The STRAAT Museum, NDSM, Amsterdam
The Netherlands is packed with museums, but most people stick to the same few. There’s a whole world beyond Amsterdam’s Museumplein, filled with places that are strange, brilliant, and often delightfully niche.
The Museumkaart: Worth It or Not?
This is an unpaid plug for the Museumkaart. Why? Because you feel like an insider when you walk in with your kaart, flash it to “catch the exhibit” and move like a local.
The Museumkaart (Museum Pass) gives you free or reduced entry to more than 500 museums across the country, as many times as you like. It’s personal and valid for one year. It used to be better: some museums now charge a “supplemental fee”, but it’s still worth it if you’re going to be seeing museums. One or two museums only? Cheaper to buy a ticket.
Cost: about €75 for adults, €39 for youth (yep, there’s a kid’s version, too) on an app.
Website: museum.nl
Good to know:
- If you live in the Netherlands or visit often, or have an ambitious museum agenda, it pays off after 3–4 museum visits.
- Some special exhibitions still charge a small supplement.
- Tourists can buy a temporary version valid for 31 days, but it’s trickier to get without a Dutch address or bank account.
- Short trip? A city card like the I Amsterdam Card or Rotterdam Welcome Card might make more sense.
For locals or long-stayers, the Museumkaart is an easy “yes.” It’s freedom to walk into museums whenever curiosity strikes.
20 Alternative Museums Worth Your Time
| # | Museum | Location | Focus | Museumkaart Accepted | Website |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Museum van de Geest | Haarlem & Amsterdam | Art and mental health | Yes | museumvandegeest.nl |
| 2 | Inkijkmuseum | Eindhoven | Mini exhibitions viewed through windows | No | inkijkmuseum.nl |
| 3 | Nationaal Fietsmuseum Velorama | Nijmegen | History of bicycles | Yes | velorama.nl |
| 4 | Depot Boijmans Van Beuningen | Rotterdam | Art storage as exhibition | Yes | boijmans.nl/depot |
| 5 | Mondriaanhuis | Amersfoort | Piet Mondrian’s life and art | Yes | mondriaanhuis.nl |
| 6 | Museonder | De Hoge Veluwe | Underground nature and geology | Yes | hogeveluwe.nl |
| 7 | KattenKabinet | Amsterdam | Art about cats but worth the visit to see the inside of the house | Yes | kattenkabinet.nl |
| 8 | Museum Tot Zover | Amsterdam | Funeral culture and death | Yes | totszover.nl |
| 9 | STRAAT Museum | Amsterdam (NDSM) | Street art and graffiti in a vast space – really something to behold (and the free ferry ride from Centraal adds to the joy of it all) | Yes | straatmuseum.com |
| 10 | Hash Marihuana & Hemp Museum | Amsterdam | Cannabis culture and a bit of pushing but worth a visit if you if partake | No | hashmuseum.com |
| 11 | Oorlogsmuseum Overloon | Overloon | WWII history | Yes | oorlogsmuseum.nl |
| 12 | Design Museum Den Bosch | Den Bosch | Design, ceramics, jewellery | Yes | designmuseum.nl |
| 13 | Museum MORE | Gorssel | Modern realistic art | Yes | museummore.nl |
| 14 | Museum Het Schip | Amsterdam | Amsterdam School architecture | Yes | hetschip.nl |
| 15 | The Mouse Mansion | Amsterdam | Miniature mouse world | No | muizenhuis.nl |
| 16 | International Klompenmuseum | Eelde | Dutch wooden shoes | Yes | klompenmuseum.nl |
| 17 | Eyeglass Museum | Burgh-Haamstede | Spectacles and optics | No | dutchnews.nl |
| 18 | Electric Ladyland | Amsterdam | Fluorescent art and glowing minerals | No | electric-lady-land.com |
| 19 | Museum Van Loon | Amsterdam | Canal-house interiors and family life – one of the best places to sit and reflect in Amstedam | Yes | museumvanloon.nl |
| 20 | Embassy of the Free Mind | Amsterdam | Books, philosophy, and free thought | Yes | embassyofthefreemind.com |
Het Schip Museum, Amsterdam (includes a real wooden model sailing ship built by students)
Why These Museums Are Worth It
Most of these museums let you step outside the standard tourist track.
- Amsterdam alone hides half a dozen small treasures within walking distance of the canals. The Van Gogh and the Rijks are tourist hell.
- Smaller cities like Amersfoort, Gorssel, and Eelde have focused collections that reveal specific slices of Dutch history and creativity.
- Rotterdam and Den Bosch bring design, architecture, and process to the foreground.
If you visit three or more in a month, the Museumkaart pays for itself. It also encourages you to wander into smaller places you might otherwise skip. Many of these museums are quiet, personal, and run with genuine passion. You’ll meet curators who care more about storytelling than souvenir shops.
For a small country, the Netherlands has a remarkable variety of museums. The big names get the headlines, but the real character of Dutch culture often hides in these smaller, stranger corners. Bring your curiosity, and maybe your Museumkaart, and see where it leads.
