No longer ‘koekeloeren at the whores’: Amsterdam end to tours of windows on the Walls

Travel to The Dutch capital Amsterdam guided tours of the red light district to prohibit. January 1, may tourists not more in groups along the prostitutieramen be led.

'Koekeloeren at the whores’, the ‘red light district tour with mistress Lola’ and the ‘guided tour' Old Whores’, are tours that will now have to find a different route through the city. Also the historical, culinary and alcoholic guided tours are a thing of the past. The so-called pubcrawls, real zuiptours along bars, also fall under the ban.

also Read How prostitutes in the red light district by tourists, impossible to work Inconvenience

That makes alderman Udo Kock (D66) announced today. “It is not respectful towards sex workers,” he declares. “It is not more of this time to see them as a tourist attraction.” It helps the measure against the crowds on the Ramparts. On the Oudekerksplein, in the heart of red light district, are, on average, ten groups per hour silent, or 1.014 per week. That may be up to thirty groups per hour at busy times. The record is 48 groups in one hour.

The inconvenience that comes with it, is an important reason for the ban. In 2018, was already a licensing scheme for tour guides introduced and since then the nuisance in Amsterdam's red light district, however, decreased. But according to residents, sex workers, and entrepreneurs still not enough. They encounter many nuisances, such as objectionable photograph and abusive behaviour.

“Suction effect”

Outside the Wallengebied may tours will be, but only if the guides have a licence and a mark of quality. The maximum group size is reduced from twenty to fifteen people and a free guided tour there is also not - that would be a priming effect.

Who is a tour will, in each case, to pay tax, the so-called vermakelijkhedenretributie. Which is now 66 cents, but likely to go up. The tax is expected to be included in a ticket price, just as with canal cruises and hop-on-hop-offbussen. The entrepreneur bears the tax to the municipality. Who is currently busy with the new measures legally to work.