Amsterdam appears simple enough at first glimpse, but you soon discover that its façade of gabled houses and lazy canals is only part of the picture. Look deeper and you will uncover a city that is, by turns, complex, attractive, seedy, endearing, infuriating and exhilarating. It often feels like a sleepy village, yet it is among the most cosmopolitan cities in Europe (ethnic groups make up 44 percent of the population), and ranks as the continent’s fourth most popular tourist destination after Paris, Rome and London.

Arrival at the city’s Schiphol Airport sets the scene for a place in which nothing is quite as it first appears. The runways lie 15 feet below sea level, and the vast terminal complex is located on the site of a naval battle fought in 1573 between the Dutch and the Spaniards. Nearly a third of the country’s land area has been reclaimed from the North Sea; the waves are held back by manmade dunes and dykes. “God made the world,” goes the local saying, “the Dutch made Holland.”

Central Amsterdam sits a foot or two above sea level, but with its network of 165 canals and 1,281 bridges, you are never far from water. The canals themselves are busy thoroughfares, with “canal buses” (www.canal.nl) plying three color-coded routes: red, green and blue (think of it as a waterborne metro system). If you’re feeling energetic, you can hire a four-person pedal boat, called a “canal bike” (also at www.canal.nl), from $9 per person per hour. On land, there is the option of hiring a bicycle (www.mikesbikeamsterdam.com; from $9 per day), but this city is also easily walked. You can amble from one side of downtown to the other in a half-hour.

The laid-back atmosphere conceals a strong business ethic that goes back to the city’s very beginnings, when it grew rich on the production of cured herring and beer. By the 17th century, Amsterdam had become a busy trading port, and was pivotal in the Dutch colonization of the distant East Indies (now Indonesia).

Today Amsterdam is one of Europe’s leading financial centers, a status that has persuaded 175 companies, including IBM, Sony and Canon, to locate their European headquarters here. Amsterdam serves as a transport hub for the continent, and also benefits from a skilled, multilingual workforce. The city enjoys healthy economic rowth, with new business sectors such as computing and biotechnology complementing the traditional economic pillars of finance, export (especially of tulips), tourism and diamonds (some of the diamond-polishing factories — including Stoeltie Diamonds, at www.stoeltie diamonds.com — are open to the public and are worth a visit).

Yet for all its business aspirations, Amsterdam also revels in its reputation as the most liberal city on earth, and has been a popular hippie hangout since the 1960s. The most obvious manifestation is in the so-called “coffeeshops,” which openly sell marijuana. The most famous of these, with three outlets, is Greenhouse (www.greenhouse.org). But it doesn’t take a visit to a coffeeshop to experience Amsterdam in all its magical, kaleidoscopic glory.

LODGING

Amsterdam has doggedly remained a low-rise city, which is one of its great charms. But the downside is that there simply aren’t enough hotel rooms to meet demand in the Old Town, and prices reflect that. I once paid more than $100 for a room that literally didn’t have enough floorspace to lay down my suitcase.

THE DYLAN AMSTERDAM

Formerly known as Blakes, and bearing the stylish touch of the celebrated British designer Anoushka Hempel, this ultra-trendy hotel has recently been rebranded the Dylan by its Spanish owners, the Stein Group. The change of name also heralds more-fundamental changes, including a new bar, a spa and the introduction of state-of-the-art technology in every room. Each of the 33 rooms and eight suites are decorated in a unique color scheme, from minimalist all-white to lush red. All of the public spaces are black and white. $$$$
THE DYLAN AMSTERDAM
384 Keizersgracht
tel 31 20 530 2010, fax 31 20 530 2030
www.dylanamsterdam.com

HOTEL PULITZER

Here’s the antidote to those could-be-anywhere international hotels with which we’re all familiar. The Pulitzer occupies 25 interconnected 17th and 18th century canal houses, and couldn’t be anywhere other than Amsterdam. The 230 rooms are each unique, and have been recently renovated to retain their historic ambience while upgrading the in-room technology, including wireless Internet access and CD alarm clocks. The best rooms are probably those overlooking the Keizersgracht canal at the rear of the hotel. $$$$
HOTEL PULITZER
315-331 Prinsengracht
tel 31 20 523 5235, fax 31 20 627 6753
www.starwoodhotels.com

DIE PORT VAN CLEVE

This historic hotel, strategically located close to Dam Square, was opened by the Heineken family in 1870 on the site of their original brewery. It is quintessentially Dutch; the Bodega De Blauwe Parade bar is a particular highlight, decorated in original Delft blue-and-white tiles. The Brasserie De Poort restaurant has famously issued a numbered certificate with every steak served since 1870, almost 6 million so far. The 120 rooms are a mixed bag: some are claustrophobically small, others look out at brick walls. The executive rooms are pretty spacious, however. $$$$
DIE PORT VAN CLEVE
176-180 Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal
tel 30 20 624 4860, fax 30 20 622 0240
www.dieportvancleve.com

THE CANAL HOUSE HOTEL

This family-run hotel’s promotional literature invites you to “sleep in the 17th century.” It’s not an empty slogan: this hotel, which occupies two adjacent canalside houses, is as close as you can get to time travel. To preserve the ambience, there are no televisions or minibars in the 26 rooms, which are decorated with wonderful antiques. The location is ideal, just around the corner from the Anne Frank house, and within a short walk of Dam Square. $$$-$$$$
THE CANAL HOUSE
148 Kaizersgracht
tel 31 20 622 5182, fax 31 20 624 1317
www.canalhouse.nl

DINING

As you would expect of such an ethnically diverse city, Amsterdam offers a gastronomic tour of the world. In all, there are 755 restaurants from which to choose, featuring every kind of cuisine under the sun, and, increasingly, fusions of different styles. In addition to formal restaurants, there is an abundance of eetcafes, which serve good-value, informal fare.

RESTAURANT CHRISTOPHE

Since opening his restaurant in 1989, the Algerian-born Frenchman Jean Christophe Royer has earned a reputation as one of the top chefs in Europe. Situated beside the beautiful Leliegracht canal, the restaurant has understated interior décor: unadorned walls, simple tables. There’s not much fuss about the food, either: it’s simply superb. The roasted guinea fowl stuffed with chestnuts is especially good. $$$$
RESTAURANT CHRISTOPHE
46 Leliegracht
tel 31 20 625 0807, fax 31 20 638 9132
www.diningcity.com/ams/christophe

RESTAURANT VERMEER

Occupying a 17th century wing of the Barbizon Palace Hotel, this elegant restaurant boasts décor inspired by the great works of its namesake artist. In keeping with the surroundings, the menu is confidently sophisticated, overseen by a newly appointed chef, Englishman Chris Naylor. Anjou pigeon glazed with muscavado sugar is a particularly good main course option. $$$$
RESTAURANT VERMEER
59-72 Prins Hendrikkade
tel 31 20 556 4885, fax 31 20 624 3353
www.restaurantvermeer.nl

SHIBLI
Of all the images that Amsterdam conjures up, a Bedouin tent probably isn’t one of them. Yet here, in two tents within the Kransnopolsky Hotel, the restaurant Shibli transports you directly to the deserts of Arabia, complete with exotic music, waiters in traditional dress, and a sheik who regales diners with Arab folk stories. It’s bizarre, but fun — and the food’s great. $$$$
SHIBLI
236 Oudezijds Voorburgwal
tel 31 20 330 8082, fax 31 20 330 8089
www.diningcity.com/ams/shibli

SIGHTSEEING

Amsterdam is a city made for sightseeing: within the Old Town alone there are no fewer than 6,742 national monuments. It’s ideal for aimless rambles, with new surprises around every corner and across every bridge.

For more-formal sightseeing, invest in an Amsterdam Card (www.amsterdam.nl), valid for 24, 48 and 72 hours for $42, $61 and $67, respectively. The card provides free rides on public transport, free admission to many of the top museums and galleries, and 25 percent discounts in a wide range of shops and restaurants. Of the museums, the most impressive is the Rijksmuseum (www.rijksmuseum.nl), which houses over 7 million items, including famous works by Rembrandt, Vermeer and Bruegel. There is also a branch of the Rijksmuseum in the departure lounge of Schiphol Airport, providing a highbrow alternative to duty-free shopping. Another top museum in the city is the Hermitage Amsterdam (www.hermitage.nl), which opened in 2004 and exhibits items from the great Hermitage in St. Petersburg. The Anne Frank Museum (www.annefrank.org) occupies the house in which the teenage diarist hid from the Nazis for two years during World War II before being captured and sent to her death at Bergen-Belsen; it’s an incredibly moving place. The Rembrandt House Museum (www.rembrandthuis.nl) preserves the home of the great artist, and exhibits an unrivaled collection of his etchings. Even more impressive is the Van Gogh Museum (www.vangoghmuseum.nl), where you can see more than 200 original Van Gogh paintings, and over 500 drawings — the largest concentration of his work in one place. The museum is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily, 10 p.m. on Fridays. If all this culture leaves you with a thirst, the Heineken Experience (www.heinekenexperience.com) is a must. The tour of this, the world’s largest export brewery, costs $12.75 and includes “several” complimentary beers — no admission to anyone under 18.

The nightclub scene is extremely dynamic, with new places opening, and old favorites closing, every month. Seek local advice. One venue is beyond the vagaries of fashion: the Concertgebouw (www.concertgebouw.nl), which reputed to have the best acoustics of any concert hall in the world, and which stages 650 concerts each year.

SHOPPING

Amsterdam offers world-class shopping, with tax refunds available to American citizens (www.globalrefund.com for details). Magna Plaza (www.manaplaza.nl), near Dam Square, is the most upscale of the malls, full of exclusive stores. If antiques are your thing, head to the historic neighborhood of Spiegelkwartier (www.spiegelwartier.nl), where there are more than 100 specialty stores. Schiphol Airport has always been famous for its duty-free shopping, though I’ve always found it a little disappointing. For uniquely Dutch souvenirs, consider tulip bulbs, made-to-measure wooden clogs, Edam cheese, Delftware tiles and locally cut diamonds.

INFO TO GO

International flights arrive at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport (AMS), which is served by several U.S. carriers, including Northwest Airlines (www.nwa.com), a long-standing partner of the Dutch airline KLM (www.klm.com). A taxi from the airport to downtown costs about $50 and takes 20 to 25 minutes. A cheaper option is to take the train (www.ns.nl); there is a departure from the airport terminal to the city’s Centraal Station every 10 minutes or so (from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m.) — the journey takes 15 minutes and costs $4.40. A good starting point for business travelers to the city is Amsterdam Partners (www.amsterdampartners.nl), which provides a wealth of practical advice online.