We are sending our twin 19.5 year old sons on a European trip this summer after their freshman year. As one is in Drexel's Coop program, this is the only quarter over the next 4 years he can do this, and he is the only of our three children who've not had time in Europe (the others had exchange trips). We told them to plan out the basic itinerary and they chose 5 days in Berlin, 5 in Amsterdam. They even found the "Heart of Gold" Hostel in Berlin based on reviews from a friend who has been there, and I booked it, price was reasonable. Amsterdam is another story. The hostels appear to be more expensive, and shall we say, a bit wilder (and from some reviews, possibly a bit questionable in terms of basic issues like cleanliness). Unlike Berlin, we have been to Amsterdam the last two summers and they are actually willing to yield to our selecting a place for them. Needless to say, we are not about to spring for Boogaard's for them. But we don't really know the best options available. Our thinking is that for not much more than the cost of a hostel we can put them in a double in some of the hotels.
Can you knowledgeable readers make some suggestions that would find a balance between cost-effectiveness, safety, and moderate comfort? I'd like to see if i can hold this to around 400 euro for them for the 5 nights.
Posted by
St. Louis, MO USA
1976 posts
I can recommend the Quentin Arrive Hotel - there is a minimum 3-night stay but that won't be an issue in your sons' case. A room for 2 people with a shared bathroom costs about 90 euros per night. I stayed here twice and was never worried about safety, either in the hotel or in the surrounding neighborhood. I also stayed at Frederic Rent-A-Bike. They have a number of properties with rooms ranging from luxury to basic. We stayed at the property called Frederic's Parents' Place in a room for 2 people with shared bathroom, for about 70 euros per night. Both of these hotels are in the Jordaan neighborhood, which is a nice mix of coffeeshops, restaurants, cafes, retail stores, and of course private homes. The QAH is a 5-minute walk from the train station and FPP is a 10-minute walk.
Posted by
Seattle, WA, United States
873 posts
I stayed at the HI Stayokay Vondelpark hostel. It's part of Hosteling International, so it isn't as "quirky" as an independent hostel, and there were a lot of school-age kids there. All of more centrally-located independent hostels we looked at had too much of the partier/stoner atmosphere, and after a couple of weeks of hosteling, it was nice to have a quieter place to stay. It's also a bit on the "outskirts" of the central core of Amsterdam, I guess, but that's kind of what I liked about it. Vondelpark is lovely, very close to the Rijksmuseum and Van Gogh Museum, and only a short tram ride from the Centraal Station. And while this isn't going to be of help now...if any of your sons visit Berlin again, I couldn't recommend the Circus hostel highly enough. It was fantastic!
Posted by
OP
PA
2842 posts
Thanks for the replies.
I subsequently found a good deal at the Nadia - two beds, ensuite, breakfast, wireless (important, the one has to track interviews here), 376 euro for the five nights if they pay cash. And in shall we say a quieter area where we will worry a little less (never mind that it's 1/2 way between two coffee shops that we would recommend as being safer). Was not sure I could get them a room there since they don't show their bookings online and you have to wait for their reply.