Amsterdam Private Tours

The Anne Frank Museum in Amsterdam is one of the prime tourist locations in the country of the Netherlands. If you had read the book “Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl”, you would surely know how important this Museum is to the whole world.

The History                                      

Anne Frank was a Jewish girl who lived at the time of the Second World War. She along with her family was hiding from the Nazi soldiers who were keen on finding the Jews and torturing them in the concentration camps. Anne wrote her wartime experiences in her diary, which later was, published in the form of a book.

The house where Anne and her family lived in hiding for two years was later made into a Museum. The Museum was opened on May 3, 1960. It is known as the Anne Frank House.

Location Of The Museum

It is situated in the Jordaan district of Amsterdam. It is located on the canal named Prinsengracht, next to the Westerkerk church. It was in a secret annex inside the house that Anne and others stayed hidden from the Nazi soldiers. This annex is open for the tourists, though nothing is remaining inside the annex from the war times.             

From the outside, the Museum does not look something special. If it is not for the people who always crowd here to take photos and to enter the museum, you may probably pass by the place without noticing it. It was at the front part of this building where Otto Frank, father of Anne Frank held his businesses. In those times, the bottom floor was used as a warehouse while the second floor contained offices and the third floor, the storeroom. It is at the back of this floor that the secret annex is situated.

The Ticket

When it comes to your entry into the Museum, you need to take a ticket. It is highly recommended to take your ticket online beforehand. The queue will be so long that you will have to wait for more than two hours to enter the Museum. If you have an online ticket, you will be able to enter the museum through another door.

The Pamphlet

The museum employees will give you a pamphlet, which will introduce the story of Anne Frank and her family to you. This can help you even if you are a person unaware of it before. However, the visit will be much more enjoyable if you had read the diary of Anne Frank earlier. You may also read some good books on the events that happened during the Second World War, to have a memorable visit to the Anne Frank Museum. The sight of the pictures and the objects which you have read in the books can be heart touching.

The First Two Floors

The first two floors, which originally were the warehouse and office, now display the pictures of those who supported and helped Anne’s family until the Nazi soldiers finally captured them. History states that it was only Otto Frank, Anne’s father who survived the war. There are some televisions which display some short films made about the war and interviews taken with the people who had interacted with the members of the secret annex when they were alive.

All these clips reveal the terribleness of the war times in which the people were compelled to go into hiding in fear of death and tormenting. Your walk through the empty rooms, listening to these words will prepare your mind to appreciate the things you are yet to see in the Museum.   

The Secret Annex

It is on the third floor of the building that the storeroom is located. It is in this room where you will see the entrance to the secret annex. There is a photo hanging on the wall of the storeroom, which was taken in 1954. The picture shows the then state of the room. You will find that there is no much difference in the room arrangement even now. There is the bookcase, which hid the secret door from the outside world. You can enter through the doorway which Anne and others used to enter the secret hideout. The rooms inside the secret annex are empty now. All the things that were inside the rooms were destroyed or stolen, after the capture of the ones who lived there.

Your walk through the rooms here will be so emotional when you remember that it was the place where 8 people lived for more than two years in hiding. You can watch the video interview with a woman who was with Anne in the concentration camp.

The original diary of Anne and her other writings are displayed here behind glasses.

Undoubtedly, your visit to the Anne Frank Museum can be informative and emotional at the same time. You are missing out on something very important if you do not visit this place in your Amsterdam private tours.