Overlooking Amsterdam’s city centre waterways is a towering skyscraper called A’DAM Lookout. Here’s what it’s like to swing right over the edge of the 100-metre A’DAM Lookout swing.
A busy free ferry takes you from the Amsterdam Centraal station over the busy river to a tall, modern glass building. Amsterdam has more than 100 kilometres of canals, about 90 islands and 1,500 bridges. As you drift away from the hustle and bustle, the sun is blocked by a colossal, iconic landmark, and your next daredevil adventure.
A’DAM Lookout
| Website | Price: €12.50 |
A’DAM Lookout is an observation deck. A glowing glass elevator shoots past 20 stories of culture, business, and high-end lounges, spitting you out onto an expensive restaurant with a 360° view of Holland’s capital.
Upstairs, on top of a diagonal top floor, is the outdoor observation deck. It features photo opportunities for girls with 2,000 Instagram followers to pose atop the huge red letters, on a horse, and so on.
Over the Edge Amsterdam Swing
The real attraction is the Over the Edge Swing. For only €12.50, tourists can queue up at Europe’s highest swing. It’s tall and imposing, and the swing next to it is being repaired by a man with a hammer, filling visitors with confidence.
Up, Up, & Away
You take your seat on what is an actual swing seat and buckle in the puny waist belt. Everyone backs away, and the swing slowly lifts you up, feet hanging in the air above the fence until onlookers are little people below you. The hydraulics then tilt you forward, backward, and further forward, until you’re swinging past the barrier and over the edge of a 100-metre skyscraper.
The wide, brown river is below, beyond it Amsterdam’s various sketchy city districts. The chilly wind flows past your ears, and images of falling toward the hard pavement flash through your brain, making you grip the sides a little tighter.
Eventually, the Amsterdam swing gently lilts to a stop and lowers you back to the stunning roof deck. You unbuckle and stagger to safety, in awe of the scale of this city and just a little more adventurous.
