American heritage trips from Amsterdam: the cemetery at Margraten and the Market Garden battlefields
Many American families come to the Netherlands for a reason that goes back to 1944: a grave at the Netherlands American Cemetery in Margraten, a name on its Walls of the Missing, or a grandfather who jumped with the 101st or the 82nd Airborne near Eindhoven and Nijmegen. These pages answer how to get there from Amsterdam, how long the days are and what they cost, with opening times and history taken from the American Battle Monuments Commission, the museums and published histories.
AmstelCab is an Amsterdam chauffeur service. Our chauffeurs drive and wait; they are not battlefield guides, and we have no relationship with ABMC or the museums named here. Where a guide would add something, the pages say so.
Last updated:
The Netherlands American Cemetery, Margraten
How do I get from Amsterdam to the American Cemetery in Margraten?By car it is about 221 km (137 miles), roughly 3 h 01 without traffic, to the cemetery on the N278 east of Maastricht: about €756 one way per car in Business Class, or €780 for a same-day round trip booked as 12 hours.
Can a private driver take me from Amsterdam to Margraten and back in one day?Yes: book the car for 12 hours from Amsterdam, €780 in Business Class or €960 in Van Class for up to 7, which includes the 480 km the round trip of about 441 km needs.
My great-uncle is buried at Margraten — how do I visit his grave?Write to the cemetery before you travel: ABMC asks relatives planning a visit to contact NLVC@abmc.gov, and whenever the cemetery is open, daily from 9:00 to 17:00 except December 25 and January 1, a staff member in the visitor center escorts relatives to the grave.
Can I visit Margraten on the way from Amsterdam to Brussels?Yes, and the detour is modest: Amsterdam to the cemetery is about 221 km and the cemetery to Brussels another 125 km, against 205 km on the direct route, so plan on about 4 h 39 of driving plus your time at the graves.
How long is the drive from Amsterdam to Margraten?About 3 h 01 without traffic for the 221 km, or 137 miles, from central Amsterdam, nearly all of it on the A2 south to Maastricht and then the N278; from Schiphol it is 225 km and much the same time.
Can I do Margraten and Maastricht in one day trip by car from Amsterdam?Yes: Maastricht is only about 11 km from the cemetery, some 15 minutes, so a 13-hour day from Amsterdam fits both, the cemetery first because it closes at 17:00 and then an afternoon and dinner in Maastricht.
How do I get to the Memorial Day ceremony at Margraten?The cemetery holds its Memorial Day ceremony on the Sunday before Memorial Day, which by that rule is May 30, 2027; confirm the date and any access arrangements with the cemetery before you book.
Operation Market Garden and Band of Brothers
Can I do a day trip from Amsterdam to the Band of Brothers sites in the Netherlands?Yes: the series follows Easy Company of the 101st Airborne, which in Operation Market Garden fought for the bridges north of Eindhoven at Son and, in the series, liberated Eindhoven and fought at Nuenen, all about 124 km (77 miles) south of Amsterdam.
Can a private driver take me from Amsterdam to Arnhem Bridge and Oosterbeek?Yes: the Airborne Museum Hartenstein in Oosterbeek is about 95 km from Amsterdam, some 1 h 20 without traffic, and the John Frost Bridge in Arnhem is 7 km further, so a 7-hour day covers both for €455 in Business Class, with 280 km included.
How do I get from Amsterdam to Eindhoven station for a 9am Market Garden tour?Leave your Amsterdam hotel by about 6:46: Eindhoven Centraal is about 126 km away, 1 h 44 on a clear road, and a car there costs about €431 one way in Business Class, fixed when you book.
Can a driver take me to the 101st Airborne sites near Eindhoven?Yes: in Operation Market Garden the 101st Airborne dropped north of Eindhoven to take the bridges at Son and Veghel, along the road later nicknamed “Hell’s Highway”, and Son is about 124 km (77 miles) from Amsterdam, 1 h 43 without traffic.
Can I get a driver plus a guide for a WWII tour from Amsterdam?Yes, as two bookings: we drive, and a battlefield guide you choose does the guiding, riding along from Amsterdam or joining you near the sites.
My grandfather was in the 82nd Airborne — where should I go in the Netherlands?Start around Nijmegen: in Operation Market Garden the 82nd Airborne dropped to take the bridges at Grave and Nijmegen and concentrated on the Groesbeek Heights, where the Vrijheidsmuseum (National Liberation Museum) now stands, about 122 km, or 76 miles, from Amsterdam.