Westerpark

If you are in this section of Amsterdam on a weekend during the summer you need to experience Westerpark. There is a lot to do here restaurants, picnic, jog, and people watch. The Het Schip (historic architecture) complex is a short 5 minute walk from the park.

Probably the best park in Amsterdam! Vondelpark is huge, but hey, no BBQ, and always full of tourists smoking weed. Westerpark is a bit further from the city center which means only the very health-conscious and serious parkies come here. The park has a ton of dining options, my favorite being the ice cream shop. There are a few amazing coffee spots, and let's not forget -- Tony's headquarters are here! You could walk in and sample all the flavors for free! There is an amazing jogging trail around the park, and the 'garden center' to the west is a hidden gem. It's private property, though, and only open for limited hours during the summer. Other than that, the famous Rollende Keukens is organized at this park, as is the milkshake festival. Countless conferences. There's even a tv studio. Oh, and Ketelhuis is an amazing spot for some Dutch or European movies. So much to say about this amazing spot.

About a 10-20 minute walk north of centrum, you'll find Westerpark. I'm sure it's a unpopular opinion, but I personally think Westerpark is way better than Vondelpark to the south. Westerpark was huge, compared to most parks we have here in the states. I really enjoyed how they put nice walking / running paths throughout the park, separate from the bike paths. There's also spots with lots of open space to play sports on nice grass fields. Westerpark proved to be my favorite park in Amsterdam city, it seemed a lot less busy than Vondelpark and way more green.

I love Westerpark for a few reasons: 1. It's a park with a wide variety. Kids, pets, adults who just want to lay in the sun...it's all possible here. There's plenty of room for everyone! 2. There's an area that is like a stroll in the woods. I miss the woods where I grew up and I'm so happy to have a place that reminds of home...even if it's just a little bit. 3. Lots of winding paths. I love to just follow a path to see where it leads. 4. Bike friendly to a point, then it's pedestrian only. I like it though, because if I'm going for a walk I don't want to worry about being run over by a cyclist. Though, some bikes still manage to get through. 5. Festivals and markets in the Westergasfabriek area all the time! But you can easily get far from the commotion. 6. Restaurants and cafes are there so you don't have to go far to eat or drink. I love seeing how people use their public spaces, from mini BBQs to flying kites, to sun-bathing, I've seen it all and more. Oh, and there's cherry blossoms in the spring. Love!

Awesome and laid back! It's a lot less busy than other parks in the city and its super close to centraal station and the cool haarlemmerstraat. Inside the park there are a lot of green areas and little cafes and restaurants, so it's great for long summer days! You can also bbq in certain areas so come prepared!

America is seriously never going to pull off parks the way the Europeans do. I love love love this place! I walked here since it's a bit inconvenient to get to by tram from city center. Absolutely worth a stop if you're looking for something peaceful or if you're just looking for a break from the hustle and bustle of traveling. I was lucky enough to be in Amsterdam during a perfectly sunny weekend so I took the time to relax and rewind for a bit by napping in the park. There are tons of people in the area and so much beautiful greenery. I saw a couple of bikers and joggers as well. It's a huge park and I definitely recommend exploring! I love that it also parallels the canal--something different from most of the parks I've been to. tldr; awesome park, definitely make the trip to see it!

There are so many things to say about Westerpark. Although it's also close to the city center the atmosphere is unbelievably relaxing. Everytime i'm in that gorgeous city i use to take a run there. Here are lot's of people to meet, especially on the weekends. Don't get me wrong, it's not too crowded. One of the advantges of the park is that it's quite big so the visitors spread out in every nook and cranny. For joggers it's nice, cause besides the size of the park they also placed some fitness equipments to warm up, cool-down etc. For dog owners it's fine, cause next to the "normal" pathways there are paths you can walk with your dog. so you don't have to be constantly worried about possible accidents with one the fast bikers For families it's also beautiful, cause there are different children's farms, like a big playground with petting zoo, a small area of unspoiled nature where u can walk through. Last time we went there it was real adventurous, cause the plants were way higher than us, so we almost missed our way out. Besides that there's also a nice café a bit hidden in the remote area. In some evenings of the month they have events such as live music. I can't describe everything in detail, just let me list some key points: - tennis court - cinema - various events (concerts, markets, circus) So Westerpark is definitely worth a visit ;)

Great park to go for a run. Just over 3 miles if you run the perimeter. Word of warning though, don't go into the middle area with the small houses - it isn't easy to find your way out!

Yesterday was yet another beautiful day in Amsterdam. I enjoyed a lovely day in the park with my Dutchman. I love this park, it's all about location here.Westerpark is so inspiring, it's a special urban and environmental friendly park. Amsterdam is exceptional when it comes to integrating urban environments with parks. It's surrounded by so many wonderful spaces. This city has done an excellent job in linking the infrastructure with so many green spaces, buildings and communities. I love how the city is easily accessible to so many people.You will find so many trendy shops, cafes,restaurants, pubs, cinemas and galleries in this area. Ideal location on sight to relax if your a visitor or local.

It's time to give it up for Westerpark. ============================ 1) Because Westerpark is still a park. ============================ A place where you can stroll around and daydream without almost being knocked over by other visitors, running or cycling (yes, I'm looking at you, Vondel). Parents come here on hot days to get some minutes of rest while their kids are having fun in the wading pool. Everyone else brings a book and a towel to relax next to the water in the actual park area. ====================================== 2) Because Westerpark is also a great event venue. ====================================== This year is not over for a long time yet and still there have already been so many cool events at Westerpark/WesterGasfabriek. These were my highlights so far: summer: Neighbour Food Market - Skip home-cooking once a month on Sunday to indulge in the amazing variety of lovely home made food. May: Las Dalias on the road - Ibiza's famous hippie market with a lot of handicraft like jewelry, clothes, furniture etc. Plus some nice food stalls. May: Food film festival - You can't go wrong with food and film, who doesn't like either or both? May/June: Rollende Keukens - The free fantastic 4-days munten-less cash-only gluttony aka food fair. Read more: http://www.yelp.nl/biz/rollende-keukens-amsterdam?hrid=_LEv1UCyBNZuqTfpdUFF2w July: Pitch festival (Friday & Saturday), De wereld draait buiten (Sunday) - 2 days of finest electronic music followed by a day of hot live bands. July: Buiten Westen (Saturday), Milkshake (Sunday) - Play fun, gay run and general exuberance at the fairground of the festivals, accompanied by electronic music. Tipps and tricks for festival visitors: http://www.yelp.nl/biz/westergasfabriek-amsterdam?hrid=QHUMJOf5xE53rq6aG586Xg ================================================== 3) Because Westerpark houses a whole bunch of gezellige tentjes ================================================== Westerpark houses the WesterGasfabriek area with places like MC Theater for music, dance, movies and theater, the North Sea Jazz Club for great concerts, Het Ketelhuis for movies, Bakkerswinkel for brunch (they also have a big terrace) or restaurant WestergasTerras for a nice dinner and salsa rhythms afterwards. Every Thursday evening from May until September there's Summer Breeze in front of WestergasTerras, next to the Gashouder. Move your hips nonstop to hot south american beats. I still didn't visit all of the spots yet (missing: Raïnaraï, Proef, Pacific Park, Het Ketelhuis - who wants to join?). In summer you theoretically don't have to leave west because Westerpark offers entertainment for every taste all days of the week. And because of all of these reasons Westerpark rules.

Great park! I like this one better than Vondelpark. It is not as crowded and I think that it is much more interesting especially because of the old gas factory (gasfabriek). There are a bunch of other things too like a nature area that you can walk through, fitness equipment, a children's farm, and many other things.

Really nice park which hosts many events ! I've been there during the caravan's festival which was really really cool ! Concerts, delicious food, it is the ideal place to discover new things. I'd like so much to go back on a sunny day for a picnic !

I really like Westerpark because of the old brick buildings, old-turned-new factory, and green surroundings. They have lots of events throughout the year here and I've also rented facilities for different work meetings through the flex space companies and also Westergasfabriek itself.