Waterside Cafes and Bars in Amsterdam: the Terraces on the Water

Amsterdam is a city built around water, so it is no surprise that some of its best cafes and bars open straight onto a canal, the Amstel or the harbour. A drink on a terrace with boats sliding past is one of the simplest things to do here, and it is even better when you arrive by water yourself rather than looking for a table on foot.

The places below all share one thing: they sit on the waterside, most with a terrace at the edge. Several are clustered in Amsterdam-Noord, across the IJ, where former shipyards have turned into some of the city's most characterful spots. Others line the Amstel south of the centre, where the river is wide and the light is good in the late afternoon. If you are planning to travel between them by boat, the guides to getting around Amsterdam by boat and renting a boat cover the practical side, and the events map and calendar shows what else is happening on the water while you are out.

The cafes over the water in the north

The north bank of the IJ is reached by the free GVB ferries from behind Centraal Station, and it is where the waterside scene is at its most relaxed. De Ceuvel is a former shipyard rebuilt as a green, off-grid workplace with a plant-based cafe and a terrace over the water. Further along the north bank, Pllek and Roest pair industrial buildings with a strip of urban beach, both with the water at the edge of the terrace.

These are the spots most worth the short ferry hop, and they are close enough to string together on a single afternoon on the water. The by-boat guide explains the ferry routes and where the IJ is open to small boats.

Along the Amstel and the central canals

South of the centre the Amstel widens, and a run of terraces looks straight onto the river. Amstelhaven and Cafe Hesp sit on this stretch, the kind of place to tie up or sit out for an hour as rowing eights and canal boats pass. Pont 13, a converted ferry moored in the western harbour, and Brouwerij 't IJ, the brewery tap beside the De Gooyer windmill, round out the list closer to the ring, along with Mediamatic ETEN on the Dijksgracht near the eastern docklands.

Reaching them by boat

Most of these places are easiest to reach on foot or by ferry, but several can be approached by small boat, which turns a drink into an outing. The rules are the same everywhere on the canals: keep to the right, mind your speed near moored boats, and remember that anyone at the tiller is held to the same alcohol limits as a driver. The guide to boating rules and etiquette has the full picture. Public moorings are limited and fill quickly on warm days and event weekends, so have a fallback in mind and do not count on tying up directly outside a busy terrace.

If your visit lands on one of the big event weekends, the water near the centre gets crowded fast. On Canal Parade day and through the Grachtenfestival, the quieter terraces in Amsterdam-Noord are often the better call, close to the action but off the busiest water.

When to go

The waterside terraces are at their best from late spring to early autumn, when the outdoor seating is fully open and the evenings are long. In high summer they fill fast, especially at weekends and on the big event days, so an earlier arrival or a spot slightly out of the centre pays off. Out of season most of the cafes stay open indoors, and a bright winter afternoon by the water has its own appeal, but the terrace life that defines these places is a warm-weather thing.

Timing matters on the water, too. The central canals and the Oosterdok are busiest in the afternoons and on event weekends, while mornings and the north bank stay calmer. If your visit coincides with the canal calendar, it is worth checking the events map and calendar before you set out, so you know which stretches of water to expect crowds on and which quieter terraces to aim for instead. Whichever you pick, arriving by water rather than on foot is what turns a drink into an outing, and it is the thread that ties this whole list together.