Amsterdam Central Canal Ring

Visit the thoroughly modern De Appel Museum for a glance at the latest international art or get a taste of life in the Golden lane at the marvelous Van Loon and Willet-Holthuysen canal houses. Take a day or more to experience the neighborhood’s amazing offerings; the journey to and from sights around this beautiful area should be nearly as fun as the museums themselves.

Museum Van Loon. The Museum Van Loon provides an exciting look at the history of Amsterdam. Built in 1672 for a Flemish merchant attracted by the international trading boom, it once housed Ferdinand Bol, Rembrandt van Rijn’s most famous pupil. The house eventually fell into the hands of the Van Loon family, descendants of Dutch East India Company co-founder Willem van Loon. The Van Loons’ portraits, along with the family crest commemorating their connection with the East Indies, adorn the walls of this exquisite residence. Numerous other heirlooms and antique furniture decorate each room. The intricate and opulent Rococo gilt banister along the central staircase has family names subtly worked into its curves. The formal French garden is an oasis as beautiful as the house itself. (Keizersgracht 672, between Vijzelstraat and Reguliersgracht. Tram #16, 24, or 25 to Keizersgracht. ☎624 5255; www.museumvanloon.nl. Open Sept.-June M and F-Su 11am-5pm; July-Aug. daily 11am-5pm. €5, students €4, under 12 free.)

Foam Photography Museum. Housed in a traditional canal house, the Foam Photography Museum fearlessly explores every aspect of modern photography. All genres of the photographed image are welcome here, regardless of message or content. The museum hosts as many as 20 exhibits per year, rendering its galleries as fresh as its spacious, modern wood-and-glass interior. After admiring the engrossing works of international photography giants side by side with those of up-and-coming Dutch students, visit the cafe reading room, which is piled with books and magazines about photography. (Keizersgracht 609. Tram #16, 24, or 25 to Keizersgracht, between Vijzelstraat and Reguliersgracht. ☎551 6500; www.foam.nl. Open daily 10am-5pm. Cafe open W-Su 10am-5pm. €6, students with ID €5.)

De Appel. Anything goes at De Appel, which showcases and develops contemporary art from around the world. Its multimedia exhibitions and installations are on the cutting edge of the artistic arena. Students from the museum’s curatorial school assemble a show once per year, and exhibitions rotate about every month. The first museum to show video art in the Netherlands, De Appel is now a testing ground for the newest, most daring multimedia installations. Check their website for occasional Tuesday programs. (Nieuwe Spiegelstraat 10. ☎622 5215; www.deappel.nl. Open Tu-Su 11am-6pm. €4. Tu programs 8pm €5)

Museum Willet-Holthuysen. Experience the ways of Amsterdam’s Golden Age. Run by the Amsterdam Historisch Museum, this 17th-century canal house has been preserved as a fascinating museum with 18th-century furnishings, so you can see how the wealthy in Amsterdam lived over 300 years ago. In 1895, Sandrina Holthuysen donated the family home she shared with her collector-husband Abraham Willet. Now the marble mansion has been redone in an early 18th-century style, with gilt-edged walls, glittering chandeliers, family portraits, Rococo furnishings, and other signs of conspicuous consumption, including Abraham’s collection of fine porcelain, glassware, and silver. Browse through the museum’s guidebook to find out the details of daily life here, such as 19th-century water filtration methods. The French Neoclassical garden located behind the house remains as finely manicured as it was in the Dutch Golden Age. (Herengracht 605, between Amstel and Utrechtsestraat. Tram #4, 9, 14, or 20 to Rembrandtplein or Metro to Waterlooplein. ☎523 1870; www.ahm.nl. Open M-F 10am-5pm, Sa-Su 11am-5pm. €4, ages 6-16 €2, over 65 €3, under 6 free.)

Torture Museum. An impressive and shocking range of medieval instruments of cruel and unusual punishment are on display at the appropriately dark and claustrophobic Torture Museum. Although the array of centuries-old racks, guillotines, and thumbscrews lack much context beyond superficial explanations of their (obvious) uses, their intricate designs shed light on the evolution of sadistic technology throughout history. If the rest of Amsterdam’s hedonistic playground—with its mind-boggling collection of brothels, coffee shops, and live sex shows—is simply too cheerful for you, this subdued celebration of torture may be just what the executioner ordered. (Singel 449. Tram #1, 2, or 5 to Koningsplein; cross the canal and turn right onto Singel. ☎320 6642. Open daily 10am-11pm. €5, children—think twice about this—€3.50.)