The Netherland’s early decriminalization of cannabis (1976) and legalization of prostitution (2000) has turned Amsterdam into Europe’s wildest party destination. For decades, the Dutch capital city has been the preferred spot for drug, alcohol, and sex-fuelled vacations, including raucous bachelor parties (also known as stag dos or stag parties), but the fun has gone a little too far and now Amsterdam and its inhabitants want to clean up its reputation and its streets. The city hopes that the ‘Amsterdam Rules‘ quiz might help.
Photo: Amsterdam Rules
Want to Party in Amsterdam? The City Asks You Take This ‘Amsterdam Rules’ Quiz First
In an effort to attract less problematic tourists, i.e. those who are less interested in sex shows and coffee shops and more focused on tulips and the Rijksmuseum, the city of Amsterdam has created a quiz meant for potential visitors. Prospective tourists to Amsterdam just need to answer a few questions about what they’d like to do while in the city and, depending on their answers, will get told that they should go ahead with their trip or just change their plans altogether.
Whether or not the quiz will help deter the party animals from traveling to Amsterdam and vomiting all over the locals’ flower boxes or peeing on the facades of their lovely canal houses remains unclear, but it’s another step towards making the city more enjoyable for everyone.
The ‘Amsterdam Rules’ quiz is the latest of Amsterdam’s attempts to dissuade partiers to come to the city. In the past few years, the rules have been tightened around what one can or cannot do in Amsterdam, especially in the Red Light District, where a lot of the messy partying happens. Guided tours of the Red Light District were banned in 2020, public drinking and cannabis smoking are forbidden, pub crawls are prohibited, bachelor parties are no-gos, and there’s even been talk of moving the Red Light District from the center of the city entirely. In 2023, the city of Amsterdam has gone as far as launching an explicit ad campaign that asked young British male tourists to “stay away”. 