These are unusual times, and the state of affairs can change quickly. Please check the latest guidance before travelling. Our writer visited these hotels prior to the pandemic.
Amsterdam is a village that has burst its seams, and life at its core brings its choicest attractions up close. Look out from your room over the bustle of the Dam or a dreamy canal; lounge beside a rooftop pool viewing historic gables; or hip-hop it within a beat of the red-light district. Feel layers of history first-hand in centuries-old buildings, or enjoy quirky corners of contemporary Dutch design, savouring city moods from the quietly domestic to the august and ornate. Here’s our pick of the best hotels in Amsterdam city centre, including the best places to stay near Anne Frank House, Rijksmuseum, Van Gogh Museum, the Dam, canal ring, Royal Palace and the Red Light District.
Seven One Seven
Amsterdam, Netherlands
A sumptuous canal-house mansion with the ambience of a grand private home, in a prime canalside location in the heart of town. You’re 10 minutes’ walk from the Rijksmuseum, and 15 from the Anne Frank House, via the popular Negen Straatjes shopping area. The hotel itself is the stuff dreams are made of, somewhere to go for that special occasion, or to give yourself a real treat. Service is discreet and domestic; the rooms are spacious and individually decorated with period furniture, designer pieces, intriguing curiosa and original art. Afternoon tea and evening drinks are included in the rate.
From
£
108
per night
Rates provided by
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Sofitel Legend The Grand Amsterdam
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Erstwhile Admiralty building (dating from the 17th century), and one-time City Hall (in the 1930s), The Grand is now a luxury hotel – with a Gallic touch. It’s right next door to the Red Light District, though on an attractive stretch of canal that is comparatively quiet. You’re just a few minutes’ walk from the Dam, from where it’s a five-minute hop by tram to Museumplein (or 20 minutes walking altogether). The grand canals and Nine Streets shopping district are also within 10 or 15 minutes’ walk. Rooms are large, there’s an excellent restaurant, and staff are relaxed, gracious and quietly efficient.
From
£
257
per night
Rates provided by
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Soho House Amsterdam
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Adventurous haircuts, imaginative dressers, convivial conversation: the cream of Dutch creatives roam relaxedly through this hotel, which is just a minute or two from the Dam and the Negen Straatjes shopping quarter, in the heart of town. The club spaces – a restaurant, lounge, exhilarating roof terrace, and bars – are relaxed and convivial. A private cinema, canal-view gym and easy-going, yet attentive service add to the allure. It’s a 20-minute walk to the main museums (13 minutes by tram) and 10 minutes to Anne Frank House. Centraal Station is about 15 minutes’ walk away (under 10 minutes by tram).
From
£
143
per night
Hotel Estheréa
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Hotel Estheréa has an eccentric charm, created by décor that manages to be at once zany, plush, and warmly welcoming. It is perfectly situated in the midst of the canal-district, right there for shopping in the ‘Negen Straatjes’ quarter and just a few minutes from most of the sights. Though large, the Estheréa offers all the engaging hospitality of an old-fashioned, family-run hotel. The rooms are deliciously over-the-top, and breakfast ranks with the best in town. Complimentary, tea, coffee, flavoured waters and sweet snacks are available in a corner of the lounge all day.
From
£
86
per night
Rates provided by
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The Hoxton, Amsterdam
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Having honed the formula in London’s Shoreditch and Holborn, The Hoxton brings stylish interiors, buzzing public spaces and slick service to a row of five historic canalside townhouses on Herengracht, one of Amsterdam’s most desirable addresses. It’s hugely popular with Amsterdammers, which gives public areas a living, happening atmosphere, rather than a feeling of transitory hotel functionality. The hotel’s location overlooking the canal puts the top attractions within walking distance, from the Anne Frank House to the Rijksmuseum and the Van Gogh Museum. Central Station is 20 minutes away on foot.
From
£
106
per night
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The Toren
Amsterdam, Netherlands
A quiet nest of opulence with a lush décor, set across two 17th-century canal houses in convenient location for shopping, dining and sightseeing. The main museums on Museumplein are about 20 minutes away by tram. Some years back, Eric Toren took over his father’s two-star hotel, and transformed it into a nest of opulence. What remains in this luxurious incarnation, is the charm of personal service. Rooms are supremely comfortable, staff are genuinely charming, friendly and attentive, and although there’s no restaurant, there’s an intimate bar-lounge and a spacious garden courtyard.
From
£
120
per night
Rates provided by
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Hotel Pulitzer Amsterdam
Amsterdam, Netherlands
A large, though privately owned, stand-alone hotel that stretches through 25 houses, between two canals. It is a delightful warren of passages, stairways, sudden open spaces, with many an original feature intact, but with a fresh, contemporary atmosphere. Prints and paintings from the hotel’s extensive modern art collection decorate the walls. Rooms come in all shapes and sizes, with (as ever in historical Amsterdam properties) some being on the ‘cosy’ side, though others marvellously spacious. Many have fine canal views.
From
£
244
per night
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Waldorf Astoria Amsterdam
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Waldorf Astoria is comprised of six magnificent canalside mansions converted with grace, a sensitive attitude to heritage (many 17th and 18th-century features remain), and a careful eye to contemporary luxury and style. It’s perfectly located on one of Amsterdam’s most impressive canals, within easy reach of all the sights. Classic good taste prevails in the rooms – here a Queen Anne table, there a contemporary designer coffee rest. There’s a Guerlain spa, and an indoor pool. Librije’s Zusje restaurant is arguably the best in town.
From
£
441
per night
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NH Collection Amsterdam Doelen
Amsterdam, Netherlands
The imposing brick façade of the NH Collection Amsterdam Doelen is found at the point where the ancient Kloveniersburgwal canal meets the River Amstel, in the very centre of town (under 10 minutes’ walk to the Dam, or to the opera house). You’re in the Canal Belt, with the red-light district pretty much on the doorstep, and the main museums under 20 minutes’ walk away. The hotel is bedecked with history (Rembrandt’s work once hung here), while the rooms are done in modern minimalism. The central location is hard-to-beat, with some rooms offering fine canal views. Breakfast is excellent.
From
£
130
per night
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Kimpton De Witt
Amsterdam, Netherlands
An Eighties building, incorporating two 17th-century houses, in a busy spot just across the way from Centraal Station. The décor is calm and contemporary, and service is brightly efficient, with thoughtful attention to detail. The restaurant serves hearty, imaginative Holland-meets-America cuisine. You’re just five minutes’ walk from attractive canals (if you choose your direction carefully and head west, to Brouwersgracht), ditto from nightlife (in the other direction) and 10 minutes by tram to the major museums.
From
£
94
per night
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Hotel TwentySeven
Amsterdam, Netherlands
An exclusive suites-only hotel on the third to seventh floors of a 1916 building in the centre of town. Suites are spacious and the décor is sumptuous, yet the atmosphere is relaxing thanks in part to the pleasant, quietly attentive staff. The restaurant and cocktail bar rank with the best in town. It’s located in the swirling centre of the city, on the Dam almost next door to the Royal Palace. The main museums are 15 minutes away by tram (25 minutes on foot), and it is a 10-minute walk to Centraal Station (one tram stop) or to the main historic canals.
From
£
415
per night
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Ambassade Hotel
Amsterdam, Netherlands
For more than half a century the Ambassade Hotel has been a go-to hotel for Dutch publishers, and a firm favourite with authors. The hotel, which stretches through 11 canal houses has more the conviviality of a mansion belonging to a relaxed and welcoming family, than the hauteur of a grand hotel. It’s situated on a quiet stretch of one of Amsterdam’s grandest canals, the Herengracht. It’s very close to both the historic city centre and the Museum Quarter, and as such is within easy walking distance of most of the main sights and attractions.
From
£
102
per night
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The Craftsmen
Amsterdam, Netherlands
This beautiful 17th-century building in a prime canal-side location is now a boutique hotel, done up with the historical tools and trappings of artisans. It’s located at the quieter end of the Singel, one of Amsterdam’s main canals, just 10 minutes’ walk from Centraal Station (one tram stop) and seven minutes from the Dam. The design is ingenious, and the rooms are fun to be in. The one public area – a breakfast room that is also open in the evenings for drinks and snacks – has large windows facing directly onto the canal, and has a cosy pub ambience.
From
£
161
per night
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