Amsterdam’s red-light district to become a thing of the past in tourism “reset”

Tourists walking in the red light district of Amsterdam, where prostitutes try to lure customers from behind their window
By Alexandra Coulton


The infamous brothel windows of Amsterdam’s red-light district will soon be a thing of the past, as the city’s mayor moves to create an “erotic centre” outside of the city centre.

Amsterdam’s mayor, Femke Halsema, put forward a proposal to shut down a significant number of the windows in the narrow alleyways of the city’s De Wallen red-light district, which was backed by a large group of political parties, according to The Guardian.

The city plans to create a purpose-built centre somewhere less central for the sex workers to operate from.

Halsema said the windows should be closed, as the women had become a tourist attraction and were subject to abuse.

“This is about a reset of Amsterdam as a visitor city. Tourists are welcome to enjoy the beauty and freedom of the city, but not at any cost,” said Dennis Boutkan of the Dutch Labour Party, according to The Guardian.

However, a member of a lobby group called Red Light United using the pseudonym ‘Foxxy’ told local media that relocating those workplaces is not an option because customers will not know where to find the sex workers.

“Will Halsema also sometimes organise bus trips for them to the Westelijk Havengebied?” they said.

This comes after Halsema made her latest move to prevent tourists from being able to enter the city’s infamous coffee shops.

In 2013, national drug laws in the Netherlands were updated so that only locals could enter coffee shops, which are able to sell small amounts of marijuana.

Amsterdam managed to get an exception to this law, but now Halsema is looking to enforce the update.

The city’s mayor said that pre-COVID, the increasing number of cannabis tourists – most of whom are young and low-budget – were becoming a problem for locals.

“Amsterdam is an international city and we wish to attract tourists, but we would like them to come for its richness, its beauty and its cultural institutions,” Halsema said, according to Deutsche Welle.

Featured image source: iStock/Hollandfoto

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