90-min Amsterdam Light Festival Tour

Recommended by 100% of travelers

Badge of Excellence

Amsterdam, Netherlands

1 hour 30 minutes (approx.)
Group discounts
Mobile ticket
Offered in: English

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Overview

Get great views of Amsterdam lit up from the water during this private winter lights cruise. Take nighttime photos of the artistic light sculptures along the route and enjoy complimentary soda, beer, and sparkling wine while you sail. Live commentary is provided by an on-board guide.

Get views of the light sculptures from the vantage point of the canal
Learn about the artworks and the city itself through live commentary
Soda, beer, and sparkling wine are included
A private boat means a personalized experience

What's Included

Skipper
Live commentary on board
Drinks (water, various soft drinks, beer, Prosecco)

Hotel pickup and drop-off
Gratuities

Meeting and Pickup

Meeting point

Prinsengracht 375, 1016 Amsterdam, Netherlands
The skipper will be at the waterside at the exact start time of your tour. You can recognise the boat by: White boat, Blue or Light Brown Roof, Turquoise blue seats, Heart logo on the side, Boat Name is Gordita or Blue in Green.

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

Itinerary

Make your way to central Amsterdam for your cruise departure time.

Climb on board your private canal cruise, which allows you excellent views of the light sculptures and displays. See light art and sculptures in a variety of arrangements and configurations from your vantage point on the canals, while your on-board guide provides engaging commentary.

Relax and watch the sights glide by while enjoying a soda, beer, or sparkling wine; return to the starting point at the end of your cruise.

Amsterdam Canal Ring

2 hours • Admission Ticket Free

Amsterdam Light Festival (Pass By)

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Not wheelchair accessible
Stroller accessible
Service animals allowed

Near public transportation
Most travelers can participate
Operates in all weather conditions, please dress appropriately. Blankets and optional roof available.
This is a private tour/activity. Only your group will participate

Supplied by

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

Traveler Photos

Gallery picture 1 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 2 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 3 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 4 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 5 (from a traveler's review)

Featured review

Jessica_C

This tour was one of our favorite memories from the trip. Carla and Rederij were very knowledgeable about both the Festival of Lights and the history of Amsterdam. They were also very friendly and had wonderful senses of humor. The small boat made everything more personal and the heated seats were a plus! We also did another boat tour during our time in Amsterdam and it couldn't compare. We would use and recommend Boat Trips by Locals over any other boat touring company for those traveling to Amsterdam.

Reviews

4.9

based on 71 reviews

Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor

We perform checks on reviews

Awesome private cruise

Mark_D, Dec 2025

Excellent experience. We were presently surprised that the cruise was a private one. The captain was very knowledgeable and personable. We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and the heated seats were a bonus. Wonderful experience!

Response from Host, Dec 2025

Thank you for such a lovely review Mark! Glad you enjoyed those heated seats as much as we do ;) Hope to see you again sometime on the canals.

Beautiful!

S_W, Jan 2025

This was such a nice tour! We had a great and fun tour guide and everything was just beautiful at night! Highly recommend this one!

Response from Host, Jan 2025

Thanks so much for choosing my tour! I hope to see you later in the year!

Artful Canal Tour

Sandra_W, Dec 2024

Our guide was very informative & friendly, and he described all the art installations in detail. He also gave us Lindt chocolates and drinks. The art installations were beautiful!

Response from Host, Dec 2024

Thanks so much, Sandra! I hope to do a daytime tour with you some time.

Perfect!!

Isabela_B, Jan 2020

I would definetely recomend!! The cruise is awesome. It was the best thing we have done in Amsterdam.

A great way to experience the city

antonialjustina, Jan 2020

We very much enjoyed these 2 hours. It was a small boat cruise with a friendly atmosphere (unlike other boats we passed by along the way that were packed) and drinks & snacks on board and a very interesting skipper. We learned so much!

Canal cruise at night

Scott_B, Jan 2020

A canal cruise of Amsterdam is a must. Doing it at night with the lights of the city was outstanding. We thoroughly enjoyed the tour, the snacks and the heated seats. A great trip!

Amsterdam Winter Lights Cruise

Janelle M, Dec 2019

Papp, the owner of a small, intimate canal barge arrived on time with cream puffs, Lindt chocolate balls, hot chocolate and sparkling wine. We cruised around the canals and harbour for 2 hours to see the Winter Light installations and the lovely bridges and houses of Amsterdam. Paap was very well informed and informative. I would recommend this cruise as a more intimate way to experience the canals than with larger barges.

Fun and educational

Catherine_O, Dec 2019

I learned a lot about the city from our excellent guide. There was so much to see. Yummy hot chocolate and treats.

Highlight of our trip

Jessica_C, Jan 2019

excellent

charlotte t, Dec 2018

Lovely tour very friendly tour guide, not as many actual lights as we hoped for but still very lovely and relaxing. lots of yummy hot chocolate and snacks too.

Best Amsterdam winter lights cruise

Nikola_Z, Dec 2018

We took the winter lights cruise on a smaller boat hoping it would be more intimate than the larger more popular boats. After going out on the cruise, I would ONLY recommend the smaller boats (preferably enclosed like ours was, winter gets cold). Our pilot was the owner and he actually took longer and deviated from the path that the other cruises were taking because he wanted to show us something HE liked, that wasn’t on the normal route. Our boat was small enough that we pulled over to the side so the owner could explain and give more details about some of the sights and light sculptures on display. The big boats looked like they were in a race around the canals and were going almost twice our speed. I don’t see how you could get any pictures from those boats. We stopped for pictures several times and he offered to open the clear plastic side covering (remember it’s winter time in Amsterdam and the temperature was 0c/32f) for better pictures, but mine came out great through the clear plastic siding, also he had the heater on and the hot chocolate made it a very special cruise.

Awesome tour, great guide!

Rosalina_D, Dec 2018

Thanks to “Papa”! Great tour, well worth the trip! Highly recommend this tour. My wife and i really enjoyed it. Also, be aware the Papa is willing to accecpt dogs on his boat (prior coordination recommended).

We loved the canal tour with our...

Jackie D, Jan 2017

We loved the canal tour with our skipper. It was a small electric boat which made the experience all the better as it was far more personal and informal. We took in the lights and when queues built up our skipper knew smaller alternative routes,which gave us more time to enjoy the sites. There were only seven guests on the trip which meant the guide could keep the conversation light and entertaining whilst giving us all opportunities to ask questions. The hot chocolate and cream pastries were very welcome as it was a cold night, but there was a heater on board and blankets if we needed them. Our skipper was well informed and obviously knew the history of the canals. A lovely trip and I would highly recommend it to anyone wanting to see the Festival of Lights.

I would highly recommend to take...

Natalia B, Jan 2017

I would highly recommend to take Amsterdam Light Festival Cruise with Refreshments It was a very memorable and absolutely lovely experience for us. I did a tour with my daughter 13 years old on Dec., 23rd. It was a very memorable and absolutely lovely experience. Marc Paping and his wife Carla put their hearts and soul into this tour. At some point we felt like they invited us to their home and they open up for us their hearts. Imagine that you are in a nice, cozy boat in a great company, with a cup of hot chocolate and amazing Dutch pastry à all this species with lots of nice jokes and endless stories about Amsterdam. What could be better? Dont look for anything else. I am sure we wont get any better experience! Thank you Marc and Carla and a very happy New Year. Natalia Switzerland

Small new electric boat that fits 10...

Joanna W, Dec 2016

Small new electric boat that fits 10 people. Not on a time schedule or rush to get back to base. Excellent host, the Captain was very knowledgable and new a lot about the light sculptures. The Dutch pastries were delicious. Highly recommended.