Benelux OT: Amsterdam Hotels & Advice

[cbass]

Greetings to all Dutch RFF members. My wife and I will be visiting Amsterdam between 1 April, 2006 and 4 April, 2006. We are planning to stay at either the Bilderberg Jan Luyken hotel or the Piet Hein hotel. Both hotels seem very nice but we are curious to get a local opinion. We would like to stay in the Vondelpark district. We are first-time visitors to Europe and any suggestions for places to stay or places to photograph are appreciated.

Also, if any local RFF members would like to get together for a day of shooting and sight-seeing we would love to meet with you.

Many thanks in advance.

 

[plummerl]

I'm not a Dutch member (Seattle!), but we stayed at the Hotel de Filosoof which backs up to the north eastern edge of Vondelpark in 2003. Here is a link http://www.hotelfilosoof.nl/. The hotel is unique, each room is dedicated to a different philosopher. The hotel is incredibly quiet, and just a block away from either a park entrance or one of the tram lines on Overtoom. Can't recommend it enough. I can send some pictures if desired.
larry

 

[cbass]

Thank you, Larry. 🙂 The Hotel de Filosoof is also at the top of our list. My wife has already bookmared its web site -- it's a beautiful-looking hotel.

I didn't mean to exclude non-Benelux members from replying. I should have solicited opinions from anyone who has stayed in Amsterdam. My mistake. 😱

 

[RML]

I'm born and raised in msterdam and can't give you any useful advice on hotels. I never stay in them here. 😛 But do let us know when you're coming this way!

 

[lynn]

Both - or rather, all three - of the hotels mentioned are lovely. The Jan Luyken has four stars, so is a wee bit more luxurious than the other two, but at De Filosoof no two rooms are the same, which puts it at the top of the list (well, your list) in my book. My very favourite Amsterdam hotel is Frederik Park House (http://home.planet.nl/~theij020/), but it's not in the Vondelpark area.
I have a word-document concerning hotels in Amsterdam that I can email you if you'd like. I used to work at the Amsterdam Tourist Board, so was regularly emailed for advice. The information in it is about a year old though....

 

[cbass]

Lynn, that document would be very nice, thank you. I'll PM you later with my email address.

 

[satbunny]

Thank you, Larry. 🙂 The Hotel de Filosoof is also at the top of our list. My wife has already bookmared its web site -- it's a beautiful-looking hotel.

I didn't mean to exclude non-Benelux members from replying. I should have solicited opinions from anyone who has stayed in Amsterdam. My mistake. 😱

We stay in Amsterdam often. However we like to stay more centrally at the Hotel Victoria (opposite Central Station) or the Barbizon Palace or the Crowne Plaza. I also like the Krasnapolosky on Dam Square.

However you want the Vondelpark area so I would suggest the www.hotels.nl service which can often reveal some bargain rates. However Amsterdam is a city that can get very popular (often at unexpected times) and rates can rise.

If you'd like wider advice on places to visit, eat, see etc then I would be very happy to help here or by email.

Tom

 

[jaapv]

The Victoria Hotel is historic. It is the hotel where the Germans surrendered the city to the British Navy, to a friend of my father as a matter of fact. He was a radio-operator on a British minesweeper and wandered into the hotel looking for a drink. There were sitting in a row at a table a number of very senior German officers. They all slammed their sidearms on the table as a gesture of surrender frightening him out of his wits and the only thing he could think to do was to remove a huge plant from its container and sweep all Lugers into it. He then took the whole lot including the pot to his Captain.

 

[RML]

Jaap, was that before or after the shooting incident at the Dam?

Anyway, cool story. 🙂

 

[jaapv]

I don't know; my uncle mother's side was at the Dam during the shooting incident, but all persons are dead, so I cannot ask. The marconist received the Militaire Willemsorde (not for this), btw and went on to become a senior aide of the British Queen.

 

[MicheldeG]

Hi, Chriss, I took all my pictures in Amsterdam. I just uploaded another 5, taken within 500 m of Victoria hotel. Good places to take pictures: Amsterdam is a very small city. Just walk around and be alert. You can go to the Zoo (Artis) if you like to take some Gary Winogrand pictures. The best place to find restaurants: www.iens.nl (dutch and English). Good luck!

 

[RML]

Amsterdam small? I beg you're pardon but walking home (near the terminal of tram 17 in Osdorp) from work (near Pathe Arena) will take me a cool 4 hours or so. Walking from my new house to my old house (near Albert Cuypmarkt) will be 2 hours. Walking along the Singelgracht from the Haarlemmerpoort all the way to the other end at the Funenkade (brewery 't IJ is there, BTW) is a not a walk you do in an hour or two.

Sure, Amsterdam is no New York, London or Paris but, hey, it's not small! 🙂

 

[MicheldeG]

You're right, it is not that small, and after a visit to brewery 't IJ it may even seem huge.

 

[cbass]

Wow, this thread has gained new life. We've made reservations at the Hotel de Filosoof and I thank everyone for their advice in this forum. Maybe we can bump into a few of you RFFers while we're out sightseeing. 😀

Michel, I saw your photos. They are very nice, thank you for uploading them. I'm an avid cyclist here in the states and I want to try a Dutch bicycle when we're in Amsterdam.

My final decisions are now what restaurants to try and what camera to bring...

 

[RML]

You're right, it is not that small, and after a visit to brewery 't IJ it may even seem huge.

Once, when I was young and still drank once in a while, it took me two hours to get from Nieuwerdammerdijk to the ferry because of a little enthusiatic imbibition of beer. And I was on bicycle. 😛

 

[jaapv]

Michel, I saw your photos. They are very nice, thank you for uploading them. I'm an avid cyclist here in the states and I want to try a Dutch bicycle when we're in Amsterdam.

Watch your back (and front and sides) The number of cycling tourists that don't survive our traffic is quite high. 😛