Hello folks - the wife and I are in the early stages of planning a five or six night stay in Amsterdam, spring or possibly fall of 2024. While I do some online searching and await arrival of my RS Amsterdam book, can anyone recommend a hotel within walking distance of the city center, say, Dam Square? Coming off a ten-night trip to Ireland last year, where we jumped around too much, we're just looking for an easier stay in one central place for this trip. More than twenty years ago, I stayed at a place on Leidsekade, near the museum quarter, and I thought that was a decent area. (The hotel I stayed at has since gone out of business.) We are physically able, but don't want to always walk a mile to get to a selection of shops/cafes/eateries. Is it reasonable to think we are going to get a place for no more than $200 - $250 / night? Thanks for sharing any thoughts.
Posted by
Tresana, Highlands Ranch, CO, USA
23628 posts
No help as our preference is to stay in Haarlem because it is quieter and more relaxing.
Posted by
The Netherlands
1604 posts
Hotel prices in Amsterdam can swing wildly depending on the date. From Easter to early May, hotel prices skyrocket because of the blooming of the tulips. In September and October there are several conventions in Amsterdam which also have an upward effect on hotel prices. If you can avoid these 2 conventions then Autumn will get you the best deals compared to Spring. On the other hand, there is a reason why so many tourists come to Amsterdam in April/May; The tulips are absolutely worth it.
Posted by
Bend, OR
1061 posts
Four of us just spent the evening going thru hotels in Amsterdam. General conclusion, hotels with the good reviews are expensive unless you want to stay on the outskirts of the town. We went with RS recommendation for ‘T Hotel two blocks from Anne Frank House but depending on season may be out of your price range.
Posted by
Eastern Iowa, USA
8100 posts
Nothing specific, just general info...
I think anywhere within the bands of canals is within easy walking distance, with maybe a few trams for ease of movement, that would include the museum quarter. Pricing may be a shock, a quick look on Booking.com showed your $200-250 to be about the low end for a hotel in this area. Availability may be an issue as well, Amsterdam can get crowded quick.
If you get frustrated with finding something in central Amsterdam, strategies others have used are to pick something along a tram line a little further out, using the tram to get you into the center quickly. The area around the Sloterdijk train station is also a good area to look, with frequent 5 minute trains to Centraal. There are a number of chain hotels and B&Bs in the area, prices usually drop quite a bit compared to the center, under $200 often.
The third option is as a previous poster mentioned, stay in a smaller town outside Amsterdam and train in. I have stayed in Haarlem a number of times, again much lower prices, better availability, and the town itself is nice, especially on a weekend. I will be staying in Leiden on my next trip, both these places are within 30 minutes to Centraal. I will also be staying in Utrecht on another trip, a bit further out, but another option.
Posted by
Calgary
1742 posts
'The husband' and I stayed at couple of bridge houses in Amsterdam and loved them. They range in prices, depending on size and location, but all are located along canals and are fairly central.
Posted by
8282 posts
Lodging is expensive in Amsterdam. We found a good small hotel near the Anne Frank House.
It is in a great location and reasonably priced. We paid $1000 for 7 nights and breakfast was included. The room was small, but bath was modern and we had a nice view of the canal. It was the Hotel Nadia. It was probably a 10 minute walk to Dam Square.
Posted by
Salem, Oregon, USA
2746 posts
I stayed at Hotel des Arts which was a bit south of Dam Square and on a main tram line. Decent breakfast and a good location midway between historic center and museums. It was under $200 a night. The canal "view rooms" look over a busy street and the tram tracks, so if view is important I'd look elsewhere. Prices might be high depending on events - e.g., tulips in spring.
Posted by
11582 posts
We like the Central Canal Ring area and enjoyed our stay at Hotel l’Ambassade very much.
Posted by
Paris
10252 posts
My preferred hotel is by the Museumplein, so not the area you are looking for.
Posted by
Snohomish, WA
2663 posts
Take a look at the Hotel Cornelisz. We had that booked for next month and the rate was very good. I can't vouch for it personally since we decided on another hotel, but I put some random dates in for the fall and it is within your budget.
The hotel we decided upon is the Hotel Estherea. I debated hard on this as the rate was much more, but then my daughter looked at their instagram and they had an offer where breakfast was included. For the two of us for x amount of days, it was a no-brainer and we booked it. So take a look at all options like this to find specials. BTW, Hotel Estherea came highly recommended from a poster here. We leave in just a couple weeks, so can report back after that.
Posted by
OP
Philadelphia suburbs
59 posts
Thanks so much to all of you for these comments - I really appreciate it. I've already looked at some of the suggested places, and will check out the others. Also, good info about the potential crowding and higher prices during the tulip season. That certainly does seem like something amazing to see, but after a few overcrowded trips in recent years to London and Paris in high season, we are very much in "crowd-avoidance" as one of our priorities. Maybe moving the whole idea to the fall would make more sense. Anyway, thanks again for these great comments.