STORY | AMSTERDAM

A Sibling Trip to Amsterdam in March

By Aleksandria Rudenko | Published 8 November 2026

Three siblings hugging and laughing on a canal bridge in Amsterdam, heads together, one of them in glasses and a brown overshirt

A sibling trip to Amsterdam had been Leah’s plan for years. In March, she finally got Alicia and Riley on a plane, and on their third day in the city, the three of them met me by the canals at noon.

They grew up together but now live in three different states. So one unhurried hour of photos together was high on their list. Grown-up siblings are as welcome in my family photoshoots in Amsterdam as parents with toddlers, and they need just as little preparation.

Three Siblings on the Bridges of Amsterdam

We started at two minutes past twelve on a bridge with stone bollards, a black corner house behind it and bare trees along the water. The sun came and went between big white clouds. Riley and Alicia went first, side by side at the railing.

Two siblings smiling at a canal bridge railing in Amsterdam beside a stone bollard, gabled houses and bare March trees behind

Then Alicia and Leah each had a minute by the bollard on their own. Leah leaned on the railing as if she walked past it every day.

Woman in an oatmeal cardigan leaning on a bridge railing by a stone bollard, a black corner house across the water

On the next bridge, an old iron lamp post became a dance partner. Alicia swung around it, laughing, and soon Leah joined her for a hug on either side of the post.

Laughing woman in a dark shirt and black tights swinging around an old iron lamp post on an Amsterdam canal bridge

Two siblings in Amsterdam hugging around an iron lamp post on a canal bridge, both laughing toward the camera — The lamp post bridge, 12:09

When Riley stepped back in, the three of them simply could not stand still. Alicia leaned back between the other two, and then they walked toward me arm in arm, over and over, until nobody could keep a straight face.

Woman in black leaning back and laughing between her two siblings on a bridge in Amsterdam, canal houses lining the water

Three siblings walking arm in arm across a canal bridge on a sunny March day, a lamp post and tall houses behind them

Red Shutters on the Leidsegracht

A few minutes later, we stood on the Leidsegracht, across from a narrow gray house with bright red shutters. I placed Leah among the bikes on the far side and stepped back across the water. In this frame, the houses are the giants, and Leah is small.

A few minutes on, a stoop full of plants made a quieter spot. Alicia and Leah each took a turn on the steps first. After that, all three stacked up: Leah on top, Riley in the middle and Alicia on the bottom step.

Woman in a beige cardigan and flared jeans sitting on a stoop full of potted plants, an iron railing beside her

Three siblings stacked on the steps of a planted stoop and hugging from behind, the one in glasses in the middle

Alicia and Leah in the March Sun

At twenty-five to one, Leah pulled on a long denim coat for a few frames. On a bridge with a long view down the canal, she leaned on the railing while a yellow car waited at the quay.

Woman in a long denim coat leaning on a bridge railing, a canal with bare trees stretching away behind her and a yellow car on the quay

Then Alicia joined her in the sun. I asked them to hold hands and look at each other, and the laughing took care of the rest.

Two siblings cheek to cheek and holding hands on a bridge in Amsterdam, bare trees and a blue sky over the canal

Two women facing each other and holding hands at a bridge railing, smiling, with the canal and bare trees between them — Hand in hand on the bridge, 12:42

One Portrait Each

Before the end, everyone had a portrait alone. At a quarter to one, we stopped by the water with a big brick building behind, and a tour boat drifted past. Arms crossed, one at a time: Alicia first, then Riley, glasses and all, then Leah.

Smiling woman with curly hair and crossed arms in a dark brown cardigan, a tour boat and a brick building behind her

Smiling portrait in glasses, curly hair and a brown overshirt, arms crossed, with a canal and a big brick building behind

Laughing woman in an oatmeal cardigan with her arms crossed and dark curls loose, a canal and a brick facade behind

The Last Steps of a Sibling Trip

At five to one, we finished in a quiet street of brick houses, Leah and Alicia in long coats. They walked toward me arm in arm, and further down the street, they stopped for a group hug, with two feet kicked up behind them. That frame is their sibling trip to Amsterdam in one picture.

Three siblings walking toward the camera on a brick street in Amsterdam, in a denim coat, a brown overshirt and a black coat

Three siblings in a group hug at the end of an Amsterdam street, two of them kicking a foot up behind — A quiet street, 12:55

Bringing your parents along next time? My guide to family photos with adult children shows how an hour works when the kids are grown.

Traveling with your own siblings? Discover how my family photoshoots in Amsterdam work.