We just returned from a week in Amsterdam, and stayed at the Ambassade Hotel. Stay away from this place! It is the best example of a rip off that I have ever experienced. The noise level all night long in the street is unbearable...we didn't sleep for a week, and the "antique" furnishings looked like they came from a used furniture store. We stayed in the two bedroom suite for 505 Guilders per night, and must say, if we could have found another hotel (it was spring break) we would have moved in a heartbeat! Although this hotel has received high recommendations in both Fromers and Fodor's, it was a true disappointment. Amsterdam is quite shabby as a whole, and the cigarette smoking is a serious problem....everywhere! If you think you have to go to Holland, take the train and go to Haarlem for the day, or better yet, skip the whole place. The people are not very customer friendly, and when we complained twice about the laundry truck pulling up in front of our rooms at before 7am, and the noise, they said, "well the laundry has to be delivered". We spent a lot of money there, and have no where to complain...The hotel doesn't care. My recommendation would be to stay in a hotel that has major affiliation, and at least you can go to corporate if you have a problem.

I am curious as to how such a hotel as you described it could have "high recommendations in both Fromers and Fodor's"? Perhaps other readers could add similar comments about other hotels. It is just as good to know where not to stay as it is to know where the good places are.

I'm sorry to read that you had a bad time at your chosen hotel. It happens. <BR> <BR>Please remmeber though that Amsterdam has some pretty great hotels, of all ratings, and it is very wrong to say they are all questionable as you have done in another thread. <BR> <BR>Having visited this city a few times, with our last trip only 6 months ago, I could never describe it as 'shabby'. It is a beautiful city - quite unique. <BR> <BR>What is even more astonishing is to read that you think the people are not customer friendly. In my mind the A'dam people are perhaps the friendliest in Europe. <BR> <BR>Could it be that your bad experience at the hotel has greatly coloured your views about the city and its people? <BR> <BR>I don't want to get into an arguement on this forum about the rights and wrongs of smoking. People have strong views either way. It is best to remember though that Amsterdam is similar to other European cities, such as Athens and Rome, who cater for people who smoke. <BR> <BR>Jack

I, too, was dissapointed in Amsterdam. we were there on a major holiday 2 years ago--Queen's Day. Granted, it may have been overcrowded that week-end, but the whole place was a dump. The lovely little canals looked like land fills, they were stuffed so with trash and garbage. There were druggies all over the place with glazed over eyes. The streets were dirty and trashy. It was too crowded to find a room in Amsterdam, which was just as well. The booking desk found one for us in Rotterdam for the night. It was much cleaner there. We stayed in a Skandia Hotel (a chain)--very nice--moderate. <BR> <BR>We had a good experience in Prague at The Pension Brezina. They have a web site. It was very clean. We had 2 bedrooms, one with 2 beds and one with 3 beds, a toilet, shower room, and a tiny alcove with small fridge and stove--all for about $45 per night (American) for the whole thing. Continental breakfast was served in their dining room for about $3 extra per person. It was rolls, sliced cheeses, yogurt (the pear was awesome) sliced meats, juice, coffee, tea. This was last May. It's about 4 blocks up from Wenceslas Square. I can't remember the name of the street, but all the info is on their site. It was a 15 to 20 minute walk to Old Town, but we walked all over and loved every minute of it. <BR> <BR>Then there was the Barry House in London. We stayed there in '93. Their breakfast was very good. It was clean. However the sheets are thin and put directly on the mattresses--no mattress pads. As I recall the sheets were too old to stay securely on the mattress and in the morning the bottom sheet had come off the mattress and was wound around me. The other thing about the Barry House is that their rooms are the smallest I've ever seen. The bedroom was just large enough to fit the 2 twin beds in, with little room for a person to maneuver. The bathroom in the hall was just big enough to squeeze into. Once the door was closed there was hardly room for my feet to stretch out full length. <BR> <BR>I have many other B&B memories and experiences, but no time or space to keep listing. <BR> <BR>I would love to know of a clean and comfortable (meaning the room large enough to walk in that might even have room for a chair to sit in, not necessarily ensuite) B&B in London with one of those full English breakfasts that wouldn't cost more than 20 to 25 pounds per person. <BR> <BR>This thread could become one of Fodor's most valuable. Keep the good stuff coming. <BR> <BR>Thanks, Joyce

Merriem, <BR> <BR>I was so surprised to hear about <BR>your negative experience at the <BR>Hotel Ambassade! My husband and <BR>I have stayed there twice -- most <BR>recently just a few months ago -- <BR>and on both occasions had a wonderful experience! In fact, we frequently comment on the high quality of service and attention we received from the hotel staff. When we arrived, exhausted and jetlagged but long before checkin time, staff members brought us hot drinks and made us comfortable while a room was prepared in short order. <BR> <BR>I don't recall noise being an issue -- perhaps we stayed in a room that was further off the street, or perhaps I was so exhausted after walking around Amsterdam all day that I was oblivious to the noise. <BR> <BR>I am so sorry that you had a negative experience. I hope that it was just an anomaly, an off period for the Ambassade. <BR> <BR>Carol <BR>

It's too bad that hotel didn't listen to your concerns, because now they've got this bad review going out to thousands of people over the internet. It seems like another example of how where you stay can make or break a trip. We stayed at the Pulitzer where the staff went above and beyond (really!) to make us happy. A fabulous breakfast was included which I still miss to this day. We left Amsterdam thinking it was one of the most delightful cities with the friendliest people in the world! <BR>

Just a quick follow up to my post and your responses. Everyone wants different things in a hotel, and indeed it can make or break your vacation...We should have stayed at the Amstel Intercontinental, but it was spring break and full. It does bother me that two such leading travel guides rate this hotel with such high recommendations. As we have travelled a lot, this was our only "bad" experience. Amsterdam was dirty, and the permissive attitude seems to be reflected in the atmosphere of the city. <BR>To those of your that like that hotel, that is fine, I felt it important to express our disappointment, to possibly keep from ruining someone else's vacation. Where you stay, does make a difference. We are leaving for Barcelona by ship on Saturday, and I made my reservation at the Hotel Claris, which is supposed to be the nicest hotel there. I will post upon my return. Hopefully my comments did not offend anyone. A last thought, if you want a GREAT hotel in Buenos Aires, try the Park Hyatt...it was fantastic, and the people couldn't do enough.

No your comments didn't offend me at all. That's what forums like this are all about - getting first hand impressions. I wish somebody had warned me about some of the places I've stayed! <BR>

Like Carol, we were also recent guests of the Hotel Ambassade (November 1998) and found the hotel a delightful place to stay. The service was attentive, our room in one of their converted canal houes very attractively furnished, and the street noise imperceptible. In short, we would recommend the hotel to anyone with a high standard of comfort and a desire for centrally located lodgings. <BR> <BR>That the Wombachers had what they perceive as a poor stay is testament to the basic facts of nature; to wit that a) one man's Bordeaux is another man's plonk, and b) even the best hotel can have an off day. <BR> <BR>For the record, we thought Amsterdam was a wonderful city; the very essence of Old World charm. But Merriem is also absolutely correct that the Dutch live in some alternate reality in which smoking is a harmless habit.

We stayed in the Ambassade a few years ago with two kids in their late teens. We had two rooms, both more than adequate, but, not exceptional. The New York Times had a recent article on the Ambassade in the travel section that was very positive. As for the people in A'dam, when we arrived at the train station there were several people who tried to convince us to stay at their lodgings. I told one man we had reservations already, politely I thought, and he got red-faced and started screaming at me, calling me names. The poor fellow wanted to fight. We got a cab immediately. Not a great way to enter a new city.

Sorry to hear about the bad time Merriem had in Amsterdam and the Hotel Ambassade. I stayed in the Canal Crown Hotel (519-525 Herengracht), and it was wonderful. The room and bathroom were the best I've had in Europe, the staff was very curettes and friendly, and their breakfast buffet was superb. Like Tony, I found the environment around and in the Centraal Station to be very bad (some real weirdo’s there). In fact, I almost decided to just skip Amsterdam because of this. Fortunately, I decided to go into town after all. It was only then that I found what a terrific city Amsterdam is, what great museums it has to offer, and how friendly the “normal” citizens were. I can’t wait to visit Amsterdam again. <BR> <BR>

Sorry to hear about your disappointment in the Ambassade Hotel. We stayed there, in a suite, in September and found the hotel and staff quite charming. We were not disappointed and would recommend this hotel to others.

I've had some bad experiences as well at supposed 3 or 4 star hotels. <BR> <BR>These hotels usually provide great service to those customers deemed as desirables, poor service to others (like single young males travelling). <BR> <BR>On the other hand, I have had some great stays at 2 star hotels. <BR> <BR>In my experience, you will get the feel right after check-in whether your hotel stay will be good or bad. If they give you the room next to the elevator or stairwell... it might be worth looking for another place.