Lodging

Any idea what part of Amsterdam you'd like to stay in? Do you have a price range?

I've been to Amsterdam a number of times and don't really care about staying in a canal house. Last visit I was focused on visiting museums for the 2 days I was there. I stayed at the De Ware Jacob Hotel which was near the MuseumPlein so a very quick walk to get to both museums I was visiting. A friend from the forum recommended it and I liked it a lot.

Pros:

-Located near the Museumplein if that is important to you.
-Located in a neighborhood so restaurants around there seemed to cater to locals
- Comfortable bed, very nice shower
-Near Vondelpark which is an excellent location for my arrival day so I can walk around in the sunshine.

Cons:
-Has very steep stairs and a perhaps unreliable elevator. Out of the parts of the 4 days I was there, the elevator was broken on 2 different occasions.

Neither here nor there:
-I'm not a breakfast eater so I didn't check out their breakfast option.

Banks Mansion, Pullitzer Amsterdam, Grand Hotel Kransnapolsky, Barbizon Palace, Ambassade Hotel, Conservatorium Hotel and Amstel Hotel are all great places to stay.

I guess first, Amsterdam gets very busy, hotels fill fast, and there are few bargains. If you want the quaint place on a canal or even a boat, look early and book early.

Aside from that, there are some chain type hotels that are very nice, a few near central Amsterdam, a number of them near the Sloterdijk train station, a short ride away.

Aside from that, many people give up on Amsterdam and stay in Haarlem, Leiden, or Utrecht. Myself, I have probably stayed in Haarlem the most, or near Sloterdijk station.o

Here's you where you want to go: B&B Herengracht 21. I stayed there for 4 nights in May and it was one of the best places I've ever stayed. First, the location is fantastic. It's 5 minutes from the train station in a very quiet area of Amsterdam with way less tourists then other parts. It's at the very beginning (or end?) of Herengracht with easy access to the wonderful Jordaan area. The house was built in the 1600's and is owned by a very friendly couple who live there. You have a choice of two rooms: One has a canal view and the other is a duplex apartment in the back house. I had the latter. It was clean, quiet and very comfy. I had big room with a couch and windows and dining room table, fireplace and kitchenette. Big flat screen TV and books to read. Upstairs there was the bedroom which was the attic. It had a big bed, skylight, windows, sink, toilet and shower. It faced the back. I believe the Canal View room has a bathtub. Either way you can't lose because of the location and the absolutely fabulous owners. Rates are very reasonable...especially for two people. I paid 155 euros per night. Breakfast was very generous and Loes made me a scrambled egg every morning. And there was a toaster next to my table.
I really can't say enough about the place. A few weeks prior to this I stayed at the Weichmann which was okay (and cheaper) but what a difference at Herengracht. I went from being disappointed in Amsterdam to loving it. Also at Herengracht, there is a great bike rental nearby... Frederic. Mention Rick and you get a discount there. I had a bike the whole time I was at Herengracht and that also made all the difference in my appreciation of Amsterdam. I don't usually rave about B&B's but Loes and her husband were so great and the place was so special, I had to write and tell you. Good luck getting in there... only two rooms! If you can't get in, go to the Hotel Weichmann. Very reasonably priced and centrally located. And a nice breakfast room. But go for Herengracht 21 first.

—Directly next to the Herengracht B&B is Max Brown Canal House, which I found to be charming and clean, quiet, away from crowds; book direct on their website for best rates. Great breakfast and being on Herengracht is nice (or garden view room quiet too).
— Hotel Cornelisz near Rijksmuseum is superb with amenities and small lift/elevator which helped, stayed in a double room, more than enough space for 2, incredible breakfast (best latte machine!). Trams 2 and 12 outside the front door.
—Hotel Prinsengracht soars for canal views (near Magere Brug!) but lowest prices for being on a canal. Yet, it’s pretty rustic and 3 floor steep walk up and $6 decent breakfast. If you really long for canal room, email them when you book on their website to request. Tram 4 is outside the door to the left.
—friends have stayed at Linden (Jordaan), Nadia, or even Leonardo (museum area) and liked those places.

We stayed at Vergulden Eenhoorn. It is a small “hotel” with 6 or so rooms. It is connected to a restaurant that is popular but noise was not an issue at all; their sound proofing was very effective, and I am very sensitive to noises. Breakfast is available for an additional fee on a daily basis, for hotel guests only. I think it serves breakfast for anyone on weekends.
It is an easy walk to Amstel Station where you can access the subway or tram, and also rent bikes. The hotel rooms “face” a canal and bike path, so no car traffic. We booked via booking.com. We found Dean to be very helpful and responsive. We also thought the price was very reasonable for the location.

Amsterdam is expensive and you generally have a choice of paying through the nose to stay at a four or five star hotel (most of those are not located in the downtown area) or staying in a BNB that requires a walkup some steep stairs.

The BNBs are best for location. We selected the Nadia Hotel near the Anne Frank House. The room was small, but had a full bath that was not small. Breakfast was included and the walk up to our floor was only one story, however, we had to walk up one more to eat breakfast.

COST was $1000 for an entire week.
We stayed at the Airport Hilton on our way to our African safari and it was a bit more than $300 per night, but we only stayed one night.

I had a cruise booked from Amsterdam to Reykjavik which sadly fell through.

I use booking.com a lot and had the following hotel booked . I had to cancel but I liked the reviews and it worked for me.

Hotel Amsterdam De Roode Leeuw

Personally, I recommend booking.com. You can do research on the site and then book through the site or go directly to the site of the lodging

Another vote for B&B Herengracht 21. I stayed there in 2008 shortly the current couple first opened, and just stayed again in 2021 and then again this past March—both times to visit Vermeer artwork nearby. Wonderful location, hosts and view (I had the canal view room). My only hesitation in recommending them is that I am worried they will become too popular and booked the next time I want to visit. Oh well.

I use booking.com a lot and had the following hotel booked . I had to cancel but I liked the reviews and it worked for me. Hotel Amsterdam De Roode Leeuw

I checked this hotel when I was planning a trip to the Netherlands and it had a number of bad reviews on Google, which considering the price, made me pass it by. Did you stay here?

While there are definitely downsides to this approach, I couldn't find anything I liked in my price range in central Amsterdam, so I ended up staying by the football stadium (Amsterdam Bjilmer Arena train station);. There were several chain hotels in the €100-150 range, and this was on a weekend in July. I stayed at a place called Jaz in the City, which was very comfortable if a bit further from the station than I preferred. It was 20 min. to Centraal by frequent train/metro.

Hi Mardee

"I use booking.com a lot and had the following hotel booked . I had to cancel but I liked the reviews and it worked for me. Hotel Amsterdam De Roode Leeuw

I checked this hotel when I was planning a trip to the Netherlands and it had a number of bad reviews on Google, which considering the price, made me pass it by. Did you stay here?"

No I never stayed because my cruise fell through.

I use booking.com to do my research and do not often go outside of booking. I trust booking.

if I booked it, it got very good reviews on booking. I might have also asked about it on this site since I was using this site a lot to plan my cruise.

When you say that you went to google, what diid you go to. I wan to check myself or can you post a link

I will see if I can find my any questions that I may have asked about the hotel on this site.

If you want to, go to booking and read the reviews.

UPDATE: went to booking and it got a 7.8 which is good enough for me. Maybe you want more but I would love to see the reviews on google. can you paste a link or even send a P M. I would have been going last August booking it months in advance. I have a tight budget so it had to fall within my budget.

I am also going to do a. search on R S. I was asking a lot of questions about Amsterdam so maybe I asked about this hotel. Let me go check

UPDATE 2. I went back to booking and read some of the reviews, just a few and they were excellent and very good. Obviously some people were unhappy with some things that the Review Score was 7.8.

Someone on R S asked about this hotel in April but got no responses

Like I said, i mostly go with booking fro reviews and as I also said, I wish you would check out Hotel Amsterdam De Roode Leeuw on booking.

Sorry to be so blunt, but Hotel De Roode Leeuw is located on one of the busiest streets in Amsterdam in an area that’s absolutely overcrowded with tourists. It’s not where I would recommend people to stay at all.
Its only plus point is that it’s located close to the train station, but that’s it.

Dutch_traveler

Always glad when you come into a discussion and offer your opinion.

Don't find you blunt, just giving your honest opinion.

i did a lot of research before booking this hotel and was very happy with what i read. I loved that it was an easy walk from the train station as well as to the cruise port.

Is it on Damsk or Dansk?

I watched youtube videos for hours total. Used booking reviews for my research.

I booked because what i read and saw worked for me given my budget and other factors. Unfortunately because my cruise fell through, I did not have the experience of actually staying.

I can live with street noise. Someone else might not be able to. I would have been a tourist so being around. a lot of tourists just like me would have been ok.

I suggested this to the OP based solely on my research. Others who know more are saying not so fast.

It is what the OP needs and wants. And if the OP has no interest in my suggestion, so bet it. My feelings will not get hurt.

Thank you for your opinions. I will keep this in mind if I should ever be able to get to Amsterdam.

Edit. I should add that what I was looking for was an easy walk from Centraal Station to my hotel and then from my hotel to the cruise port. Then I wanted a location where I could easily get to specific attractions. That was a must.

And then there were other things I wanted or desired all within my budget.

Thanks everyone for chiming in. Such helpful responses, which because of a death in family, haven’t had time to research, but am sure the perfect place lies in one of these suggestions. I think because my friend and I are splitting the cost we could go up to around $250 a night

Hey, kj, I'm sorry to hear about the death in your family. But also wanted to say that you will love Amsterdam! It's one of my favorite places in Europe and there is so much to see and do. It has great public transportation, too, so no matter what area you stay in, you should be able to get to the main sites in matter of minutes.

Have a wonderful trip!

kj_senders

did you tell us what month you are traveling in and for how long? I think you and friend can get a nice place for $250 a night.

Shoulder season will be less crowded and less expensive but these days, it is still crowded and maybe still pricey. Travelers are discovering shoulder season

Weather might be an issue but could you consider off season.

And if you just throw out more information. and questions, there are many knowledgeable persons on this site who will be glad to guide you. (And I am not talking about me)

Have you already booked your air?

Bostonphil, since you can't seem to let this go, and aren't able to find Google reviews of the hotel, here's the link: https://www.google.com/travel/hotels/entity/ChkIzuaIsdXcvtLTARoML2cvMTIzMmc0eXQ3EAE/reviews?utm_campaign=sharing&utm_medium=link&utm_source=htls&ts=CAESABogCgIaABIaEhQKBwjnDxAIGBQSBwjnDxAIGBUYATICEAAqCQoFOgNDQUQaAA

Given what I read there, I would agree with Mardee. Not a place I would recommend. And I don't recommend hotels I've never stayed at. I may comment on a hotel's location, if I'm familiar with it, but that's all.

If I may put a side topic to rest...

Generally speaking, this forum prefers that we post about what we've experienced, not what we've found online. We had one guy here awhile back that was banned after it was found that he googled everything for his "advice" and parlayed it as if it was his experience. That's not what this is at all, so no worries there. A bit of side research for additional information is fine, but please do your best to center your advice and opinions around your experience. The wealth of travel experience in this community of travelers is a huge part of what makes this a great forum for travel advice.

Let's get back to replies that answer the OP's question.

@kj.senders; I’m sorry to hear about your loss.
Good that you’re still planning to visit Amsterdam. The most important thing to know about hotel prices in Amsterdam is that they are completely and totally dependent on when exactly you visit. A hotel that is €250 a night in November can be double or triple that in April in the middle of the tulips blooming. So in order to give you helpful advice we need to know when you plan to visit.

With regards to the Roode Leeuw, it’s located on Damrak, a street filled with tourist trap restaurants and cheap souvenir shops. The street is very close to the train station and the RLD, which means it attracts a certain type of tourists. I’m talking about the type of tourists that come to Amsterdam to party; smoke weed, drink beer, visit the RLD etc. If you read the reviews of the hotel, you’ll see that several guests complain about the smell of weed inside the hotel and disturbances caused by drunk guests.
The OP doesn’t seem to be part of the party crowd, so I recommend they stay elsewhere.
The museum area for instance is a great area to stay in. Yes, this area is also busy with tourists, but with a totally different type of tourist; the ones that come to Amsterdam to enjoy the museums and other sights.

Hi all, we will be there Sept.27-Oct. 2. I don’t mind some street noise but prefer to be not in midst of party town 🎉🙏🏾

Anyone stay at the Delphi?