You might also try hostelworld.com You can filter it so that it gives you apartments and hotels and excludes classical hostels, campsites, etc. Not sure if you can filter for A/C however.

I think wanting AC may be a big part of the problem.

Amsterdam doesn't usually get that hot and while luxury and upscale hotels will have AC it tends to be not that common in more budget categories, esp if you are looking at B&Bs or similar. Most locals do NOT have AC in their homes.

How about a houseboat in the Jordan area? Within your budget, and if you rent a bike for the time you are there, you will save on transportation. We enjoyed our stay here:

https://www.amsterdamapartments.com/...oat-amsterdam/

I stayed at Hotel Kap. It's a 2-star place near the Heineken brewery and not too far from Leidseplein or Vondelpark or even city center. It's in your price range with breakfast included.

@janisj
>>however we are going in the first few weeks of August, <<

Not according to your OP . . . >>in either August or October<<

Why not wait until you actually know when you are traveling.

Ideally, we would be able to go in AUGUST. However, because we are waiting for confirmation on my partners work schedule and when he could take time off, this is not 100% confirmed, but should be in the next few weeks. Hence the idea of postponing it to October. Apologies if i did not make this clear enough.

Seems to be a general consensus that we will not need A/C? I assumed that it would be a necessary feature, as in the other cities we will be visiting we have been advised over and over that A/C is a must, especially in August.

@Joan and Suze - thank you for the insightful and great advice! Both of your options look lovely, and i'm definitely going to bookmark them.

Is AirBNB illegal in Amsterdam, similar to Paris? I wasn't aware of that!

Hi @KT Travel: we don't object to paying a little more for a room if it does include breakfast. Unfortunately there aren't any double rooms on the dates that i am looking at for our trip :(

@spaarne: We would prefer not to stay in Haarlem.

@Annw: Amphora BnB does look great! Do you know what the cost is for a double room? They have a pricing range on the website, but no exact costs.

AirBnB isn't illegal in Amsterdam, but there are very strict rules applied to it, including a limit on the number of weeks an apartment can be rented out on AirBnB, and the fact that tourist tax must be paid, just as it is in hotels.

It is highly unlikely you will need AC. If we get a heat wave (I can but hope!) you can almost certainly open the windows, which is what the natives do. Close the windows in the daytime then open them in the evening. If your room faces south or west then close the curtains during the day too.

Amsterdam is very compact, and you may actually prefer to stay away from the Leidseplein and it's noise. Did you look at menachem's link?

My trip was in a July. I don't think the hotel had AC?? It was nice weather for me, but not hot by any means.

Hotel Kap was not anything amazing but welcoming, serviceable, in a good location, nice enough owners, and sweet breakfast room. I'm sure there are loads of places to stay in the city, but this one worked for me. I was there 5 days solo at the beginning of a trip.

http://www.schipholhotelshuttle.nl/
Is how I got from and to the airport.

I found Let's Go Amsterdam (pocket-sized guidebook) extremely helpful.

We stayed here for 4 days last week: http://www.villas.com/en-gb/netherla...=total;ucfs=1&

Don't know what the price is now, but for 4 people we paid about 700 euros for 4 nights. The neighborhood was superb and accessible. The stairs to the appartment were beyond scary. And it was definitely NOT a "luxury apartment" as described, but it was a good price for the space and location. Scary/slippery stone bathroom shower space, kitchen sink faucet that bobbled all over the place...but as I said the price was fine and we're not complainers (except for the stairs - OMG), so it worked for us.

<i>StCirq on Mar 29, 16 at 5:03pm
We stayed here for 4 days </i>

There are hundreds of apartments at that link. Mind saying which one you stayed in?

>>AirBnB isn't illegal in Amsterdam, but there are very strict rules applied to it, including a limit on the number of weeks an apartment can be rented out on AirBnB, and the fact that tourist tax must be paid, just as it is in hotels.

Amsterdam is (still) special, because it has a lot of council housing in prime spots. House prices have risen steeply, so those apartments become the target of the building societies who want to sell them and make a quick buck. They try to push current inhabitants out by rising rents. And, because central Amsterdam is on the Unesco list and so can have special rules regarding market conformity of rents, they are succeeding.

Meanwhile, current tenants cling on to their apartments, and want to make a bit of money on the side by subletting on AirBnB. Except, subletting of council apartments voids the tenancy. So there are two forces at work: one is that of tourists wanting to rent, the other is of institutional landlords pushing their renters out of the city centre.

Sorry, I thought the link went straight to the apartment. I think this is it:

http://www.villas.com/en-gb/netherla...al;type=total&

As I said, it wasn't brilliant, but it was spacious and the price was right for 2 couples in Amsterdam.

Wow, i honestly didn't expect so much valuable advice when i posted this thread!

@hetismij2: I did look at Menachem's link (sorry, i am working through all the links and accommodation i have been sent slowly :) )It is definitely in a price range - and the photos look good too. The location of it looks central enough to me - is this right? is it in walking distance of the centre of the city?

Ok, great to know that we won't need to find a hotel with A/C!

Hi Stu, i clicked on both links and it took me to the home page with 650 holiday homes advertised. Thanks a lot for the website link however, definitely another option that i am keen to explore :) We don't need brilliant or luxury!

Thanks for the information on airport transfers Suze. We will most likely be arriving and departing Amsterdam by train though.

Ahhh sorry @StCirq - head's not in the game at the moment, not sure where i managed to pull the name 'Stu' from :) apologies, apologies!!

As I said (and in the review on Booking.com, this was not a "luxury apartment" by any means, but we didnt' even want that and were content with it.)We had far better apartment deals in Den Bosch and Rotterdam.

If you need info on getting around Amsterdam by tram or bus or generally getting around the Netherlands by train we are experts on it after 8 days of travel by all means of transport. Ask away. It's easy, but you do need to understand the system.

While Amsterdam is not that hot and you might well not need it I would not stay in a place without it. But I really can;t sleep if it's not cool.

But we travel at a completely different price point and almost all lodgings at that price (except perhaps a castle or similar) do have AC.

Here's the link to the lovely Amphora b&b, in the Jordaan area:

http://www.amphora-bedandbreakfast.com/

A whole studio apartment, but a legit b&b and award winning.

<But we travel at a completely different price point>

Bingo nytraveler. And in their price range (and mine) it's doubtful places will have air conditioning. Budget travelers can't be so picky.

<most likely be arriving and departing Amsterdam by train though>

Even easier!

Pension Homeland is at the old Navy Barracks area. Close to the Nieuwmarkt/Zeedijk area. It's only now accessible to the public and it means it's like retreating to your own secluded "island" in the middle of the city. I had dinner there once: their restaurant isn't bad either!

Out of curiosity, I looked up average temperatures for August in Amsterdam. Roughly 70-72 degrees for a high; 55 for a low. Granted, they conceded the rare heat wave, but for my money, I'd settle for no A/C if it wasn't in my budget (and perhaps even if it was). Even if it's warm during the day, it should cool off sufficiently to sleep comfortably.