We're off to Amsterdam February 8th for 5 days. I can't wait.

My husband however, made a reservation at the wrong hotel and now we can't change it. He was supposed to get our rooms at the Eden Rembrandt, but booked the Eden Lancaster instead.

Has anyone stayed at this hotel? Can you reassure me that it was not a bad choice?? The reviews on Tripadvisor were rather mixed, actually they were all over the place, so I don't know quite how to take them.

How far is the walk to Dam square?? to the

Any suggestions for real budget (20 euros per person) restaurants would be appreciated.

This will be our first visit to Amsterdam and I'm trying to find what activities/tours are available in February. I keep finding summery/good weather type of activities. I love museums, but we also love to just walk around a city and experience the daily routine of a place.

Thanks everyone for your help and encouragement.

We were booked to stay at the Eden Lancaster (then the Best Western Eden Lancaster) in August 2005, but when we arrived after midnight, we were moved to the much more central Best Western Eden.

Have you prepaid for your room? I notice that at the www.edenhotelgroup.com site, you can get a prepaid rate for the Best Western Eden of 74 Euros for some of your nights, and 59 Euros for some other nights.

Anyway, based on our brief visit before we were sent elsewhere, the Eden Lancaster hotel looked fine. It's near some less-visited attractions like the Zoo, the Tropen Museum, and the Jewish Historical Museum. You could take the tram to other sites, or a longish walk.

If you really can't change it and would like to do so, you could always try the technique of arriving really late at night and hoping they have no more rooms left, although that's less likely to work in February than in August.

Use mappy.com to figure out distances in Amsterdam. It's about 2 km between the Lancaster and Dam Square. You might also like to rent a bike - my daughter can heartily endorse that method of transportation.

Thanks for the reassurance. I was confused because one site listed the Eden Lancaster as 3 stars but another listed it as 2 stars. Also the reviews were uneven. The Best Western Eden was the one I wanted.

Either is fine with me, I just like being rather central for walking around.

My husband is quite the cyclist so he'd have no problem, but I'm a bit more cautious in the crowds & traffic.

Also, I wasn't sure whether or not this was a viable option in Feb. I've seen some great videos on Youtube of the snow in early March so I've been preparing myself for a very cold vacation. Not that this will be a problem, we're up to our eyeballs in snow here in NH already this year.

Thanks for your suggestions.

Oh I meant to include that our hotel will cost only $385 USD for all four nights, so I really don't have anything to complain about, it's quite a bargain.

I wouldn't count on snow in February. It may well be cold, but snow is not that frequent here, and doesn't last long if it does fall. It may not even be that cold - around 6-8 C is fairly normal nowadays.
We're all still hoping for a really cold winter - had a taste last week, but it has warmed up again this week. Next week is supposed to get cold again.

Thanks hetismij, I've been watching the accuweather so I'll be prepared, and your advice sounds on par with what I've read elsewhere.
I've even checked the webcams to see what people were wearing to see if they were bundled up, and they didn't appear to be, so I have been thinking it will be mild. We consider 6-8C mild here in New Hampshire.

I travel with only a carryon however, so I wanted to be sure I knew what to expect and took only the clothes necessary. I hate to overpack, but I also don't want to be stuck having to buy something expensive because I'm not prepared for the weather.

I thought I was doing fine, with my wardrobe choices until I saw the videos of snow, seeing those gave me second thoughts.

Thank you for your help. It's always nicer to get the info from someone on the ground. I am really looking forward to seeing your beautiful city.

Our school trip stayed at the Eden Lancaster in March '07 and had a nice stay there. The birds in the zoo across the street were sometimes noisy in the morning, but that probably depends on what room you get in relation to the street for hearing them. I remember enjoying the breakfast buffet and the room was comfortable. I do not remember any of the students complaining about the hotel.

The tram stop was very near the hotel, and it was very easy to get from the Dam to the hotel. There was a straight route from one to the other, for which I was very grateful! This from a rural person with no public transportation skills who's all of a sudden responsible for a handful of high schoolers who miss the tram that had the rest of the group!

Do watch out for the bike paths in Amsterdam; some riders will ring a bell, but not all. Look before you leave the walkers' pathways! Actually, it's great to see all the bikes versus smelly cars, but it took a new mindset to remember to watch out for them

One restaurant I ate at was a delightful little place, but I can't give you a name, unfortunately. We walked down one of the streets from the Dam and then it was in a littler street off of that.

Well, maybe I can offer a name. Enlarging a picture I took of it, I think this is the restaurant. Mapping it on Google seems to show what I remember: walking from the Dam and then another sidestreet off of that:
Petit-Restaurant De Rozenboom
Rozenboomsteeg 6
1012 PR Amsterdam

Enjoy your visit!

Hopefully it will be pleasant enough to do alot of walking - I would think that some of the cafes will have outdoor heaters too. Head over to the canal ring and try to find one where you can people watch and see a canal as well - the Amsterdamers will probably be riding their bikes and tooling around in a variety of boats even in chilly weather. Besides the two big museums (the Rikes and Van Gogh), both good for a morning or afternoon there are some other indoor spots - the Anne Frank House of course and make a trip to "The Church in the Attic". Also we spent some time at the Amsterdam History Museum too. 5 days will go quickly! Enjoy!