Amsterdam GVB Public Transport Ticket 1 to 7 Days

Amsterdam's trams and the city-centre sights

Trams are the easiest way to explore the centre of Amsterdam, with frequent lines running from Centraal Station along the main canal belts to the museum district and beyond. Lines 2 and 12 take you to Museumplein, where the Rijksmuseum and the other major museums stand around a wide lawn, and lines through Dam Square and Leidseplein connect the busiest parts of the old town. Most trams are low-floor and step-free.

With an unlimited ticket you can jump off whenever something catches your eye, ride out to the Vondelpark or the markets of De Pijp, and return without thinking about single fares. Many visitors ask how to get around Amsterdam without walking long distances; the tram network, combined with the metro, reaches almost every place a traveller wants to see.

The metro and the North/South Line

Amsterdam's metro has five lines that link the centre with the business district of Zuid, the stadium district in the south-east and the residential districts of the west and east. The newest, the North/South Line, runs under the historic centre from Amsterdam-Noord through Centraal Station, Rokin, Vijzelgracht and De Pijp to Zuid station, cutting journey times across the city to a few minutes.

The metro is the fastest choice for longer trips, for example to the RAI convention centre or to stadium events, and it is useful in the evening when you want to cross the city quickly. Scan the mobile e-ticket at the gates when you enter and leave the station; all metro stations have lifts, which helps travellers with luggage, strollers or reduced mobility.

The IJ ferries to Amsterdam-Noord

Behind Centraal Station, ferries cross the wide IJ waterway to Amsterdam-Noord, a former shipyard district that has become one of the most creative parts of the city. The short crossing to Buiksloterweg takes only a few minutes and lands you next to a striking tower with a panoramic deck and a modern museum of moving images, while a longer ferry runs to the NDSM wharf, a vast industrial site full of street art, studios and waterside cafes.

The ferries run day and night, carry bikes and pedestrians, and offer some of the best views of the city skyline and the busy port waterway. They are included in your ticket, so a trip across the IJ is an easy way to see a different side of Amsterdam and enjoy the open water on a sunny afternoon.

Buses, night buses and bus 369 to Schiphol

The city bus network fills the gaps between tram and metro lines, reaching the outer neighbourhoods, parks and the western docklands, and after the trams stop around half past midnight, night buses take over so you can return to your hotel late. All city buses are covered by your ticket, day and night, for the whole validity period.

An important extra is bus 369, which runs frequently between Sloterdijk station and Schiphol Airport. Many travellers ask how to get from Schiphol to Amsterdam with this ticket: take bus 369 to Sloterdijk and continue by tram or metro into the city. The national train from Schiphol to Centraal Station and regional buses run by other companies are not included.

How to use your Amsterdam travel ticket

Your ticket is a mobile e-ticket that becomes valid from the start time you choose when you book and then runs for 24 hours for the 1-day ticket, or for the length of the multi-day ticket you select. Show or scan the code on your phone at the card reader when you board a tram or bus, and at the gates when you enter and leave a metro station. Use the live ticket on your phone, not a screenshot or a printout.

Is a multi-day Amsterdam transport ticket worth it? If you plan more than three or four rides a day, it usually works out simpler and better value than single fares, and it saves time at machines. Keep your phone charged, and if the code does not scan, staff at the service points in the main stations can help.