When planning my trip to Amsterdam, I went out of my way to look for sites that would be considered weird, offbeat, and unusual. Not surprisingly, Amsterdam has plenty of bizarre attractions to entertain those looking for something different or alternative to mainstream tourist sites like the Ann Frank Huis or Van Gogh Museum.
The first weird and offbeat place I visited? A museum dedicated entirely to cats! I’m actually not kidding and at the risk of being called a crazy cat lady, I went to the Katten Kabinet (Cat Cabinet) which features artwork depicting nothing else but … cats.
Crazy Cat Ladies Love The Katten Kabinet in Amsterdam
The museum was founded in 1990 by Bob Meijer in honor of his cat John Pierpont Morgan. In case you were wondering, yes, Bob actually named his cat after American banker, J.P. Morgan! I wonder how many cats out there are named after the rich and famous? Confession, my moustached rescue cat is named after Burt Reynolds
As you wander through the museum, you may be surprised to discover that the interior is very grand and stately. This canal house was actually used to shoot scenes for the movie, Ocean’s 12. Bob and his family also live on the second floor. Hmmmm, just imagine how much cat art must be on display in their living room. You might even be lucky enough to come across one of the family cats while you’re visiting. Unfortunately, none of them were around when I was there.
Recommended reading: Another cat themed place in Amsterdam is a cat sanctuary on a boat! Read, Cats & Boats Mix At The Cat Boat Amsterdam.
The museum features all sorts of cat prints, sculptures, and memorabilia. There are even works by Picasso, Rembrandt, and Toulouse-Lautrec in the Katten Kabinet art museum’s collection.
When it comes to cat memorabilia, there are some really over-the-top items like this old-fashioned pinball machine, colorful pom-pom sculpture, and Cats statue.
There’s also a guestbook to sign. One visitor drew a caricature of his cat Bicho whom he feels should be featured in the museum. I vote that my darling Burt be included because there is no other cat who’s cute or as hilarious as him.
If you like some of the art you see in the Katten Kabinet art museum, there are plenty of posters and prints to buy in their little shop (also online).
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What do you think about this adorable and very fun place, The Katten Kabinet Art Museum In Amsterdam? Would you visit?
Location
Good To Know About The Katten Kabinet Art Museum
1) The museum is small and can be toured in about 30 minutes. Admission will fetch you 6 €.
2) When in Amsterdam, find a lovely place to stay using booking.com.
Booking.com3) Make your time in Amsterdam more special by taking a guided tour.
4) If you need further travel inspiration for special places around Europe, check out some of our other fabulous posts:
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- Poznan Restaurants for Breakfast, Lunch, & Dinner – The next time you’re visiting Poznan, Poland try out these delicious and tasty Poznan restaurants for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
- Why You Should Visit Nis Serbia – Many people fly into Nis and quickly move on to Belgrade. Read my top five reasons why you should visit Nis Serbia.
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A museum for cat art – that is bizzare! What will they think of next 🙂 It seems they love their black ones best, hmmm?
kittEH kittEH kittEH! I’m still trying to wrap my head around the Chettalin poster with “So wirkt Schuhputz” …
How do you find this stuff?? Haha! Looks like an interesting museum – I’m sure there is enough cat stuff out there to fill a few of them…
Hahahaha, that’s insane! I wish I’d known about this when I went to Amsterdam earlier this year!
@Sherry – It’s very bizarre! I’m scared of what they’ll think of next. 😉
@Henry – believe it just means shoeshine.
@Andrea – I’m on a mission for all things weird now.
@Lauren – It’s def a good laugh. More fun than the sex museum! 🙂
Thanks, Cheryl! But what I was really trying to wrap my head was that either the boots have eyes, that it’s simply a reflection from the very shiny material of the boots, or that the cat is standing military-style with boots … and yet, I cannot look away … ack! 😛
Good find! But shocking they can charge that much for a tiny cat art museum.
@Henry – LOL! Not quite sure myself, it’s a very strange print indeed.
@Stephanie – Yes, for sure. Amsterdam while totally cool and very fun is not a cheap city! That’s why I’m headed to Poland next. 🙂
i SO want to go there. SO MUCH
@Jade – ha ha! It’s definitely an offbeat experience. You can always depend on Europe to offer up weird museums of all sorts.
“Perhaps there are some mean looking Persian cats with messy hair named “The Donald“.” — LOL! Now I want to get a mean looking Persian just so I can steal this idea. 😛
@Christy – Glad I could make you laugh! Please do this and share your angry cat photos. 🙂
@Laurel – my next post also happens to be cat related! You can follow my foot steps and have a crazy ct lady day like I did. 😉
I think I qualify as one of those “crazy cat ladies” so would love to check this out.
I passed by this museum on my last day in Amsterdam. Almost went inside but my feet were completely destroyed from four days of non-stop walking about the city. My fiance loves cats, and I figure that someday I’ll have to show him Amsterdam. This will definitely be on the list of cool museums to check out – the cat memorabilia is so catty!
@Margaret – I walked and walked through Amsterdam too! Don’t blame you for not going in when you were so tired. Hope you make it there, it’s quiete cute. =)
I’ve just got to this post from your “De Poezenboot” post. Amazing. This is such a great idea of a museum. And when I think that I almost made it again to Amsterdam this year… I really have to go back. Thanks for the tip.
Laura – Yes, I had quite the car themed time in Amsterdam. The musuem is a lot of fun too! 🙂