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Indoor Smoking Bars in Amsterdam: What the Law Allows

October 31, 2026
Indoor Smoking Bars in Amsterdam: What the Law Allows

An indoor smoking bar, in the sense of a pub where you light a cigarette at the table, does not legally exist in Amsterdam. Smoking tobacco inside cafés, restaurants, hotels, coffeeshops and shisha lounges has been banned across the Netherlands, and the NVWA, the Dutch food and consumer product safety authority, confirms the ban covers these venues. What you can find are smoker-friendly places: bars with a genuine open-air terrace, coffeeshops where pure cannabis is tolerated, and lounges that serve herbal, tobacco-free shisha. This guide explains each option, so you can pick a good night out without getting caught out by the rules.

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TL;DR

  • Indoor tobacco smoking is banned in Amsterdam hospitality venues, and indoor smoking rooms are prohibited too. A venue cannot create one by calling it a lounge.
  • Smoking is possible on a real terrace: open air, separated, seated, with at least one side completely open.
  • Coffeeshops sell cannabis but no alcohol. Tobacco mixed into joints is not allowed inside.
  • "Smoker-friendly" usually means a good terrace, a tolerant coffeeshop or herbal shisha, never a tobacco room indoors.
  • At Big Shots Amsterdam you get a sports bar, restaurant, café and lounge in one place, with food and drinks all night.

Table of Contents

What people mean by an indoor smoking bar in Amsterdam

Searchers use several phrases for the same hope: an indoor smoking bar, a smoking lounge, a smoker-friendly bar, a restaurant with a smoking area. Visitors from countries where smoking rooms exist, or who remember Amsterdam before the ban, expect to find a back room with an ashtray. Others picture the coffeeshop, where smoking is the whole point.

In practice the phrase covers four different things:

  1. Tobacco cigarettes indoors. Not allowed in any hospitality venue.
  2. Cannabis indoors. Allowed only in licensed coffeeshops, and with rules about tobacco.
  3. Shisha. Allowed in the form of tobacco-free, herbal products in some venues, and not with tobacco.
  4. Smoking outside. Possible on proper terraces, subject to conditions.

Once you know which of the four you want, the search gets much easier.

What Dutch law says about smoking indoors

The rules come from the national smoking ban, enforced by the NVWA. Smoking is prohibited indoors at cafés, restaurants, hotels, coffeeshops and shisha lounges. The same page states that indoor smoking rooms are not permitted in buildings covered by the ban. That is the point most guides skip: a separate room, a curtain or a "lounge" label does not make indoor tobacco smoking legal.

This matters if you see a listing promising a smoking area inside. Either it means a terrace, a coffeeshop or a herbal product, or the venue is taking a risk that you do not want to share. The operator is responsible for enforcing the ban, so a well-run place will ask you to step outside.

Vaping follows the same logic. Our guide on vaping rules for Dutch hospitality venues goes into what operators face, including a fine of up to €600.

The doorway counts too

Standing in the entrance with a cigarette is not a loophole. The NVWA says smoking or vaping at the door of a café or restaurant is not allowed, because smoke must not drift inside and cause nuisance. Walk a few steps away from the entrance and keep clear of the seating area.

Smoking outside: terraces that work

A terrace is the one place where a bar and a cigarette can legally meet. The NVWA says smoking and vaping may be allowed on an outdoor terrace, provided it is genuinely in the open air and does not cause nuisance indoors.

The same page defines what a terrace is: an open-air, separated area with seating. It can have umbrellas or awnings for weather protection, but at least one side must be completely open. So a heated, fully enclosed glass "winter garden" is not a terrace in the legal sense, however much it feels like one.

What that means for you:

  • Check the sides. If the area is closed on all sides, expect to be told not to smoke.
  • Check the wind. If smoke blows into the bar, the venue may ask you to stop.
  • Ask before you light up. Each venue sets its own policy, even where the law allows smoking.

If you want ideas for where to sit outside, our Amsterdam bar terrace guide covers lively spots for drinks and sports, and why Amsterdam restaurants offer outdoor seating explains the thinking behind it.

Coffeeshops and cannabis: a different set of rules

Many of the top search results for this topic are about cannabis, because that is the other thing people mean by smoking in a bar. Here is how it works.

What a coffeeshop is

Government.nl describes a coffeeshop as an establishment where cannabis is sold, and alcoholic drinks may not be sold or consumed there. So the combination of a beer and a joint at one table is not something a licensed coffeeshop offers. Some cafés sit next door to coffeeshops or arrange things so you can move between the two, but each remains a separate set of rules. Our article on café versus coffeeshop in Amsterdam lays out the differences, including the 5 gram limit.

Cannabis is still a criminal offence in the Netherlands. Small-scale coffeeshop sales are not prosecuted when the coffeeshop follows the tolerance conditions, and sale outside coffeeshops is not tolerated. The same page says possession of up to 5 grams for personal use is generally tolerated: police may seize it, but normally do not prosecute.

No, a recent experiment has not changed this for Amsterdam. The 2025 rules for the controlled-supply experiment list 10 participating municipalities, and Amsterdam is not among them in that document. If you are unsure where to buy safely, read our safety guide to buying weed in Amsterdam.

Tobacco in the joint

The tobacco ban reaches coffeeshops too, which is why a pure joint is the norm indoors. A coffeeshop guide notes that the ban has applied since July 2008 and that staff will intervene if they see tobacco being mixed in. Herbal substitutes and vaporizers are the usual workarounds.

Health is worth a sentence here. A Dutch government report found that in a 2016 survey, 66% of past-year cannabis users always used a tobacco joint, and 18% smoked pure cannabis. The same report recommends not combining cannabis with tobacco and prefers vaporizing to smoking because of combustion and tobacco risks. If you have asthma, heart problems or are pregnant, talk to your GP before using anything.

Smoking cannabis outside: the street rules

Do not take a joint for a walk through the center. The City of Amsterdam says that smoking cannabis in public areas of the city center is forbidden and can lead to fines. The city's 2023 amendment to its local rules applies the ban to roads and other publicly accessible places in the designated area. It excludes qualifying coffeeshop terraces that are part of the premises licence. That text is a draft amendment, so check the city page for the current map and rules before you go.

Alcohol on the street is covered by the same city guidance, so a drink in hand is not a safe alternative either.

Shisha lounges: what is actually possible

Shisha is where the lines blur most, because the word suggests tobacco, and tobacco is exactly what the ban rules out indoors. NVWA lists shisha lounges among the places where indoor smoking is prohibited. What operators can lawfully offer is a different matter, and our guides explain the rules in detail:

The practical rule: if a lounge promises "real" tobacco shisha indoors, be wary. If it is open about a herbal, tobacco-free product, you are in a venue that has understood the law.

How to check a venue before you go

A short routine saves an awkward evening:

  1. Read the entrance. The smoke-free sign is mandatory in indoor hospitality, and the NVWA says operators must enforce the ban.
  2. Look at the terrace photos. Is at least one side fully open? If not, it will not count as a terrace.
  3. Ask what "smoking" means. Tobacco on the terrace, pure cannabis in a coffeeshop, or a herbal product in a lounge are three different answers.
  4. Ask about food. Coffeeshops sell no alcohol, so a group that wants dinner and cocktails needs a second stop.
  5. Book for groups. Weekends and match nights fill up quickly.

Our perspective

We run Big Shots Amsterdam, a sports bar, shisha lounge, restaurant and café at three central venues in the city. Plenty of our guests arrive asking where they can smoke inside, and our honest answer is the one in this guide: the law has closed that door for tobacco, and we would rather tell you that than sell you a promise.

Our perspective

What we focus on instead is the rest of the night. Smokers usually travel in groups, and groups want different things: one person wants the match on a big screen, another wants a steak, a third wants a craft cocktail and a calm corner. Having all of that under one roof means nobody has to split up when somebody steps outside. We think a good smoker-friendly evening is about a relaxed room, good food and drinks, and clear rules that staff apply kindly.

Our advice to visitors is simple. Decide what you mean by smoking, check the terrace or the product, and pick a place where everyone else in your group is also comfortable.

— Leo

Make an evening of it at Big Shots Amsterdam

If your plan is food, drinks, sports and a social lounge atmosphere, we have it in one place. Look at the menu: breakfast, tapas, soups, salads, steaks, burgers, pizza, pasta, sharing plates and drinks. See what our lounge experiences involve before you book a group.

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Prefer to stay in? You can order through our delivery page, and our merch is there if you want a souvenir. For the full picture of the venue, start at the Big Shots Amsterdam homepage, or read our 2026 guide to smoking, drinking and relaxing in Amsterdam.

FAQ

Can I smoke cigarettes inside a bar in Amsterdam?

No. Smoking tobacco is banned indoors in cafés, restaurants, hotels, coffeeshops and shisha lounges, and indoor smoking rooms are not allowed either. Your option is a legitimate open-air terrace, where the venue permits it.

Where can I smoke and drink in Amsterdam?

The cleanest answer is a bar with a real terrace, open on at least one side, where tobacco smoking is allowed. Coffeeshops do not serve alcohol, so a joint and a beer at the same table is not a standard licensed offer. Always ask the staff about the house policy.

Can you legally smoke outside in Amsterdam?

Tobacco, yes, in most public spaces, though not at a café doorway and not where smoke bothers an indoor space. Cannabis is different: the city forbids it in public areas of the center, and breaking the rule can lead to a fine.

Is there a smoking lounge where I can enjoy shisha?

Tobacco shisha cannot be smoked indoors, so look for lounges that serve herbal, tobacco-free options and are transparent about it. Ask what is in the pipe, how long a session lasts and whether booking is required.

Can a restaurant in Amsterdam have a smoking area?

Only outside. A terrace that is open air, separated and seated, with one side completely open, can allow smoking. A smoking room inside the building is prohibited.

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