Tour Details
Duration
3 hours
Product Type
Tour
Venues
- Nieuwmarkt
- Waag
- Rembrandt House
Photos & Highlights
- Explore Amsterdam through Rembrandt’s story
- Led by local art historian or scholar
Select a date
Tour Description
Rembrandt van Rijn was arguably the greatest Dutch painter, and his life (1606-1669) provides a unique lens through which to understand the Dutch Golden Age (a subject we explore further on our Dutch Golden Age Tour). On this 3-hour Rembrandt in Amsterdam Tour, an art historian or scholar will lead us through the historic neighborhoods where Rembrandt and his clients lived, taking us back to a heady era of prosperity, expansion, and growth for the Netherlands.
From the Rembrandt House Museum...
We’ll begin our tour in the Rembrandt House Museum, a small space dedicated to the artist and his time. In those days, there was a great diversity of religious groups living side-by-side in Amsterdam. Rembrandt himself hailed from a Catholic and Protestant household, and his clients included Jews, Mennonites, and Calvinists, among others. This makes his artwork ideal as a kind of textbook, prompting a conversation about Dutch tolerance and how it laid the groundwork for the country’s social and economic success during the 17th century.
...to the Streets of the City
As we leave the museum and re-enter the streets of Amsterdam, we’ll make our way to the Nieuwmarkt, Waag, and East India House. These colonial sites connect Rembrandt to the 17th-century economic boom when the Dutch dominated world trade, particularly in Asia—many of his best-known paintings, such as The Night Watch, portray significant figures of the time. (To see that painting in person, by the way, we highly recommend a Rijksmuseum Tour.)
Rembrandt in Amsterdam
Along our route, we’ll also visit a number of squares, side streets, and historical buildings, each of which relates to the Golden Age or to Rembrandt himself. As we build a conversational portrait of Amsterdam during this period, we’ll place Rembrandt’s story in a greater context, helping us to understand his remarkable ability to reflect his time and surroundings.
FAQ
Is this tour suitable for kids?
This tour isn’t part of our family portfolio, but we do have some family-friendly guides who might be able to lead your tour and could adapt the presentation to suit children.
Is this tour suitable for people with mobility issues?
Unfortunately, due to the limitations of the old building that houses the Rembrandt House, it is only partially accessible to people with mobility issues. There is now an elevator in the museum, but there are no lifts or other facilities in Rembrandt’s 17th-century house. As this area within the museum isn’t accessible, we wouldn’t necessarily recommend this tour for people with mobility issues. Please get in touch, and we’d be happy to discuss alternatives.
This tour isn’t part of our family portfolio, but we do have some family-friendly guides who might be able to lead your tour and could adapt the presentation to suit children.
Is this tour suitable for people with mobility issues?
Unfortunately, due to the limitations of the old building that houses the Rembrandt House, it is only partially accessible to people with mobility issues. There is now an elevator in the museum, but there are no lifts or other facilities in Rembrandt’s 17th-century house. As this area within the museum isn’t accessible, we wouldn’t necessarily recommend this tour for people with mobility issues. Please get in touch, and we’d be happy to discuss alternatives.
Where You'll Start
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97 Reviews
Reviews can only be left by Context customers after they have completed a tour. For more information about our reviews, please see our FAQ.
He was just lovely, and clearly hugely knowledgeable, but we spent far too much time in the Rembrandt Museum. This also had to be paid for separately, yet wasn't mentioned in the booking process and isn't really the norm on guided tours. Plus, the whole point of Context, based on other tours, is that it puts it in the CONTEXT of the city. Almost nothing was mentioned about what was happening in Amsterdam at the time he was working, why or how he because so hugely popular / wealthy so quickly, and beyond the museum, we covered very little ground in the city. The tour ended a good 30 minutes early, yet we still felt we knew very little about Rembrandt as a person, his life or the city. What we knew perhaps too much about was his technique.
BUT it was still interesting. However, it assumed too much knowledge (several people on the tour barely even knew who Rembrandt was - and this wasn't explained), didn't include enough useful 'city' information and covered very little ground. It was effectively a museum tour with a few bits added on
Really nice docent. Defo think I'm overstating the negative here. Lots and lots of great info and insight into the technique, cost of artworks, etc.
Jill
Reviewed on:
Sep 23, 2013
Heather was very nice and we very much enjoyed this tour. The tour would have been enhanced with more color stories about Rembrandt's personality and life to get a real sense of the person.
Harry
Reviewed on:
Jul 31, 2013
She did a very good job. Because she was relatively new to the city, she had a few challenges on routes (not an easy city to navigate) but did fine.
Rick
Reviewed on:
Jul 9, 2013
