Set Sail With Your Amsterdam Playlist

Club Members getting ready to go on Hilton Grand Vacations’ very first river cruise are probably starting to get excited for their trip. The 10-day immersion on our 2016 ClubPartner Perk Grand Adventure begins Oct. 14 in Amsterdam, where Members will spend three nights in the heart of this historic city at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Amsterdam Centraal Station before departing on a journey down the Rhine.A wide variety of attractions are nearby, including the Anne Frank House and the Van Gogh Museum. You can also use the hotel as a base for trips outside the city to explore the world-famous fishing village Volendam or marvel at the historic windmills of Zaanse Schans.

To build excitement and help you count down the days until your adventure begins, we put together this playlist with movies, songs and books related to your departure city of Amsterdam. And, learn more about some of the cabins available for this river cruise by visiting Club's CruisePartner website, or calling 1-800-571-3089.

Movies

Diamonds Are Forever (1971)

Take a trip back to the days when Sean Connery was James Bond. In 1971’s Diamonds Are Forever, Connery was Bond and Charles Gray was Blofeld. The classic feature was filmed in several Amsterdam locations, including the Canal Ring, Skinny Bridge, and the apartment of Tiffany Case, portrayed by Jill St. John, at Reguliersgracht 36.

Ocean’s Twelve (2004)

George Clooney, Matt Damon, Brad Pitt and the rest of the all-star cast of Ocean’s Eleven reunited on the silver screen in Amsterdam for their next big heist. The crew filmed scenes at several of the city’s most recognizable spots, such as the Pulitzer Hotel on the Prinsengracht, the famous meeting place square Koningsplein and the Gouden Bocht, which is a bend of the Herengracht canal where the city’s richest residents reside.

Songs

"Amsterdam," Peter Bjorn and John

In 2006, the Swedish indie pop band Peter Bjorn and John came out with one of many songs about the capital of the Netherlands. It’s a great tune to get Amsterdam, and vacation, “stuck in your mind.”

“Baby went to Amsterdam

4-5 days by the big canal

Now it’s so slow, so slow

And I was heading up north to a place that I know

Eating well, sleeping well

But still I was way, way out of line

Amsterdam was stuck in my mind.”

"Ballad of John and Yoko," John Lennon

In 1969, the Beatles and solo singer and songwriter John Lennon and his new wife, Yoko Ono, spent their honeymoon in Europe. From the Amsterdam Hilton Hotel’s Presidential Suite, the newlyweds hosted their first “bed-in” for peace. For an entire week, John and Yoko continued this protest for peace and invited press to attend and observe from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. each day as they sat and discussed world peace atop their hotel suite’s bed.

“Drove from Paris to the Amsterdam Hilton

Talking in our beds for a week

The newspapers said

say what’re you doing in bed

I said we’re only trying to get us some peace.”

"Aan de Amsterdamse Grachten," Tante Leen

This song, which translates to “ode to the canals of Amsterdam,” is somewhat of an anthem in Amsterdam. “To the canals of Amsterdam / I have pledged my whole heart,” people sing during the song’s refrain. Each year, the Prinsengracht Concert, an outdoor music festival, concludes with the Ode dedicated to the fine city.

“All those Amsterdam people

All lights late in the evening on the square

Nobody can wish for anything better

Than to be an Amsterdammer.”

Books

Diary of a Young Girl, Anne Frank,1947

Diary of a Young Girl documents the life of the young Anne Frank and her family, who fled their home and went into hiding during World War II. Anne kept a diary while she and her family faced extremely challenging conditions, limited by the tight confines of an old office building’s “secret annex.” Her recorded impressions capture their struggles, from hunger to boredom, while illustrating the strength of the human spirit. Tragically, Frank’s life ended far too soon after she was captured and brought to a concentration camp. Learn more about Anne Frank while you’re in Amsterdam by touring the Anne Frank Museum, located in Frank’s old house.

The Fault in Our Stars, John Green, 2012

Much of the tragic love story portrayed in The Fault in Our Stars takes place when the two main characters, Hazel and Augustus, decide to take a trip to Amsterdam. Despite Hazel’s terminal cancer, the two meet and fall in love and have a beautiful and adventurous trip in Amsterdam. Without spoiling too much for those that haven’t read the book or seen the movie, check it out for yourself and keep your tissues handy. And, when you’re done, consider doing The Fault in Our Stars walking tour around Amsterdam. Read more about the tour on Hilton’s Mom Voyage blog.