i AMsterdam!

While abroad, I took advantage of our weekends off and, with three of my dearest friends, drove to Holland. Amsterdam is simply the best city. The ambiance around and throughout the city is unparalleled, and the indifference to all-things-taboo in the United States makes the city an unbelievable place to travel. As a repeat visitor, I can appreciate capitalizing on the city's glorious past, the reputation of tolerance and liberalism, the red-light district and the gay scene.

Upon arriving in Amsterdam, one will encounter an unusually pleasant and healthy atmosphere. For one, the canals don’t stink because the water from the canals is flushed out into the North Sea every three days. The humid air is clean due to the astounding number of bikes and the lack of cars in the city. The ‘Amsterdamers’ ride their bikes with vigor and it is more likely to be hit by a bicycle than by a car. So, when you hear the bells ringing behind you, make sure you get heck out of the way.

My Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5GPEt4xzvag

--An early morning in Amsterdam, watching the bicycle rush hour outside my hostel.

In terms of city sightseeing, Amsterdam has a slew of museums. These include the Anne Frank House, the Van Gogh Museum, the Rijksmuseum and the Heineken Experience (just thought I'd count this one too). I didn’t find the old Heineken Brouwery that interesting until they decided to unveil the secrets behind their marketing campaign, take us on a Disneyworld-like ride as 'beer being brewed' and get us drunk at the Heineken bar at the end of the "experience". It was definitely worth my twelve Euros for four beers and the stolen glass from the bar. Oh, the museums are cool too.

**Entrance of the Rijks, sitting by the river in front of Anne Frank's Haus, Brewing bier @ the Heineken Experience

I feel that the strategic choice to market the city of Amsterdam for its main representations has far-reaching possibilities for cultural tourism than many other cities in Europe. As for marketing the city as a main tourist destination, Amsterdam speaks for itself. My first visit to Amsterdam was too short. There was too much to see, and too little time. I was able to squeeze three museums, one canal tour and around seven coffee shops before leaving. This time around, I made sure to make the most of it.

At our hotel, front desk recommended we purchase the i amsterdam Card, which we had already seen advertised throughout the city, including Centraal Station. She explained that we could find the card at one of the many "Tourist Offices of Amsterdam Tourism & Convention Board." The i amsterdam Card consists of a Transport Ticket, a Chip Card (for free admission to the museums) and an i amsterdam Guide, which contains vouchers for discounts at restaurants and attractions. Confession: this was a very useful purchase.

What I found most interesting was the citybranding. The i amsterdam theme was mimicked througout the city with large i amsterdam sculptures. I believe that keeping this brand image is a great marketing strategy, where the city of Amsterdam can be easily attributed and recognized. The i amsterdam campaign sells Amsterdam to interested clients, with the usual range of T-shirts, coffee mugs, key rings, umbrella’s and assorted paraphernalia. Billboards in bus stops show smooth photographic representations of the city with an i amsterdam logo. The campaign is definitively slick and elaborated, and its success is due to the mechanism of "globalization."

Of some importance:

• Amsterdam mainly markets itself through word-of-mouth
• The i amsterdam campaign is an example of 'marketing a destination' by keeping the same citybranding image throughout the world
• GO TO AMSTERDAM!