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Trigger Tours · Amstel 51C, by the Hermitage pier

The Jewish Quarter and the war years

A two-hour walk through the old Jewish Quarter and the Plantage district that tells how Amsterdam lived through the Nazi occupation and its aftermath, with Anne Frank's story at its centre. Pick it if you want the wider history of Jewish Amsterdam, not only the house on the Prinsengracht.

Anne Frank & Jewish Quarter Tour

About this experience

This is the war-years walk. You meet on the Amstel at Amstel 51C and spend two hours in the centuries-old Jewish Quarter and the leafy Plantage district. The guide explains how the Jewish community shaped Amsterdam's culture over the centuries, then what happened to it between 1940 and 1945, and how the city dealt with that past afterwards. Anne Frank's story runs through it: her family, the years in hiding and the diary.

Stops include the Portuguese Synagogue, inaugurated in 1675 and still lit by candles, the Jewish Museum, the building that housed the Jewish Council, and the Dokwerker, Mari Andriessen's statue of a dockworker that remembers the February strike of 25 February 1941, when Amsterdam stopped work in protest at raids on Jewish men. You also stand at the Auschwitz Monument in the Wertheimpark and hear about the hunger winter. Guests write that the guides handle the hardest parts calmly and with compassion.

A private option is available at booking. The walk stays in the east of the centre and does not go to the Prinsengracht. Timed tickets for the Anne Frank House are sold on the museum's own website, annefrank.org: EUR 16.50 for adults, EUR 7.00 for ages 10 to 17 and EUR 1.00 for children up to 9 (2026, booking fee included). From the Jewish Cultural Quarter back to the Prinsengracht is roughly a 25 to 30 minute walk across the centre. A museum slot about three hours after the start leaves time for it. Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start.

  • Amsterdam under occupation, from the February strike to the hunger winter
  • The Portuguese Synagogue and the Jewish Museum
  • The Dokwerker statue and the headquarters of the Jewish Council
  • The Auschwitz Monument in the Wertheimpark
  • The Plantage district and how the city faced its past after 1945

How the day runs

  1. StartAmstel 51C

    Meet by the Hermitage pier on the Amstel, at the edge of the old Jewish Quarter.

  2. First partCenturies of Jewish Amsterdam

    How the original Jewish Quarter grew and what the community gave the city.

  3. Jonas Daniel MeijerpleinThe Dokwerker

    The square by the Portuguese Synagogue and the Jewish Museum, and the strike of February 1941.

  4. PlantageOccupation and deportation

    The Jewish Council, the deportations, and Anne Frank's family in the same years.

  5. WertheimparkThe Auschwitz Monument

    Broken mirrors that reflect the sky, and how Amsterdam remembers today.

The square in front of the Portuguese Synagogue in the Jewish Cultural QuarterThe brick Portuguese Synagogue seen from the streetThe National Holocaust Names Memorial with its walls of brick

What's included

Included

  • Local guide
  • Private tour, if that option is selected

Not included

  • Anne Frank House entry (book your timed slot on the museum's website)
  • Food and drinks

Who it suits

Book it if

  • You want the history of Jewish Amsterdam around Anne Frank's story
  • You are planning the Jewish Museum, the Portuguese Synagogue or the National Holocaust Museum on the same day
  • You are travelling with a teenager and want the history explained with care
  • You like a guide who welcomes lots of questions

Skip it if

What guests say

★★★★★

Excellent guide and such an interesting and at times emotional tour. Saw things I would have missed if I had just walked around unguided. Really worth it

Lucy · Sep 2026
★★★★★

Great, Aaron was super approachable, attentive, and interested. [...] Together with my 15-year-old teen, the insight into the history was a real asset, today more than ever... highly recommended!

Arno · Aug 2026
★★★★★

Our guide James was outstanding. He was very knowledgeable and communicated well. Despite the harrowing history, he taught us more than we already knew.

Roy · May 2026
★★★★★

His tour was spectacular and James was the reason. He presented the difficult content in a very calm and compassionate way.

Bradley · Apr 2026

Tips before you book

  • Pair it with the Jewish Cultural Quarter museums, which sit around the route. The Portuguese Synagogue and Jewish Museum ticket gives you a month to use it.
  • Plan the Anne Frank House for the afternoon. New dates open every Tuesday at 10:00 CET for visits six weeks later, so book your slot as soon as your date opens.
  • Wear comfortable shoes, as the listing asks. The route crosses cobbles and bridges.
  • Check the day of the week if you add the synagogue. The Portuguese Synagogue is open Sunday to Thursday, 11:00 to 17:00, and closed on Saturday.

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Frequently asked questions

Does the Anne Frank and Jewish Quarter tour include the Anne Frank House?

No. The tour stays in the Jewish Quarter and the Plantage. Book your timed museum slot on annefrank.org; from here the house is roughly a 25 to 30 minute walk.

Where does the tour start?

At Amstel 51C, 1018 EJ Amsterdam, on the Amstel by the Hermitage pier.

What will we see?

The Portuguese Synagogue, the Jewish Museum, the former Jewish Council headquarters, the Dokwerker statue and the Auschwitz Monument, with the story of the occupation and of Anne Frank.

Can we book it as a private tour?

Yes. A private option is offered at booking, and cancellation is free up to 24 hours before.

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Amsterdam in the Second World War and the Jewish Quarter, with a local guide, in two hours.

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Amsterdam in the Second World War and the Jewish Quarter, with a local guide, in two hours.

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