Shooting in Amsterdam

March 6, 2011 9:38 AM

I'd like to go pistol shooting in Amsterdam.

My friend and I are in Amsterdam for a couple of days in a month's time and we'd like to go shooting whilst we're there*. All of the information I can find on the internet is aimed at Stag/Bachelor Parties and that's not really what we're looking for. I don't speak any Dutch so the small number of websites I can find are fairly impenetrable, even with the benefit of Google Translate.

* Handguns are banned in the UK, and other firearms are highly restricted, so we can't do it at home.

posted by alby to travel & transportation around Amsterdam, The Netherlands (5 answers total)

Googling for schietvereniging+Amsterdam ('schietvereniging' is the Dutch word for 'shooting club') gives you a page that starts with a list of 'local business results' with URLs and phone numbers, most of which appear to be actual shooting clubs in Amsterdam. (This may get you started - hopefully there'll be someone along soon with more specific answers).
posted by rjs at 11:12 AM on March 6, 2011 [1 favorite]

What's wrong with the shooting clubs in the UK? They seem to be equivalent to the ones here.
Firearms are very much restricted in the Netherlands as well.
posted by HFSH at 2:56 PM on March 6, 2011

Hmmm. Adding 'proefles' (trial lesson) to the search did get me a page of an Amsterdam shooting club providing trial lessons, but according to the page they were fully booked for the time being, and they also were only interested in giving trial lessons to people who were seriously considering joining the club.

HFSH is right about fire arms being very much restricted in the Netherlands, but I don't know enough to compare and contrast to the situation in the UK.
posted by rjs at 10:10 PM on March 6, 2011

HFSH, there are no legal handguns in the UK in civilian hands at all. That includes at shooting clubs, olympic shooters (British pistol team trains in Switzerland).

The Netherlands is less restrictive, but I'm not sure if Dutch gun clubs really allow parties to shoot for fun.
posted by atrazine at 1:41 AM on March 7, 2011

This club offers group shoots, also for foreigners.
posted by atrazine at 2:34 AM on March 7, 2011