city across centuries; however not cheap (12€pp)

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San Juan, Puerto Rico
Top Contributor
80 reviews 80 reviews
23 attraction reviews
Reviews in 33 cities Reviews in 33 cities
35 helpful votes 35 helpful votes
3 of 5 stars Reviewed 26 March 2013

Somehow I expected this to be a canal house with furnishings. This museum instead provides the history of how the city of Amsterdam was designed. Interesting visual effects move the story along. You are moved along as a a group, and you do have to see the entire presentation before the next door is opened, so this can take a... More

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Delft, The Netherlands
Senior Contributor
43 reviews 43 reviews
10 attraction reviews
Reviews in 28 cities Reviews in 28 cities
40 helpful votes 40 helpful votes
3 of 5 stars Reviewed 18 March 2013

High-tech displays make this a visually interesting museum: clever film where shadows are projected on a model of the city... a house where you can peer in the different windows to see what would have happened in the rooms hundreds of years ago. You move with a group through several rooms and in each there is some sort of presentation... More

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Birmingham, United Kingdom
Contributor
11 reviews 11 reviews
3 attraction reviews
Reviews in 4 cities Reviews in 4 cities
2 helpful votes 2 helpful votes
5 of 5 stars Reviewed 10 March 2013

This museum explains how and why Amsterdam was built the way it was. The information is presented in lots of innovative ways which helps keep you interested. We thought the museum was very carefully put together and enjoyed the various displays and shows on offer.

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See 7 more reviews by suzymhall for Amsterdam

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