Hilton Amsterdam?
 

Has anyone stayed at this hotel? I am wondering how it would be as a base for travelling to the smaller towns in Holland. (We can probably stay there for free using Hilton Honors points. Otherwise, we would prefer to stay outside the city.) I know it is in a nice neighborhood. Is there public transportation within walking distance? Are there any inexpensive restaurants nearby?

Sorry, also wanted to ask if we would be better off renting a car or taking the train if we want to spend 4 days in the smaller towns. Is it difficult to drive in and out of the city?

From the Hilton it's about a 4 block walk to the #5 and 24 tram lines that go through the centrum to Centraal Station.<BR>If you're night owls look up at the tram stop for the #70 something nightbus sign for after midnight transportation. RE: renting a car, the train system is so good (as far as I can figure the schedule is anywhere to anywhere at least twice an hour from 6AM to 10 PM) that I wouldn't bother with a car. See http://www.ns.nl/domestic/index.cgi ...it's the Dutch rail planner.

We stayed at the Hilton a few years ago, and yes it is a nice neighborhood. Tree lined streets that are away from the hubbub of the central city. A very nice Italian restaurant was down the street, we loved it.

Thanks. Sounds like we should do fine without a car. And we'll look for that Italian restaurant!

We also enjoyed a stay at the Amsterdam Hilton. It was convenient to public transportation and we loved walking the neighborhood and finding small restaurants. If you are lucky, you might bribe someone at the hotel to let you see the John Lennon/Yoko Ono suite.(site of the famous Love In) We did that and were able to take pictures for our son who is a big Beatles fan. We made side trips to the flower auction & Kuekenhoff Gardens, also a tour which I believe left from the hotel to the Hague and Rotterdam. The hotel also had a nice breakfast included in the cost. Have fun, we sure did!