The Concertgebouw, Amsterdam's great classical music hall, closes off the southern end of the Museumplein, opposite the Rijksmuseum. Designed by the architect Adolf Leonard (Dolf) van Gendt, it opened on 11 April 1888, the year its resident orchestra, the Koninklijk Concertgebouworkest (Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra), was founded. Its Grote Zaal (Main Hall) is renowned for having some of the finest acoustics in the world. The building cannot be visited during the day and there are no guided tours: the only way in is to attend a concert. The easiest option is the free lunchtime concert, held almost every week from September to June; paid concerts cost from €21 to €159 in September and October 2026, depending on the programme and the seat.
Highlights
The façade and the golden lyre
On the Museumplein side, the brick and stone façade bears the inscription "Concert-Gebouw"; since the opening, a gilded lyre, the instrument of Apollo, has shone on the roof of the Main Hall. It is 3.5 metres high and was regilded in 2013. The building stands on 2,186 wooden piles driven into the ground in 1883, when the site lay outside the city limits. The glass side wing dates from the major renovation of 1985-1988; the historic entrance on the Museumplein reopened in 2023.
The Grote Zaal
The Main Hall, with about 1,950 seats, was modelled on the Neue Gewandhaus in Leipzig. Empty, its reverberation time reaches 2.8 seconds, or 2.2 seconds with an audience, which makes it ideal for late Romantic music. Mahler, Richard Strauss and Stravinsky conducted their own works here; 28 gilded cartouches bear composers' names along the top of the walls, and 17 more were later added along the edge of the balcony.
The organ and the musicians' staircase
The great organ, ordered in 1890 from the Utrecht organ builder Michaël Maarschalkerweerd in a case designed by Van Gendt, has had 3,952 pipes since its restoration by Flentrop, inaugurated in 1993. On either side, two long staircases lead down to the stage: conductors and soloists use them to make their entrance and exit to applause.
The Kleine Zaal
The Recital Hall, with about 430 seats, is modelled on the oval hall of Felix Meritis. Devoted to chamber music and recitals, it hosts most of the free lunchtime concerts. Twelve composers' cartouches were installed here when the building was constructed.
Free lunchtime concerts
Every week except in July and August, a free 30-minute concert takes place from 12.30 pm to 1 pm, usually on a Wednesday, sometimes on another day: young chamber musicians, conservatory ensembles or a public rehearsal by the Concertgebouworkest in the Main Hall (on Thursday 22 October 2026: Beethoven and Mozart). A free ticket is required and must be booked online; tickets are released about a week before, at 10 am, with a limit of two per person. Doors open about 30 minutes before the start.
Tickets and prices
In October 2026, recitals in the Kleine Zaal cost €37 to €57 and concerts in the Grote Zaal mostly €21 to €63; in September 2026, a Concertgebouworkest concert conducted by Klaus Mäkelä ranged from €29 to €159. Under-30s can buy a "sprint" ticket online four hours before the concert, €11 in the Kleine Zaal and €18 in the Grote Zaal, for concerts that are not sold out. Allow €5 in fees per online order, none at the box office. For many concerts, a drink is included, before the concert or during the interval.
Concertgebouw OPEN
Once a year, at the start of the season, a free open day lets you explore the whole building with a timed ticket: in 2026 it was held on Saturday 5 September from 10 am to 4 pm, with 52 mini-concerts, an audio tour in Dutch, photos on the conductors' staircase and a few tours of the basement. It is a rare chance to enter spaces normally closed to the public.
Infos pratiques
Tips
There is no dress code: wear whatever you feel comfortable in. The cloakroom is free; bags, backpacks and umbrellas are not allowed in the halls, and folding bikes are accepted neither in the cloakroom nor anywhere in the building. Payment is by card only, at the box office as well as at the bars. Classical concerts are open to children aged 6 and over. Photography is not allowed during the concert but is permitted before it and during the final applause. Concert sold out? Go to the box office about 75 minutes before the start: uncollected reservations are released there on a first come, first served basis. Lunchtime tickets go fast: the 7 October 2026 concert was sold out five days ahead. To compare with the opera and other venues, see our guide to concerts and shows in Amsterdam; for dinner before the concert, the building houses Restaurant LIER and Café Viotta, and our guide on where to eat in Amsterdam lists more addresses. Prices checked in October 2026.
How to get there
Concertgebouwplein 10, 1071 LN Amsterdam, at the southern end of the Museumplein, in the Museum Quarter. From Centraal Station, take tram 2 or 24 (via Dam and Leidseplein) to the Museumplein stop; tram 24 continues to the Concertgebouw stop, next to the building. Trams 5 (from Amsterdam Zuid station) and 12 (from Amstelstation and De Pijp metro station, line 52) also stop at Concertgebouw. Since 29 March 2026, tram 3 no longer runs and tram 12 no longer goes to Centraal Station. By car, the underground car park beneath the Museumplein (entrance on Van Baerlestraat) offers concertgoers a discount; there are bike racks all around the building.
Opening hours
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