 Driving in Amsterdam is not recommended. The city’s streets are not big enough to accommodate the tens of thousands of cars owned by the city’s residents, let alone the 500,000 tourists who annually arrive in their cars. As a result, parking spots are limited and very expensive.
Visitors are advised to park their car at a P+R (park and ride) on the city outskirts, from where there are bus, tram and subway lines into the city centre. Motorists also need to watch out for cyclists and trams..
Parking at the massive ArenA P+R, reached by the A1, A2 and A9 into the city, or the Stadionplein P+R, situated next to the Olympisch Stadion, costs €5.70 a day, which includes two free public transport tickets. In the city center, cars must be parked in a designated parking space or in a car park. Parking meters can be recognized by a yellow sign with the letter ‘P’ and charges are split into three zones. Parking tickets for the most central zone A and zone B cost €2.80 per hour, while parking in zone C costs €1.70 per hour. Parking regulations are very strict so make sure you pay the parking fee. When your car gets towed away, it'll cost you nearly 230 Euros and it is rather time consuming. |
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