Originally Posted by Metzinger

It's true there's a lot of interesting riding in Amsterdam. You can roll right out of the city on one of those city bikes. But the countryside begs to be farther explored. Leiden, Utrecht, Haarlem, the coast, Marken, would all be best reached with a road, or at least a hybrid bike. Google racefiets verhuur if you're set on a roadie. But lots of the city rental places have a range of granny/city/hybrid bikes. Visit the info booth outside Centraal Station to learn about route navigation. Fietsroute and Knoopunt Networks are your friends.