Dog Friendly Amsterdam Bars and Restaurants

Troost Brouwerij in Pijp
Bagels & Beans
La Fucina
Café Struis (taproom next to the Goyer windmill
Moods Coffee & Brunch
Mooie Boules

Our Journey

Train from Lucerne to Basel (1 hour)
Basel to Frankfurt (3 hours and an hour stop over)
Frankfurt to Amsterdam (4 hours)

DAY 1 - Arrival

We arrived in Amsterdam after a 9 hour + journey from Lucerne- tired but determined to make the most of our final days of holiday. A quick bus ride took us to our hotel, just south of Vondelpark, where we freshened up and immediately headed out in search of food and beer.

We headed to Troost Brouwerij in Pijp. The place was busy but we were lucky to get a small high-table at the back of the bar.

Nora is never pleased with having to sit on the floor when we’re on a high table so inevitably was perched on our laps as we tucked into some pretty decent food and an excellent line up of beers before heading back to our hotel room to recover from a long day of travelling.

DAY 2 - Bureaucracy and Beers

We woke to pouring rain - the kind that soaks you to the bone within minutes! We had to visit the vet though, an appointment which we had booked months in advance, so Nora could receive her required worming treatment and have her Animal Health Certificate checked, thanks to post Brexit ever-growing list of pet requirements.

The appointment was quick, but there was a slight hiccup: a box labelled “ID/Tattoo No.” had been left blank. When we questioned it, the vet assured us it wasn’t necessary since Nora’s microchip number was already printed on the form. It seemed odd, given they had just checked and confirmed the chip number, but since they do this regularly, we trusted their judgment and moved on. (Spoiler: we shouldn’t have.)

Charging through the pouring rain and already soaked to the bone, we dived into Bagels & Beans for breakfast. At the time we hadn’t appreciated it was a massive chain but the one we went in certainly didn’t feel like one and the food hit the spot!

Determined to make the most of the day despite the weather, we wandered through the canals and city centre, but after a while, the torrential rain wore us down. Instead, we sought shelter in the shops. By this point, four weeks into our trip, we didn’t even bother asking if Nora was allowed in. She trotted in alongside us, and no one batted an eye, much to her (and our) relief.

We then jumped on a tram towards Mooie Boules where we had a quick drink, From there, we braved the downpour to visit Windmill De Gooyer home to Brouwerij 't IJ, a brewery we loved from our past trip. Assuming (wrongly) that it would be dog friendly like everywhere else, we were disappointed to find out that dogs were only allowed in the little café next door, which is also owned by the same brewery. So instead of sipping beers in the atmospheric windmill taproom, we found ourselves in a small, modern café bar perched near a radiator blasting full heat - at least with a few lovely beers to drain out the miserable day.

That evening we had arranged to meet Stella from Skinny Dog Collective who is based in Amsterdam.. After drying off and the weather clearing up, we made our way over to La Fucina to meet Stella, her partner Andrew and their pups Zadie and Leia. Their friends Georgie and Jad also came along with their whippet Squid who recently relocated to Amsterdam from Berlin!

DAY 3 - Last Day

Our last full day started early with breakfast at Moods Coffee & Brunch - a spot we visited years before, despite its unusual location in the lobby of a gym.

Given the weather was significantly better than the day before (dry!) we took the chance to properly explore the city centre, getting some sunny photos by the canals before heading back to our hotel to do our final pack up of the trip. We checked out (and killed some time in the hotel lobby for an hour or so) before jumping on the tram to the train station and onward to Rotterdam for the ferry home.

We anticipated needing a taxi from the train station to the port (as P&O coach transfer isn’t dog friendly), but decided to try our luck with the P&O coach driver nevertheless, but to no avail. Fortunately, from the train station it was easy to get a taxi over (although expensive), and soon we were at the ferry terminal - ready to check in, confident we had all our documents in order … or so we thought.

The Border Drama

We handed over our passports and all Nora’s AHC documentation, ready to board and knowing we had done everything we needed to do…or so we thought - the customs officer’s face immediately fell. That unsigned box—the one the vet had said didn’t need filling—did need filling. And they weren’t happy about it.

They insisted that we get in touch with the vet to confirm that they checked Nora’s microchip, but given it was Saturday evening, there was no hope. We tried convincing the officer with photos of Nora at the vet but she was a proper stickler for rules. Panic set in - we were due back in work in 24 hours time and the next ferry wasn’t for nearly two days!

After an hour of negotiating, the only option was for customs to contact the UK Border Force to see if they would allow Nora in with the incomplete paperwork.

Thankfully, they confirmed that we can travel as long as we had a ‘non compliance’ form filled out. Another 20 minutes of paperwork and we were finally boarding the ferry.

A long story short (and skipping the long ferry home) - when we arrived in England customs didn’t even glance at Nora’s documents. We didn't even need to hand over the ‘non-compliance form’. All the stress for nothing - but at least it was a lesson learned - always double check everything on your pet’s AHC is signed and if you think the vet hasn’t signed or filled something in - make them!