General, Amsterdam

Luggage and bags: The airlines are notorious for losing luggage, we all know that. Yet, there are still people who make the foolish mistake of putting valuable items in their checked luggage! As a carry-on bag, soft-sided bag constructed from high-tech material is the best. You can use it also as pillow, while you are waiting for a long time on the airport, and want to rest.

Clothing/Shoes/Weather Gear: Only travel for as many days as you have underwear for!!!!!!

Toiletries and Medical Supplies: Medications, contact lens paraphernalia, asthma tools, and a little handy-pack of tissues should always go into your carry-on bag.

Photo Equipment: Do not forget a small camera and a good Travel Guide! They won't add much space or weight, and are well worth it if you end up spending more time that you expected still and waiting.

Miscellaneous: Most airlines allow you a carry-on bag and one personal item (briefcase, laptop or something like that). Pack your carry-on as if you expect your checked baggage to be lost. Choose a bag that is large enough to handle all the things you need to take, but small enough to fit the size requirements at your airline. Things like this should be carried on your person or packed in a carry-on bag that will fit under the seat.
• Small valuables: cash, credit cards, jewelry, cameras.
• Critical items: medicine, keys, passport, tour vouchers, tickets.
• Irreplaceable items: manuscripts, heirlooms.
• Fragile items: eyeglasses, glass containers, liquids.
• Personal need: toiletries, a change of underwear, some food, a sweater, wet wipes,

Remember, the only way to be sure your valuables are not damaged or lost is to keep them with you.

Luggage and bags: Small Wheeled trolley suitcase

Clothing/Shoes/Weather Gear: Usual plus my umbrella

Toiletries and Medical Supplies: When I travel to Amsterdam I am never without my first aid/medicine kit. Medications such as Sudafed or Tylenol Cold which some can find anywhere without a prescription in their home countries are by prescription only in The Netherlands and a lot of other countries also.

Bring meds with you, nothing can ruin a trip or cut into your travel budget faster than a cold or infection.

Luggage and bags: I always travel light. A medium bag for clothing and some space for gifts and a backpack (always useful to walk around with so u can have inside maps/guide/water/things u buy etc. Beware of pickpockets like in every big city in the world. Nothing more to worry about...

Clothing/Shoes/Weather Gear: I was there in July and we had our rainy moments :) so bring a umbrella although you will find many stores selling many of them in nice colors

Toiletries and Medical Supplies: You will easily find painkillers but bring your own medicines

Photo Equipment: You will take dozens of photos so big memory cards please! :)

Miscellaneous: At least one city guide, read some info before arrival so to know some things about the city, u will find a lot of info at VT pages/forums too and take a look at a map so to know where is your hotel etc. The tourist Info is right opposite the central station and there you can buy a map and ask anything you want (room, tickets, directions etc) but you have to know that many other people will do the same

Clothing/Shoes/Weather Gear: Typical weather ranges from about 0 degrees Celsius in the depths of winter (although there is usually very little snow) to typically pleasant sunny days of +20 to 25C in the summer. However, the weather can be very unpredictable and change within a matter of hours even if it looks good to start with.

Make sure you a warm coat, gloves, scarf and a hat in winter and a jumper or a cardigan in summer. Any time of the year you should also bring an umbrella (unless it is freezing) and sensible shoes that can take the long walks on the cobbled streets.

Spring and autumn are pleasant, but can be very wet (more than 100mm of rain per month). Be prepared and bring a pair of waterproof shoes and a coat. It can also be windy, so your umbrella won't be much help!

In the summer months there are typically 200 hours of sunshine a month, dropping to between 50 and 100 in the winter.

Luggage and bags: My wife and I checked two large roller bags on our flights, that contained mostly clothing. We each had a carry-on that contained, in a worst-case scenario of checked luggage being delayed or lost, items such as one change of clothes, toiletries, minor first-aid, personal items, camera, guidebook and other maps and pre-trip to-do lists and notes, pretty much everything that would be a pain or costly or impossible to replace if lost. You could always buy more clothes in a pinch.

Prior to our trip we bought TSA-approved combination locks for our checked luggage and carry-ons, with nifty red/green indicator lights that would go from green to red if a bag had been opened by an inspector with a TSA lock tool. Nice peace of mind after reading reports of baggage handlers stealing items from luggage at various airports. Neither checked bag indicated having been opened on the trip over or back, and we didn't lock our carry-ons until passing through airport gate areas in case they needed to be inspected.

Clothing/Shoes/Weather Gear: Winter, even early Winter in Amsterdam, means being dressed for anything from sub-freezing temps to surprisingly mild, almost warm days. Also for the very high probabllity of some rain and maybe a windy, gusty day. Keep in mind that the prevailing winds and weather systems are usually coming from the direction of the sea, with the attendant moisture.

Photo Equipment: We took only a digital camera, mainly for compactness and its ease of carrying, but also due to not having to be concerned with film issues and luggage x-ray machines at airports. We also own a nice 35mm film camera, and I would argue with anyone that if you know what you're doing can take better quality with those than a digital, but chose to leave it at home.

Miscellaneous: I honestly could not tell you exactly how Customs works as far as going into the Netherlands, and I know that sounds weird. When we exited our plane, with our two carry-on bags, we went to the baggage claim carousels and got our two larger, checked bags. Back behind some of these was obviously what was a Customs area, with a long line and several tables at an inspection point with luggage being opened and items strewn about on the tables. We started over that way, then noticed that quite a few people carrying or pulling luggage seemed to be just walking to the other end of that area from the carousels and getting in a shorter, line leading through some doorways. Unsure of what the deal was, we turned and went into that line, which also included those that had been in the inspection area and coming out the other end. Right on through some corridor areas we walked with everyone else and we were on our way.

If someone can explain this to me, I'd love to hear it. Still scratching our heads on this one!

Luggage and bags: Pack as light as possible, but pack warmer than you thought

Clothing/Shoes/Weather Gear: Make sure that you have some good walking shoes, I mean try them out go to a track and walk a mile in them. The best way around the city is walking, so have some good shoes with you. Also pack a weather proof jacket with zip up pockets, and make sure you have a good umbrella even in the summer.

Clothing/Shoes/Weather Gear: I think I read somewhere on this site where someone suggested "black, black, black", and I now understand why that is a good suggestion. I was there in late April/early May, and it was still pretty chilly, but we are used to wearing bright colors in the spring in the Southern US so I probably looked like a tulip! The main colors people there were wearing was black, denim, army green, and tan (like cargo pants). My traveling companion and I agreed that everyone was dressed casually in a grunge sort of way. Someone else on this site mentioned "hippie" and that would fit too. And there didn't seem to be any one trend but more about individual style which was cool. A lot of items looked somewhat vintage. And if you are there during cool weather, be sure and take a scarf and boots.

Luggage and bags: Take a backpack or suitcase with you.

Clothing/Shoes/Weather Gear: When it's summer dress lightly, but always bring a sweater, trousers and raincoat along, you never know...Also in winter and autumn it can be very cold. In winter it often freezes, so bring a scarf, gloves and a wintercoat then.

Toiletries and Medical Supplies: You can get everything in the supermarket.

Photo Equipment: Good shops for your film and filmdevelopment are everywhere. No problem!

Camping/Beach/Outdoor Gear: Umbrella!