If you live in Amsterdam and haven’t made OBA Oosterdok part of your routine, you’re missing out. OBA stands for Openbare Bibliotheek Amsterdam (Amsterdam Public Library), and the main branch, OBA Oosterdok, is right on the waterfront east of Centraal Station. The building is hard to miss: a big, modern, glass-heavy structure that doesn’t look like what most people picture when they think “library.” It opened in 2007, and it’s the second largest public library in Europe. Which sounds like a fun fact until you’re actually inside and you start to feel the scale of it.
OBA Oosterdok has around 1,200 seats, 600 of which have internet-connected computers. It has a collection of 1.5 million books, periodicals, CDs, DVDs, games and Blu-ray discs. A theatre. An exhibition space. A café on the ground floor and a full restaurant with a terrace on the seventh floor. It’s a very large space, airy and with a lovely vibe to it. If you are book nerd, you will absolutely love it.
Entry is free. You don’t need a membership to walk in, sit down, and spend the whole day there, lost in books. But if you want to become a member, the most expensive, full membership is only 62,50 euro per year for adults, and only cheaper for basic membership or youth and free for children up to 18 years old. Check all the memberships on OBA’s website.
It’s very useful to know is that the books at OBA are not only in Dutch. You can find various languages here, from English to Arabic, African languages, Romanian, Ukrainian, and more. OBA Oosterdok hosts something called the Huis van Alle Talen (House of All Languages), an international books concept spread across multiple floors. The adult collection covers more than 30 languages, and the children’s collection has 16 languages. This is a collection of books but also a platform where cultures are celebrated and communities can meet.
The building is full of different kinds of spaces: open tables, quiet corners, enclosed booths, areas with natural light, areas that feel more tucked away. There are small separate corners and booths for people who want more privacy for studying. You can find a spot that suits your mood and your kind of focus.
Free WiFi is available on your own device, but if you want to use one of the computers provided by the library, you need to be a member.
Beyond just sitting and working, the materials available are kind of amazing. Physical books, yes, but also magazines, music, films, games. All materials can be consulted for free here. To borrow them and take them home would require a membership though. There are rotating exhibitions, regular author talks, workshops. Interactive exhibits on literature that are worth a wander even if you didn’t come for them. It’s the kind of place where you come with one plan and leave having gone slightly sideways into something you didn’t expect to find interesting. I love going there and browse through the overwhelming collection of books. Sometimes I find one and sit with it, other times I simply go through many photography books, unable to choose just one.
If you’re going with kids: there’s a dedicated children’s section, a whole floor just for them (floor -1)! It has books in various languages and spaces for activities for kids and parents. It’s a regular spot for some families and an amazing place for kids to learn and play.
At the seventh floor there’s a restaurant (Babel) that is a great lunch spot with views over the city (there aren’t many of these in Amsterdam!). The terrace is open in warmer months and looks south over Amsterdam, which on a clear day is pretty hard to beat.
Practical info
OBA Oosterdok is open Mon-Fri from 08.00:00 to 22:00, and in the weekend 10.00 to 20.00.
There’s also bike parking for 2,000 bikes at the building, and it’s a ten-minute walk from Centraal Station if you’re coming from that direction.
Address: Amsterdam Public Library (OBA), Oosterdokskade 143, 1011 DL Amsterdam
Note: this is the main branch of OBA, but there are almost 30 branches in various neighbourhoods of Amsterdam and in the villages of Diemen, Duivendrecht, and Ouderkerk aan de Amstel. All with their spaces for adults and kids and great books collection. Check out the one that is closer to you.
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