Budget Friendly for families in Amsterdam

I can't help directly, except to commiserate. I found lodging in Amsterdam to be expensive and not great value for money. I also found it hard to get (booked up early), which of course explains my other findings - demand outstrips supply.

I'm of the same opinion as Harold. Amsterdam is the most expensive city we have stayed in. The last two times we were in the area we stayed in Delft. Its about an hour by local train from Schiphol airport.

Do you have to stay in Amsterdam? Have you looked for places in surrounding towns that are less than 1/2 hr by train from Amsterdam? If central Amsterdam is not in the budget, then something within commuting distance might work for you.

Thank you for the replies! We would consider commuting, but I have two kids with me, my younger still sleeps a lot during the evening, so somewhere within 30 mins we could do. Any thoughts of this idea of where to stay within the 30 minute ride? We are also in Copenhagen, even more expensive and then Stockholm, forget about it! With the dollar stronger, i thought we would be in better shape. Thanks in advance for advice!

For Stockholm, do you have Rick Steves Scandinavia? Mine is 12 years old, but at that time, July had deals on hotels that made it very affordable. The promotion was called "Stockholm a la carte"; you got a room at a nice hotel plus a card good for transit and most admissions, all at a bargain price. Because most travel to Stockholm is business travel, which is down in July, the "business" hotels offer promotions then. My Stockholm stay ended up being less expensive than many "cheaper" cities because of this deal.

Googling I found this website, which seems to be the current version of the deal. I see that you can specify 2 adults and 2 children - see what comes up for your dates: http://www.destination-stockholm.com/

Haarlem is the town RS recommends most often, it's 15 min from Amsterdam by train. Leiden is also mentioned as a nice place to stay, it's a bit further at 35 min by train.

I am not sure what your budget is but we enjoyed Frederics bikes and apartments. They have a variety of accomodation available that is centrally located and family friendly. Also great bikes! Recommended by Rick Steeves.

One of Rick's more promising-looking listings in Amsterdam is www.hotelhoksbergen.com, with 5 quad apartments available from €165-200/night (slightly cheaper than other listings). Quad hotel rooms listings in Haarlem are closer to €150. Several of the hostels also have rooms with just 4 bunk beds that can be booked by a family.