tourism

The red and white 'I Amsterdam' letters were removed from the Museumplein on Monday morning. The removal started at 8:30 a.m. and the letters were taken away on a truck 30 minutes later, Het Parool reports.

Amsterdam wants to limit the number of Bed & Breakfasts in the city. The municipality is therefore making it compulsory for anyone who wants to open a B&B to get a permit. The permit will also state how many rooms may be rented out as holiday accommodation, the city said in a statement. 

The famous I Amsterdam letters on the Museumplein have to go, according to a motion filed by the GroenLinks faction in Amsterdam. The slogan has become a symbol for mass tourism, the party finds. The motion seems to have support from the D66, PvdA and SP - a majority in the city council, Het Parool reports.

With the motion, GroenLinks asked the office of mayor and aldermen to remove the I Amsterdam letters from the whole city and to stop all city marketing activities under the slogan of I Amsterdam. 

Most of the Eindhoven residents who rent out their homes through Airbnb do not pay tourist tax, according to ANG, a specialized company hired to inspect Airbnb accommodation in the Noord-Brabant city. This means that the city treasury is missing out on a large sum of income, NOS reports.

Over the past month ANG contacted more than a hundred Airbnb landlords and inspected 38 Airbnb locations. "Only 30 to 40 addresses paid the sum of 3.50 euros per person per night", the company said. 

An increasing number of prostitutes working in Amsterdam's Red Light District are struggling with debts, that can range from 10 thousand euros to 30 thousand euros, newspaper Trouw reports based on its own research.

No total overview is available, but the debt problem is large, three Christian organizations that support prostitutes in the Red Light District - the Salvation Army, Scharlaken Koord and Bright Fame - confirmed to the newspaper. 

Amsterdam is implementing cleaning breaks in the Red Light District during busy nights. Parts of the street will be temporarily be closed to the public, so that the mess left by visitors can be cleaned up. This is one of the measures new mayor Femke Halsema is taking to quickly solve problems in the overcrowded Amsterdam city center, following damning reports by the city's ombudsman, Het Parool reports.

Amsterdam residents are more concerned about the housing shortage in the city than the crowds of tourists or crime, according to a bi-annual survey the municipality did among 2,378 residents, Het Parool reports.

57 percent of respondents called the housing shortage their main concern. This is especially a worry for young people between 16 and 29 years old. 38 percent are worried about tourism, and 31 percent about crime. 

About half of the residents think that Amsterdam is heading in the right direction. 39 percent disagree. 

Amsterdam launched a campaign to address misbehaving tourists on their behavior. The campaign Enjoy & Respect is specifically aimed at male visitors between the ages at 18 and 34. It makes clear that behavior like public urination is not only unacceptable, but will also cost you money, Het Parool reports.

Amsterdam's ban on new tourist stores and beer bikes in Amsterdam city center, is resulting in more and more tourists flocking to Amsterdam West. The district therefore plans to implement similar measures, to keep the area livable for its residents, Het Parool reports. 

Amsterdam West wants to ban new bars and cafes, new tourist shops and beer bikes. 

The city of Amsterdam implemented stricter rules on guided tours through the Red Light District on April 1st. These rules are intended to reduce crowds in the busy area, and to help protect sex workers'  privacy.

The municipality of Amsterdam is taking extra measures to manage the crowds of tourists expected to visit the city over Easter weekend. Last Easter weekend 20 to 25 percent more tourists visited the Dutch capital than the year before, Het Parool reports.

Extra trams will run during Easter weekend, from March 30th to April 2nd. Lines 1, 2, 5, 5 and 9 will run on an extended timetable. The city will advice visitors with cars to park on a site on the outskirts of the city, and to use public transit from there.