Fun at Ripley’s Believe It or Not Halloween
Halloween isn’t a holiday that’s originally celebrated in The Netherlands. But more and more events with an Halloween theme are popping up in The Netherlands. We love going to one of these events each year and a few years ago we celebrated Halloween at Ripley’s Believe It or Not in Amsterdam. We had a blast.
Ripley’s Believe It or Not Halloween
The whole Ripley’s Believe It or Not museum was decorated with cobwebs and other creepy things. This added extra to the Halloween sphere for us. Without the Halloween decorations the museum is already bizarre, but this made it extra special. We came dressed up for Halloween, all 3 of us. This gives you a 50% discount on the entrance fee.
Kids aged 5 till 15 get a bag to collect candy throughout the museum. Candies were everywhere. Yuri took a few candies on each spot. On some places he had to reach in the cobwebs to get the candy. So not all the candy was easily reachable. In the lounge they served Halloween drinks and donuts.
Facts
Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Odditoriums are all over the world. The first permanent one opened in St. Augustine, Florida in 1950. We’ve also been to the Ripley’s Maze in Gatlinburg during our 21 day road trip from New York to Orlando. Ripley’s Believe It or Not draws millions of visitors each year worldwide. The odditorium in The Netherlands is in Amsterdam, our Capital and one of the best cities for shopping and also one of the best cities in the Netherlands to visit.
The odditorium is on the Dam square, a historic square and a landmark of The Netherlands. It’s a 10 minute walk from the train station. On 2000m² over 5 floors, there’s more than over 500 artifacts and weird & bizarre stories to discover. They display rocks from outer space, bizarre statues and real shrunken human heads.
It’s a museum exhibition, but you can touch almost all of the stuff on display. This weird museum is hands on and fun for both kids and adults. There’s a tunnel to walk through which spins and has all sorts of colors. We had a lot of fun for a few hours and Yuri had a bag full of candy at the end.
Where to stay
A hotel we like to stay at when visiting Amsterdam, is Van der Valk Schiphol. It’s not in Amsterdam, but close enough for us. Parking is easy here and the hotel has a swimming pool.
Where to eat
Amsterdam is full of restaurants, so everyone can find somewhere to eat. Ripley’s Believe It or Not Amsterdam has a lounge on the top floor, where you can get some coffee and a pastry. While enjoying this you can also enjoy the view on Dam square.
Ripley’s Believe It or Not is a fun place to spend Halloween.
We recommend it, for a fun family time. We went on October 29th in 2017. This year (2020) it’s on Halloween itself from 10am till 4pm.
Address:
Dam 21
1012 JS Amsterdam
Opening hours:
Sunday till Friday: 10am – 8pm.
On Saturday: 10am – 9pm.
Want to explore more festivities in The Netherlands? Check out our blogs about Kingsday and the Dickens Festival.
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40 Comments
Rob + Ann @TravelLatte
Fun! We have a Ripley’s Believe It or Not less than 30 minutes from home…and we’ve never been there! This might be just the thing to celebrate this Halloween, though. Thanks for the idea! 🙂
Cosette
Yes, Ripley’s Believe It or Not is bizarre and perfect for Halloween.
Gian
Ripley’s is always a good idea. I know that you mentioned that you can touch everything but I’m sure that it’s different now with the pandemic and all.
Cosette
I would think that you can’t touch anything now with corona at Ripley’s Belive It or Not. They have all sorts of regulations in place right now.
Lisa
I’ve always wanted to visit a Ripleys – looks like so much fun for the family!
Cosette
We definitly had a lot of fun with the whole family at Ripley’s Believe It or Not.
Albí
I’m from Europe so I actually never heard about this place but it looks really fun and I would love to visit one day
Cosette
They’re indeed more famous in the USA, but there are 3 Ripley’s in Europe. The other ones are in Denmark and England.
Shalzmojo
Oh gosh I have never heard of the museums though I do know of the TV show by the same name. I would have never had the guts to visit this nor stick my hands through cobwebs to gather candy- some plucky kid you have there Cosette 🙂
Cosette
Funny, I never heard of the tv show, just heard of that recently. Yes, candy can make you do stuff.
Alanna Koritzke
So much fun! I’ve only been to Ripley’s once when I was really little and it totally scared me! I guess I need to revisit now that I’m older.
Cosette
I can understand that some things scared you at Ripley’s, a few of the exhibitions weren’t for little kids.
Krista
I love visiting these places if I come across them! It looks like you had a lot of fun!
Cosette
Yes, we had a lot of fun and will definitly visit more of the attractions now we know how fun Ripley’s Believe It or Not is.
Chirasree Banerjee
I would love to visit Ripley’s with my daughter someday! Thanks for sharing.
Cosette
Hope you get to visit Ripley’s some day with your daughter.
Marguerite
What a fun place for people of all ages! Will need to visit at least one 🙂
Cosette
Yes, it wasn’t just people with kids visiting, but several ages.
Paula Martinelli
Fun post! I have never visited the Ripleys before but you gave me a great idea. I need to check it out!
Cosette
It was fun, so definitly recommend visiting one near you.
Shannon
Ooh, fun! I had no idea there was a Ripley’s in the Netherlands. I’ve been to the one in St. Augustine.
Cosette
Yes, there are 3 in Europe. Most of the attractions are in the USA. I bet the one in St. Augustine was fun too.
Katie
I would never have thought to go on Halloween but that’s a great idea! I love visiting Ripley’s around the world.
Cosette
We found them through a commercial on facebook and it’s a perfect attraction for around Halloween time.
Elina
I have only been to a Ripley’s Believe It or Not once, but I bet during Halloween is really cool too.
Cosette
Yes, it was really cool during Halloween.
Laurence
My kids would LOVE this! So fun.
Cosette
Yes, our son loved it also.
Nilima
This looks like so much fun! A Fab idea for Halloween 😃
Cosette
Yes, it was a great idea for Halloween.
Sue
I’ve never been to a Ripleys Believe It or Not but it certainly looks like a fun place to visit, especially at Halloween.
Cosette
Ye,s Ripley’s Believe It or Not is fun to visit and Halloween made it special.
Josy A
OMG I would have loved this as a child! It looks like such a blast (and the best way to celebrate halloween!) I love that they made some of the candy tougher to get with reaching through a cobweb! Yuri deserves those sweets!
Cosette
Yes, he deserved the sweets this way, definitly. Yuri loved doing this during Halloween.
galatia savva
OMG this looks like such a fun day out! Gotta love Amsterdam – all things fun and quirky exist there!
Cosette
Yes, there’s a lot of fun and quirky things in Amsterdam to discover.
Nichole the Nomad
This is so so cool!! I have been to Ripleys Believe It Or Not, but not for Halloween! It looks so much fun!!
Cosette
Yes, Ripley’s Believe It or Not is definitly fun for Halloween time.
The Next Trip
This looks so fun! I bet this would be the greatest experience for kids! I grew up in a country where we don’t do anything for Halloween but I would have loved such an experience!
Cosette
When I was growing up, we also didn’t do anything for Halloween, it just something from the last 8 years or so.