From the sea, access to Amsterdam is via the North Sea Canal. After passing the locks in IJmuiden a ship can pass through to one of the tideless ports of IJmuiden/Velsen, Beverwijk, Zaanstad or Amsterdam.

From inland waters, access to Amsterdam is via the Oranje locks nearby the IJsselmeer or through the Amsterdam Rhine canal. The Port of Amsterdam is in charge of all traffic control. This entails both the operation of the locks, the waterways and the mooring of ships.

Lock complex IJmuiden

The lock complex of IJmuiden is made up of 4 locks and is operational night and day (24 hours). The maximum draught allowed to use the lock is 13,72 metres in salt water.

	length	width	depth
Northern lock	400 metres	50 metres	15 metres
Middle lock	220 metres	25 metres	10 metres
Southern lock	111 metres	18 metres	8 metres
Small lock	111 metres	11 metres	3.75 metres

The average transit times are:

Pilot station to lock	45 minutes
Lockage	30 minutes
Lock to port terminal mooring	60 minutes

New locks

The lock complex in IJmuiden is the entrance to the economically very important port area along the North Sea Canal: Zeehavens Amsterdam. For the latest generation of cargoships only the 4th lock, the Northern Lock, is still suitable. The other locks are too small for cargoships and cruiseships. When the construction of the Northern Lock was finished in 1929 it was the biggest in the world.

In 2004 the Minister of Transport and Public Works, the Minister of Housing, Regional Development and Environment, the city council of Amsterdam, the Province of Noord-Holland, and the representatives of the business community, agreed to jointly investigate the possibilities for innovative and affordable solutions for the improvement of the IJmuiden approach. Therefore the partners have founded the project "Zeetoegang IJmuiden" (IJmuiden approach).

You can visit the website of the project if you want to know more about the IJmuiden approach project.

North Sea Canal

• Width: 275 metres, length: 20 km (11 nautical miles)
• Runs from the locks to the Coen harbour, where the IJ begins and runs through to the Oranje locks
• Maximum depth of the North Sea Canal, as in the locks, is 13.72 metres or 45 ft (measured in salt water)
• Deeper ships (up to 16.5 metres or 54 ft. in salt water) can lighten outside the locks

Traffic control takes place from the Harbour Operation Centre on the embankment on the south side of the southern fairway in IJmuiden, the Traffic Centre IJmuiden and the Amsterdam Port Control, whereby the following VHF channels are used (see visual):

Amsterdam port area

The port area is made up of the following harbour basins as seen from the west

• Afrika harbour
• Amerika harbour: Ceres mooring, Azië harbour and Australië harbour
• West harbour: Horn harbour, Moezel harbour, Main harbour, Bering harbour, Suez harbour, Bosporus harbour and Sont harbour
• Usselinkx harbour: Carel Reyniersz harbour.
• Van Riebeeck harbour
• Petroleum harbour
• Coen harbour: harbour-basin A, harbour-basin C, Mercurius harbour, Minerva harbour, Neptunus harbour and Vlot harbour
• Hout harbour: Nieuwe Hout harbour, Oude Hout harbour

In addition to these harbour basins there are also berths for inland vessels and cruise ships by the De Ruijterkade and in the eastern port area.

More information:

• Specific information about berths and facilities for all the harbour basins