Trip to Amsterdam and Paris

Hi everybody, my wife and I will be visiting Amsterdam and Paris (first time ever for both of us) for a week in June and we are looking to get the most out of our short stay (3 nights each city).

I would appreciate any tips or ideas about our trip (like what to see first and foremost, what to avoid, best ways to save a buck, where not to skimp, should we have tons of cash or use credit cards or ATMs, how to use our Cingular cellphones and so forth). Any input is welcomed.

What we have so far is the plane tickets to Amsterdam from Seattle and the hotels (Park Plaza in Amsterdam and Montaigne in Paris). Anything else is still in the works.

Thanks a lot,

catone