How to get high in Amsterdam: a guide to adventure sports

Wednesday, 2 May 2012 4:08 PM

In the future, it may not be legal for tourists to smoke cannabis in Amsterdam's specialist coffee shops - after a judge ruled to tighten the local law on drugs. But don't worry - we've found five ways to get high in Amsterdam without smoking a thing, and they're much more interesting...

Satisfy your need for speed
Okay, so it’s pretty pricy - but spending the day racing Porsche and Formula One cars and learning to power slide with a professional racing driver at Amsterdam’s Zandvoort Circuit Park – would be a pretty awesome way to power an adrenaline high. Plus, just think of all the bragging you can do when you come home.

Get sporty
It’s not technically in the centre of Amsterdam – but if you’re prepared to travel for 35 minuets to the Ijmuiden aan Zee beach you can try your hand at an extraordinary range of exciting sports, like kite surfing and kite flying. Travelling down the beach at top speed, with only the wind to propel you? Awesome!

See sights on wheels
Friday Night Skate is a very unusual tour of the city, held every Friday when it’s not raining. Basically, you get your skates on and zip round the city in a huge group, going places that you would never go on your own. What’s even better than this up-tempo twist on a traditional walking tour? That fact that it’s totally free to do, of course!

Dance the night away
ADE – or Amsterdam Dance Night, is a dance lovers mecca – and the biggest club festival in the world. It attracts 112,000 festival goers and 700 DJs every for four nights every October, making it great place to experience an electric atmosphere, and enjoy some dancing endorphins.

Get in touch with nature
Ever thought that you could experience a Wetlands Safari in Amsterdam? It might not be what you associate with the city, but My Destination run a canoe tour of Amsterdam’s wetlands. Okay, so it’s not the most adrenaline-fuelled activity in our top five – but it is a fantastic way to do something sporty, get back to nature, and learn a bit about the city’s history from expert guides, in a really unique way.

As if that wasn’t enough…
Then forget Amsterdam and head South, to the Hauge – to experience a classic dare-devil activity. Bungy Jump Holland run heart-stopping 60 meter jumps from a pier above the North Sea, in Scheveningen. If you want to mix things up – then try their reverse bunggy (which is definitely as crazy as it sounds!).