Museum Willet-Holthuysen

Categories: Amsterdam
Share Listing Reviews Local
Museum Willet-Holthuysen

This double-fronted town house was built in 1687, towards the end of Amsterdam's Golden Age. It was occupied by various families. You had to be very wealthy to live a house like this, on one of the city’s smartest canals. This was certainly true of Abraham Willet and his rich wife Sandrina Louisa Geertruyda Holthuysen, who lived here from 1861 to 1895. Their lives feature strongly throughout the museum.

When Louisa died on 30 January 1895, she bequeathed the house, its valuable contents and her husband's extensive art collection to the City of Amsterdam. The following year, the doors were opened and the final wishes of the former lady of the house were fulfilled; her beloved home was transformed into a museum named after herself and her husband. Museum Willet Holthuysen, managed by the Amsterdam Museum, is still open to the public more than a hundred years later.

The house is open all year round. You can look around the splendid 18th and 19th-century period rooms. The impressive ballroom, conservatory and dining room bear witness to the Willet-Holthuysen's lifestyle. The kitchen and scullery in the basement give a good impression of the day-to-day life of their servants. At the back of the double-fronted canal house is a formal French-style symmetric garden, which was reconstructed in 1972. Museum Willet-Holthuysen is located on the Herengracht in Amsterdam. The Amsterdam canal belt is on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

In 2016, Museum Willet-Holthuysen is celebrating its 120th anniversary and radical changes have been announced. Over the next few years, the period rooms will be renovated and reconstructed. Progress reports and news will be posted on the museum's website.

Dining room

Dining room

Ballroom

Ballroom

Ballroom

Ballroom

Gentlemen's parlour

Gentlemen's parlour

Local

Eat and Drink

  • Burgermeester - Amsterdam (0.1 miles) - If you want to experience what a true gourmet burger tastes like, do as Amsterdammers do and make yo...
  • Ô MAI - Amsterdam (0.1 miles) - Ô MAI is the city's to-go place for your Vietnamese fix. Just a stone's throw away from Rem...
  • Ali Ocakbasi - Amsterdam (0.1 miles) - "The rich, unique and luscious "Anatolian Cuisine Culture" which has existed for thousan...
  • Morena aan de Amstel - Amsterdam (0.1 miles) - Delicious Greek and Mediterranean flavors in the heart of Amsterdam. A warm Greek Deli with food, gr...
  • Door 74 - Amsterdam (0.2 miles) - Door 74 is the first speakeasy style cocktailbar in The Netherlands. We have the requisite hidden do...

See and Do

  • Museum Willet-Holthuysen Amsterdam (0.0 miles) - This double-fronted town house was built in 1687, towards the end of Amsterdam's Golden Age. It ...
  • Jewish Cultural Quarter Amsterdam (0.2 miles) - Stunning synagogues, striking buildings and impressive memorials grace the streets of Amsterdam’s ...
  • Hortus Botanicus Amsterdam Amsterdam (0.4 miles) - The Hortus Botanicus Amsterdam is one of the oldest botanic gardens in the world. Located in the cit...
  • Amsterdam Pipe Museum Amsterdam (0.6 miles) - In the historic ambiance of a 17th-century canal house, the Amsterdam Pipe Museum presents an overvi...
  • Claustrophobia Escape Rooms Amsterdam (0.6 miles) - Imagine you are the hero of your own movie, but it is happening for real! Our spaces are carefully c...

Contact

Museum Willet-Holthuysen
Herengracht 605
Amsterdam
Netherlands
1017 CE
Netherlands
0205231718
loading...

Reviews

Nobody has reviewed Museum Willet-Holthuysen yet, Be the first.

Booking Enquiry Form

You are submitting a booking enquiry. Museum Willet-Holthuysen will then contact you by email with details of availability and prices.