Playing the Float (Forbes.com) Forbes.com - Houseboats(the Dutch word is woonboot) are a tradition in Amsterdam. The canals that ring the city in tight concentric circles are lined with 3,000 of them, moored to centuries-old stone quays. The vast majority never leave their moorings. Locals live on them. But 35 of them are rented out, overnight or by the week, through small rental agencies or via the Internet.