This Amsterdam canal cruise is among the world’s best travel experiences, say travel buffs

An Amsterdam canal cruise just hit #4 on TripAdvisor’s Travellers’ Choice Best of the Best list — and if you haven’t done it yet, consider this your sign.

The ranking comes from TripAdvisor, which awards its Best of the Best title to experiences that rack up an exceptional volume of glowing reviews over a 12-month period. Out of more than 8 million listings on the platform, fewer than 1% make the cut.

This year’s list spans four continents and covers everything from a Porto city walking tour to an overnight cruise through Lan Ha Bay.

READ MORE | 34 best things to do in Amsterdam in 2026 [UPDATED]

Europe dominates, claiming six of the ten spots. And sitting quietly at number four, sandwiched between a Barcelona day tour and the Beatles’ Magical Mystery Tour, is Captain Jack’s 90-minute all-inclusive canal cruise.

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History, served with an ice-cold glass of Heineken

The 90-minute route weaves through Amsterdam’s UNESCO-listed canal ring, taking in the Prinsengracht, Herengracht, and Keizersgracht, as well as landmarks like the Rijksmuseum, the Magere Brug, the Red Light District (De Wallen), and Centraal Station.

Each cruise runs on open electric boats with a maximum of 24 people, which keeps things intimate enough that you can actually hear your guide without the aid of a headset.

Hoping to book the cruise yourself? Departures are available from two points: the Museumbrug near the Rijksmuseum, or tram stop B4 outside Centraal Station.

Tickets are priced from €21 per person, with the option to book ahead (plus free cancellations up to 24 hours before your departure).

However, let op: the open boats run from April 1 to November 1 only. Outside that window, the operator switches to enclosed heated vessels, so year-round visits are still possible.

These were the world’s top ten attractions

Get your bucket lists handy, because TripAdvisor’s top picks span three continents and a varied mix of activities.

Here are the ten experiences in the world for 2025, according to the Travellers’ Choice Best of the Best rankings:

1. The Unvanquished Tour in Porto City Centre (Porto, Portugal)
2. Peaceful Hiroshima & Miyajima UNESCO 1 Day Bus Tour (Hiroshima, Japan)
3. Barcelona in 1 Day: Sagrada Família, Park Güell, Old Town & Pickup (Barcelona, Spain)
4. Amsterdam All-Inclusive 90-Minute Canal Cruise by Captain Jack (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
5. Beatles Magical Mystery Tour (Liverpool, UK)
6. Berlin’s Best: 2-Hour Walking Tour Third Reich and the Cold War (Berlin, Germany)
7. London Small Group Tour of Historical Pubs (London, UK)
8. Classic 4-Day Inca Trail Trek to Machu Picchu from Cusco (Cusco, Peru)
9. Kraków–Zakopane: Cable Car, Chochołów Baths, Cheese & Vodka (Kraków, Poland)
10. Amanda Cruise — Ha Long, Lan Ha Bay — All Inclusive (Hanoi, Vietnam)

Three of the top ten are walking tours, suggesting that what travellers actually want is someone interesting to follow through a city rather than an audio guide and a laminated map.

Meanwhile, the Amsterdam cruise is also the only experience under two hours — and the only one where unlimited Heineken is involved, which may or may not be a coincidence.

Have you done the Captain Jack cruise, or have you got a better recommendation? Let us know in the comments below.