Netherlands

Travel guide

Amsterdam

The Anne Frank House

One of the main attractions of Amsterdam is the museum that annually receives more than a million visitors: the Anne Frank museum. The purpose of this museum is to become a reminder of what its walls hid. Although its facade appeared to be a small company dedicated to the production and sale of pectin and spices, the truth is that the rear of the building had become a hideout for eight people during World War II. Among them was Anne Frank.

Discover the history of Anne Frank on our Alternative Free Tour Amsterdam. The family included Otto Heinrich Frank, the father; Edith Hollander, the mother; and the young Margot and Anne Frank, the daughters. The Frank family, of German origin, remained in Frankfurt until shortly after Hitler's rise to power. Given the increase in anti-Semitic hatred, Otto Frank decided to save his family by emigrating in 1933 to Amsterdam.

Despite the neutrality of the Netherlands during World War II, the Nazis invaded the country in 1940 and carried out a persecution of the Jewish community. For this reason, Otto decided to leave his house on Merwedeplein Square and hide his family in a shelter that he had been preparing in the back house of his small pectin and spice factory in Prinsengracht or "Princes' Canal". Many people wondered about the place where Anne Frank was hidden. It is none other than the Canal Priesengrachrt. There the Frank family takes refuge, together with the marriage formed by Hermann and Auguste van Pels and their son, Peter, who in the book "Diary of Anne Frank" appear as the van Daan family. This group of eight hidden Jews was joined by the dentist Fritz Pfeffer, to whom Ana would change the name in her book o Albert Dussel.

The group remained locked in this small space for more than two years: between July 1942 and August 1944. They were finally detained by the German SS, after the tip-off by an anonymous informer.

The only connection the group had to the outside world was thanks to the help of four employees of Otto Frank's company and two other people who kept them informed and provided them with all they needed to survive. During the day, the refugees had to remain silent so as not to be discovered by the other company employees, because all of them were convinced that all the family was in Switzerland.

El Diario de Ana Frank

Durante los dos años de reclusión, Ana aprovechó para leer muchos libros, que le ayudaron a mejorar su estilo y escritura. Escribía todos los días sobre cómo era la vida en el escondite: los problemas que iban surgiendo, los roces con sus padres, especialmente con su madre, sus sentimientos hacia Peter van Pels (con el que tuvo una pequeña relación amorosa), escribía sobre la guerra, sobre las recompensas que había puesto el régimen por delatar a judíos y sobre sus esperanzas de algún día salir de allí.

Ana escribía en su diario como si se tratase de cartas enviadas a su amiga Kitty en las que poco a poco iba informando del aumento de la persecución nazi, de sus preocupaciones, sus deseos, la complicada relación que mantenía con su madre o con el dentista Fritz, o incluso su cada vez mayor interés hacia el hijo de la familia van Pels, Peter.

Este libro no nos habla solo de la dramática evolución de la guerra, ni de la relación de la pequeña Ana con sus compañeros de refugio; nos muestra la prematura madurez de una joven adquirida en unas circunstancias traumáticas, en un espacio reducido compartido con varias personas.

Cuando la familia Frank ya había sido arrestada, Miep Gies entra en el escondite y recupera los escritos de Ana, entre los que encuentra su diario. En 1945, Miep Gies le entrega el cuaderno a Otto Frank cuando es liberado del campo de concentración. Después de editar el diario de su hija, decide publicarlo. Dos años más tarde, se hace realidad: el Diario de Ana Frank es publicado. El objetivo que Otto Frank perseguía con ello era dar a conocer la historia de la adolescente y las penurias y momentos duros que tuvieron que pasar todos los que durante los dos años permanecieron escondidos de los nazis en "la casa de atrás".

A día de hoy, el Diario de Ana Frank ha sido traducido a más de 70 idiomas y se han vendido más de 30 millones de ejemplares en todo el mundo.

Recorre la vida de Ana Frank.

What to see in the Anne Frank House

Without a doubt the visit to this house is one of the most emotional and sad places to see in Amsterdam, but it is also necessary. The house was about to be demolished in the mid-1950s, but the providential and insistent action from a local newspaper prevented the demolition.During the visit to the Anne Frank house, we can access the hiding place through the same place that the eight people in hiding did. Access to this annex was made through a shelf that turned and showed the entrance.

After the Nazis discovered the hiding place, they seized everything in the rooms. Still, the people who had helped the Frank family managed to rescue some furniture, objects, and documents, including Anna's diary. During the visit, we will visit the rooms that welcomed those inhabitants hidden by obligation. We will also see several of the photos with which Anna adorned her makeshift house and we will get a little closer to the lives of those families in that space. Regarding the photos, there are several stories: Ana was a great fan of decorating the walls of her rooms with photos. When she had to live in hiding, she continued with that habit. In fact, over the years, several museum visitors were identified in those photographs because they were portraits from when they were children. On the other hand, the exhibitions and video projections will help us go back to those years and try to understand, as much as possible, the story that they had to write.

On the way out there is a room that we advise you not to stop visiting, because it is here that Anna's original diary is kept. The one that they keep after the discovery of the refuge, they preserve and deliver to Otto Frank on his return to Amsterdam. Obviously the diary is kept behind glass, but it is still something especially exciting and emotional, having before us a piece of the immortal Anna Frank. From here, we dare to advise you that, if you are going to make this visit, read the book "The Diary of Anne Frank" first, it will bring you much closer to everything that is going to surround you and everything you are going to see at the Museum.

Already on the ground floor is the “Free2choose”, a room where we can watch videos about freedom of expression, tolerance or racism. Don’t forget that the Museum must be visited not only from the perspective of those who listen to a story, but from the point of view of those who want to draw a valuable lesson from the terrible mistakes made.

Next to the "House behind" is the "House in front", where the protectors of the people in hiding worked and where Otto Frank's office was. This part has the original aspect of the period in which the Frank were hidden.

Ana Frank's diary

On her thirteenth birthday, June 12, 1942, Ana received a diary as a gift. he began to write immediately. At first she wrote about her daily life, her tastes, her hobbies ... But just a month after receiving it, she was forced to take refuge with her family in the "achterhuis", "back house" in Dutch, but also It has been translated as "secret annex or hiding place".

Ana wrote in her diary as if they were letters sent to her friend Kitty.  She reported on the increase in Nazi persecution, her worries, her wishes, and the complicated relationship she had with her mother or with the Fritz dentist. She even explained her growing interest in Peter, the son of the van Pels family.

This book tells us about the dramatic evolution of the war but also about Anne's relationship with her refuge companions. It shows us the premature maturity of a young woman who experiences traumatic circumstances, in a small space shared with several people.

Interesting data

The Anne Frank house is one of the most frequented museums in the world, with more than a million visitors a year. Therefore, we recommend you buy the ticket online to avoid queues and spend more time visiting the rest of the city.

We also recommend that you continue along the Prinsengracht canal bank to the south. About 100 meters away you will find Westermarkt Square, where a small sculpture dedicated to Anne Frank is located.

Feel free to ask our guide on the Free Amsterdam Alternative Tour about the Anne Frank story.

Visit the Anne Frank House with children

As a museum, the Anne Frank House offers great lessons in history and life. But this does not mean that it is not a visit suitable for children. Although it is one of the cruellest and saddest periods in history, the smallest ones cannot be left out of the things that happened either. If you decide to visit the Anne Frank house with your family, it is important to keep in mind that one of the first projections that are issued at the beginning of the tour of the Museum talks about concentration camps. In this case, due to the hardness of the images, it would be convenient for the children not to see that part of the projection. However, the rest of the tour is child friendly. In this way, they will know the story that is told there and about which many doubts and questions will arise.

Location of the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam

Detalles

    Horario

     

    • Todos los días de 9:00 a 22:00 h 

    Precio

    • Adultos: 16 €
    • Menores de 10 a 17 años y Carnet Joven: 7 €
    • Menores hasta 9 años: 1 €

    *Si eres estudiante o posees la I Amsterdam Card, no se te aplicará ningún descuento

    *Es necesario realizar el pago de la entrada mediante tarjeta de débito o crédito

    Accesibilidad

    • Debido a la arquitectura original de la casa -con angostas y empinadas escaleras-, los visitantes en sillas de ruedas solo pueden visitar la parte moderna del museo

How to get to the Anne Frank House

    Bus

    • Parada: Westermarkt

    Tranvía

    • Parada: Westermarkt