MOVING AROUND AMSTERDAM

Amsterdam Centrum is very small. You could probably walk from the northern part (Amsterdam Central Station) to the southern edge of the centrum (Rijksmuseum) for only around 40 minutes. (Of course this depends on how many time you stop to take photos.)
Most of major tourist destinations are within walking distance and close to each other so walking would be the best way to move around. Make sure you have a nice pair of walking shoes with you!
Bicycles are the Dutch mode of transportation. There are at least two bikes for every resident of Amsterdam. They normally have the right of way so make sure you look carefully before you cross the streets as they love showing tourist who are the boss on the road in a very Dutch way — that is very direct!
If you want to move from point A to B quickly, best is to use a bike. There are loads of bike rental shops in the city. Choose one closest to you so you can return it at the end of the day. Just rent on a day basis as the weather might not be good for cycling the following day and remember to lock them properly.
I would discourage anyone to use taxi as most streets in centrum are either one way, pedestrianized, or closed due to roadworks.
However, if you feel not walking or biking, using public transportation in Amsterdam is straightforward and convenient. It has an extensive network connecting the city’s different districts by train, tram, metro, bus or ferry.
The most convenient way to pay is probably with a disposable one-hour card — you just pay everytime you ride. One-hour tickets can be bought from the conductor or driver on the tram or bus.
If you think you will be using the public transport, you can either get a day-ticket for one to seven days or get the OV-chipkaart. OV- — is a loadable pre-paid card that automatically deducts the fare every time you use it. No need to worry about cash or change as it deducts the exact amount automatically.
You can read more about purchasing transport tickets via this link: Purchase tickets
PLANNING YOUR JOURNEY
To guide you on your journey, you can learn and plan which train, tram, bus, ferry or ferry to use via this link: 9292.nl
For walking or biking around the city, you can use maps.google.com for directions.