What is it, exactly?
Het Schip (“The Ship”) is a 1919 block of workers’ housing in the Spaarndammerbuurt, and a masterpiece of the Amsterdam School — an expressionist movement that turned brick into sculpture. Designed by Michel de Klerk, it has rippling facades, a fairy-tale corner tower, rounded windows and extraordinary brickwork, all built as beautiful homes for ordinary postal workers. Part of it is now a small museum, including a former post office interior and a restored workers’ apartment.
Is it worth visiting?
If you have any interest in architecture, absolutely — it’s one of Europe’s boldest early-20th-century buildings, and almost no tourists make it out here. Even from the outside it’s astonishing; the guided interior tour adds the human story of why a housing corporation once built palaces for the poor. It’s a completely different, quietly moving side of Amsterdam.
How do you get there?
It’s at Oostzaanstraat 45, in the Spaarndammerbuurt just north-west of the centre. Take tram 3 to Haarlemmerplein and walk, or buses 22 and 48 towards Spaarndammerstraat. It’s also a pleasant cycle from the centre.
When to go, and what it costs
The museum is open Tuesday to Sunday, 11am–5pm (closed Mondays and some public holidays), and entry is around €15. Guided interior tours run through the afternoon, with the 3pm tour in English — worth timing your visit around. Always check current hours and prices before travelling.
Insider tip
Walk the full block before you go in — the best details (the spire, the “ship’s prow” corner, the sculptural brick) are all on the outside and free to admire. Then combine it with a wander round the wider Spaarndammerbuurt, which is full of more Amsterdam School gems most visitors never see.
