Amsterdam and beyond

“Some tourists think Amsterdam is a city of sin, but in truth it is a city of freedom.
And in freedom, most people find sin.”

John Green, The Fault in Our Stars

Culture & history

Dr. Michel Didier, your private guide to Amsterdam

Hello, you cultured and historically interested visitor to Amsterdam.
You’ve stumbled upon the expertly guided tours of art historian, Dr. Michel Didier.

I have been living in this town since 1961, and pursued my studies of Art History here. Here’s a choice of the tours I have on offer:

Rijksmuseum
Rembrandt, Vermeer, Golden Age

Stedelijk Museum
modern & contemporary art

Van Gogh Museum
200 paintings, world’s largest collection

Medieval Amsterdam
a miracle!

Jewish Amsterdam
discover the Jerusalem of the North

Amsterdam History Tour
ins and outs of the Golden Age

Old Town
beyond the Red Light District

Rembrandt’s Amsterdam
life and times of the greatest painters

Vincent van Gogh’s Amsterdam
ancient reformed churches, iron age

Anne Frank’s Amsterdam
the new quarter, where she lived 1934-1942

Amsterdam Culinary Tour
a taste of typical Amsterdam food & beverages

Amsterdam Maritime Tour
the shipyards of czar Peter the Great, the arsenal, the sailing ship replica

Amsterdam Tolerance Tour
religious, sexual, softdrug tolerance

Amsterdam Art Nouveau Tour
the most beautiful turn of the century houses

Outside Amsterdam

The Hague Historical Tour
where the court and the government are

The Hague Mauritshuis Museum
home to The Girl with the Pearl Earring

Judicial The Hague
UN judicial center, with Peace Palace and ICC

The Hague Kunstmuseum
extensive art collections, especially Mondrian and De Stijl

Museum Voorlinden
outside town, private contemporary art museum with international shows

Kröller-Müller Museum
in nature reserve, second-largest Van Gogh collection and extensive sculpture park

Haarlem
charming old town, with the Corrie ten Boom Museum

Delft
Hometown of Vermeer, Delft Blue, and the Royal Family tombs

For each of these tours, made to custom, personal transport can be provided for a modest extra cost.

Contact me by cell phone: #31 6 24217678, or by e-mail

What my customers say…

Michel was terrific – upbeat, knowledgeable, good sense of humor and kept a great pace that exerted us a bit and offered frequent stops. I’ve been to Amsterdam 4 times before but never seen it like this or experienced so many hidden places only a local would know about.

Carol Rodgers, Fort Lauderdale, Florida

Michel is unique in that he not only offers art historian knowledge and perspective, but he is able to provide insights into Amsterdam and the surrounding regions art, architecture, history, and current events as well as restaurants and specialized shopping.
If you provide Michel with a list of interests, be it a type of art or architecture, a given period or virtually any other requests he will customize a tour to meet your needs. If you want the full “picture” of Amsterdam, you would be best served by working with Michel to assure you take full advantage of whatever limited time you have in city and surrounding areas.

Jeffrey GoldbergWellesley, Massachusetts, September 2023

We had a great time with Michel! He was very knowledgeable about the history of the Jews in Amsterdam. His presentation was well done & we loved the use of his iPad for additional visuals. We all learned new information & felt our time was well spent. Thanks for a great morning!

Deborah KoreshNew York, June 21, 2018 (‘Jews of Amsterdam’-tour)

Tour was excellent. Michel very knowledgeable and gave us a thorough overview of the neighborhood and its history. Extremely worthwhile experience.

Doretta & Joel GoldbergUS, June 19, 2018 (Jews of Amsterdam tour)

Michel was awesome! Very knowledgeable—and interesting and very well prepared. I learned a lot!!!!! Great tour!

Judy GuzmanUS, April 26, 2018 (Jews of Amsterdam)

Our guide weathered difficult weather with us, was generous with his time and his knowledge. We learned so much. Thank you!

Margaret Polaneczky and Paul SchulmanNew York, April 5, 2018 (Jews of Amsterdam tour)

The guide is very knowledgeable, enthusiastic and easy to understand.

Rachel GotliebToronto, December 29, 2017

We enjoyed this tour very much. Michel was very informative and gave us a great tour of this museum.

Anne & George GagenUS, September 9, 2017 (Van Gogh Museum)

Michel was very knowledgeable about the city in a pleasant companion to show us around.

Kathy & Jerry DrewUS, July 21st, 2017

Michel Didier is a Van Gogh scholar, and his perspective and interesting background information was enlightening.

Barbara Alexander Stiles & Thomas StilesMonarch Beach, CA United States, 29th March, 2017 (Van Gogh Museum)

The walk was comprehensive and extremely interesting.

Herb & David ParsonsUS, February 27th, 2017 (Rembrandt’s Amsterdam)

Thank you very much for your interesting tour yesterday and even more interesting discussion afterwards!

Dr. Svetlana Borovkova, Associate Professor of Quantitative Finance, Vrije Universiteit AmsterdamDecember 21st 2016

My husband and I spent a day with Michel at the Kroller-Muller art museum outside Amsterdam. He is very knowledgeable, wonderful story teller, spending the day with him was a delight! We will call on him again when next in Amsterdam!

Gloria Harris & Moshe SherSan Francisco, 15th April, 2016

The collection of the Van Gogh Museum, of course, is exceptional, and our guide was an expert who was also engaging and entertaining.

Jane & Paul QuirerFresno, August 20, 2015

Michel Didier led a very comprehensive and excellent tour covering a lot of ground with a great ending at the Beginhof and the Amsterdam Museum.

Peter KarstenKansas City, 18th September, 2014

It all worked very well! The docent at the Rembrandt House Museum was also wonderful. Michel was very knowledgeable and eager to answer all of our questions. Thanks for another great experience!

Catherine Parr & Alison HeartwellFredericksburg, VA, 5th September, 2014

The highlight of our trip to Amsterdam was in no doubt our visit to the Kroller-Muller Museum. Because it is so difficult to get there we decided to hire a private guide and did not regret our decision to do so one iota. Michel Didier was a brilliant guide. His knowledge of Van Gogh and the other artists represented at the museum was remarkable. It was so satisfying being made aware of Van Gogh’s private life as well – it all came alive. I actually cannot recommend Michel highly enough. We had a great day.

Mike LinckCape Town, SA, 11th June, 2014

We really did have a stunning day and cannot thank you enough for your contribution towards it. You really have made Van Gogh come alive to me. As it turned out Mike lost the poster we had bought of his sea scene at the Museum and I managed to order it on line (the postage came to 4 times the cost of the poster) but it is hanging in our garage and every time I look at it that warm feeling comes over me – almost as though Van Gogh’s talking to me. Thank you for making it such an exceptional day.

Karin NewtonCape Town, SA, 11th June, 2014

Michel is a fount of wisdom on Amsterdam – its history, culture, mythologies – and of course knows his way around the city center. We sampled many “treats” (my husband would not call fresh herring a treat, but I did). I would recommend that this tour be regularly offered.

Helen Scott & Ira NordlichtRye, NY, 23rd May, 2014

Our guide Michel Didier was extremely engaging, personable which is what everyone wants. Not rehearsed speech but engaging, fun, enthousiastic. As well as well versed in his subject. All the elements of a “friend” in the city. It is fun to mix history with today history, economy, what makes Amsterdam the city it is today too for people who will sign up only for 1 tour in the city.

Dominique & James AshtonMenlo Park, CA, 4th April, 2014

Thank you SO much for a really fabulous morning at the museums on Saturday. Everyone was thrilled with your fascinating explanations and insights into the life and work of Van Gogh and the extremely good overview you gave us at the Stedelijk.

Jane Rae & Charles FitzroyLondon, 13th March, 2014

Michel is a wonderful guide. The depth of his knowledge and love of his city shine through the entire walk. We learned so much about places we had walked by many times. He gave us multiple insights into the political, economic, social and aesthetic contexts of Amsterdam – complete with the quirks and complexities of the Dutch. We hope to return to Amsterdam and take other tours with him.

Stefan & Karen KiesermanNew York, 23rd december 2013

What a wonderful day we had with Michel. He is knowledgeable about the art and artists. He knows the [Kröller-Müller] museum and gardens very well and the tour went smoothly. He also took us to the hunting lodge which was a treat. In addition to his expertise in art he is a very charming person and a pleasure to spend time with.

Barbara Wilder & Judith PerlmanNew York, October 2013

It is truly a pleasure hearing from you. Kenneth and I have not stopped telling everyone what a wonderful, in depth tour you provided us during our stay in Amsterdam. I would highly recommend having you guide other visitors through “Jewish Amsterdam” as well as other selected themes to anyone visiting this beautiful, exciting city.

Katina and Ken ManneNew York, 2013

We were extremely pleased and interested by Michel’s knowledge and ability to explain what we were seeing and we consider this to have been a most worthwhile experience. Michel was a terrific guide…..knowledgeable and personable.

George BoltonUS, September 2013

Michael – Thank you for the two great tours of the Van Gogh Museum as well as the Rijksmuseum. Your knowledge, insight, and enthusiasm were much appreciated. I would recommend anyone looking to really understand art to go for a tour with you. All the best.

David V. AlhadeffBellevue, Washington, 31st August, 2013

Dear Michel, Thank you again for this mornings tour, I really enjoyed seeing parts of Amsterdam with you. My favorite part of the day was the story about the 12 chairs, thank you for that insight.

Susan PernickNY, 28th August, 2013 (Van Gogh Museum)

Just wanted to send you a brief note on behalf of me and Adele to thank you for the wonderful experience you gave us at both at the Rjiksmuseum and the Van Gogh Museum this past Summer. You brought both the paintings and the history to life for us. I was particularly moved by your passion for and knowledge of Van Gogh. You were terrific. We will be back soon and hope that you will be available to show us through the exhibits we missed.

Dana LevittLos Angeles, CA, July 14th & 15th, 2013

My husband and I had the pleasure of having Michel as our own personal art history tour guide in Amsterdam for two full days (not nearly enough) and came back to the USA with a true appreciation for all that Amsterdam museums and Squares and coffee shops can offer.
Whatever the question we had, it was answered and we had a great time too!!!

Peg and Bob MarcusCarlsbad, CA, October 10, 2012