I am traveling to Africa and will have a stopover in Amsterdam. I will extend that to about 3 days. I have never been there and would like to see Ann Frank's house and the Concertgebouw. Of course I'll take in more than that. Any suggestions of where to stay?
Posted by
New Paltz, NY
9110 posts
How much are you looking to spend?
I like the 3-star Avenue Hotel halfway between Centraal Station and Dam Square. As an added bonus the hotel has a tram stop in front of it, all rates include a full hot buffet breakfast and it has an ice machine.
Posted by
11569 posts
We like to stay in the central canal ring area. It looks like what you imagine Amsterdam to be. Lots of charm. Nearby trams can get you all over the city. Others like to stay near Vondel Park and the museums and alsoin Jordaan neighborhood.
Posted by
Lynnwood, Washington
8876 posts
I did a longer stopover in Amsterdam on returning from Africa two years ago and it worked great for me. I used priceline and bid for a 4 star hotel in the museum district and ended up at the Hotel Vondel for less than $100 a night. This hotel was great! Hotels in the Museum district are actually very easy to access from the airport via an airport express bus that you catch directly outside the terminal. It let me off just 1 block from my hotel. Surprisingly, I saw fellow guests ordering taxis for the airport several times. I don't think they knew just how cheap and convenient the bus was.
The trams to central station area of Amsterdam were about 1 block away and it took about 10 minutes. Many restaurants, etc, nearby.
There is a whole thread on the Tripadvisor travel forum about how to bid for Amsterdam hotels on Priceline. Some of those posters can almost predict exactly which hotel you will get for what bid.
Posted by
Southport, NC
378 posts
I can't speak to the hotel request, but I do know the Ann Frank Museum has restrictions on tickets. Until May 1, only online tickets with a specified time will be accepted (http://www.annefrank.org/en/Museum/Practical-information/Online-ticket-sales/). Past that, reserved ticket times are available two months prior, with times until early afternoon. Walk-in's only after 3:00 (I believe).
Posted by
Boston, MA, United States
1806 posts
Conscious Hotel Museum Square - I stayed there last month and Concertgebouw is right at the end of the block - about a 2 minute walk from the front door of the hotel.
This is a very well located hotel - multiple tram stops and the bus that goes to/from airport is also right at the end of the street as is Museumplein (Rijks, Van Gogh, Stedilijk and Moco Museums all right there) and an Albert Heijn grocery store. The rooms are simple, but comfortable and very large. They have an elevator, small private courtyard in the back and you can rent one of their bikes for the day or throughout your stay.
Other hotels in Amsterdam I've stayed at and liked a lot are The Times Hotel and Hotel D'Amsterdam - each of these are in different neighborhoods. The Times borders the Jordaan (Anne Frank House) and the Nine Streets areas and is right on one of the major canals. If packing light, it's walkable from Amsterdam Centraal if you wanted to take the train to/from the airport, but there are tram stops within a block or two of the hotel. Hotel D'Amsterdam is in the Oud-West neighborhood - it's a little more residential but lots of good places to shop and eat (e.g. Foodhallen) and very quick and easy walk to many tram stops and the airport bus stop.