In Budapest we stayed at the Corinthia Hotel and paid for an "Executive Level Room" which gave us access to the Executive Lounge. We ended up really enjoying this perk since breakfast is served in the Lounge, as well as Afternoon Tea & evening snacks/desserts.

The hotel is right on a tram line that takes you everywhere you want to go. Or else have the hotel bellhops hail you a cab.

The pool & spa are great. Rooms are very comfortable. And daily chocolate with turndown service. Exec Rooms are a little over $200 USD/night, but well worth it.

http://www.corinthia.com/hotels/budapest/

Joannyc, I will check it out. We're Marriott members too, although I've found Hilton tends to give out better rewards faster. Thanks for your input.

halfapair, I will check those hotels out as well, thanks.

tower, no problem hijacking, not at all, especially as a UCLA fan. That's where husband and I met, so we are huge supporters. I used to live right UNDER Pauley Pavillion (the parking lot, really) when my dad was studying law there, since that's where the married student housing was at the time (pre-64, of course!). They were called the "Vets" -- blissful dumps where a family of 4 snuggled into tiny 1 bedroom flats, and the frat boys across the street repeatedly threatened to torch. We were at UCLA during the Bill Walton, last of John Wooden years.

Now, anyone have ideas for Berlin?!?

MARRIOT in Budapest does have a very central/convenient location, many cabs available for convenience, safe at night.
It is not anything special.....but the location was a plus.
Easy to walk all over.

Hilton on Buda side is nice hotel, but I would not want that location for first time visit to Budapest, as I feel it is really not convenient to visit.

PRAGUE: LOVED The Josef Hotel. It is a small chic boutique hotel located in my most favorite section of Prague.

I personally would not want to stay so close to the Charles Bridge as it was just packed with tourists, tour groups, etc at all times of day and night.
TrendGirl2

surfergirl: I eagerly await poster's rec's on where to stay in Berlin.

At moment I have 2 rooms booked at Courtyard Berlin City Center mainly because of a Marriott Friends and Family Rate@167E/nt. Our 20 something son is travelling with us, hence the second room. It seems like a decent location and the reviews I have read on various booking sites were good.

I have rec's for the Hotel de Rome, Ritz Berlin and Kempenski Hotel Adlon, unfortunately above your per night, but they would be booked by my travel agent and include Virtuoso benefits, things like early/late checkin/out, 85E food and beverage credit, breakfast wifi, upgrade when available.

Berlin is one of the most affordable western European cities for accommodation. Get on Booking.com and see what grabs your fancy. I would be aiming for something contemporary and cutting edge as that's what the Germans do so well, eg Hotel Bikini or possible the Indigo chain, although the latter is just outside Mitte which is my preferred area. I see Adlon recommended a lot - it's a historic hotel, high end and has featured in a lot of films. No offence meant to anyone but it's all predictable regency striped wallpaper and Louis Quatorze chairs. Go for something more in tune with the city as it is now.

Marriott Renaissance is very close to Crowne Plaza in Amsterdam. Maybe a bit higher priced, but virtually same location. We have stayed at both. prefer the Ren, but I have status w/Marriott so we can use the exec lounge, which we like a lot.

FYI-traveller1959 had a good post on his experience with Berlin hotels on Nov 21, 15

Recommend the Budapest executive apartments. Great location off the walking street, reasonable in price.one and two bedroom apartments are quite nice with kitchen. Washer and dryer on every floor.

I stayed in an apartment in Prague, but it was in Josefov and that was my favorite area. The hotel nearest our apartment was Hotel Maximilien--don't know anything about its cost but great location and looks to be a very nice hotel.

Actually, I also stayed in a very quiet area up near the castle and enjoyed that too for a change of pace but it's clearly not what you're looking for.

Sounds like a wonderful trip. Have fun!

OK, so this has been very helpful so far. My friend, the (former) Hungarian, insisted we stay at the Hilton, so we're booked there, that is settled.

Amsterdam was a real pain in the . . . wallet . . . for the period we're going to be there, I mean, not a lot of places to stay and those that were available were like over 400 Euro a night! Far cry from the dump of a hostel I stayed in on Warmoesstraat in the Red Light District 40 years ago (which, surprisingly, was still there 10 years ago!). I was going to plop down a load on the Dikker & Thijs Fenice, which was surprisingly LESS than a lot of these places, but still high. Then, on the "secure" booking website, it already had filled in someone else's name and all their personal information and I thought . . . maybe not. So for the moment, I ended up booking at the Hotel Citadel, same street as the Crowne Plaza, but further up. Really, I'd like to book the Dikker since it's right by the Leidseplein, and we like to be around the fun and don't mind the noise, but I don't know how to deal with the lack of security on the website.

As for Prague, I finally settled on the Hotel Josef with the help of husband . . . when he heard about the bakery on the premises, I think that struck a chord with him. Carbo-man that he is.

So, Berlin is now the focus. Looking at Tower's recs, I checked out the Kempinski Hotel Bristol, and it's reasonably priced, but, Tower, where did you find the "deal"?

My friend, who will meet us there, insists we all room together, so we have to go for a suite, obviously, that allows 3 people. We're doing the same for Budapest. And we've traveled together before, from camping at Yosemite to the Bridge School Benefit concerts at the Shoreline in Mountain View CA, and we are all pretty low maintenance, so it works.

So, bottom line is still looking at Amsterdam and Berlin.

And trying to figure out if I really need to book train reservations Budapest - Prague; Prague - Berlin; and Berlin - Amsterdam way in advance to get the best deals.

Input?

I finally settled on a room at NH Collection Berlin - Friedrichstraße -- reasonably priced, allows 3 adults in a room, has a/c, is relatively modern, and across the street from the train station. So I think it checks all the boxes. Feel free to tell me I'm wrong.

Man, the places I looked at . . . some quite awesome . . . either didn't have the dates I wanted or could not accommodate 3 or were egregiously priced.

I'm going with RM67's comment "Go for something more in tune with the city as it is now."

Yay! Hope you have a fab time OP. I have a TR for Berlin which may (or may not) be of some help, if you click on my ID. Btw Berlin is one of the few places where I thought the hotel breakfasts were value for money. They can appear on the pricy side, but are usually really extensive buffets that can keep you going for most of the day.

Midtown Hotel Amsterdam, Kinkerstraat 47
(hidden gem if they happen to have your dates available)

RM67 your photos are in your face brilliant!

DDD will check it out, thanks!

'RM67 your photos are in your face brilliant!'

Tyvm :-)

Surfegirl-what did you pay per night for Berlin Hotel? What is your room configeration for 3? We have my husband, me and 24 year old son traveling in September. So far have two rooms booked in each Berlin Courtyard City Center. We will probably go to bed earlier than him, hence why I thought 2 rooms best.

foolforfrance: (great name, BTW!), we booked the junior suite that can accommodate 4 people. Asked for a king and either a twin or sofa-bed. While it looks like the sofa/twin could be in a separated area, not 100% sure as to the exact configuration.

The cost changed by night, but the each night (taking the total amount, plus city tax) with wifi and breakfast included was 353 Euro/night. It would have been cheaper if we didn't get breakfast.

I was considering the Berlin Courtyard, but my friend preferred to bunk with us in one room and my husband has to be in close proximity to a bar.

Sounds like you are making progress on firming up all your plans for each city.


I think you should LOVE the Hotel Josef in Prague.
The neighborhood is fantastic where the hotel is located.
By the way, the breakfast at Hotel Josef was fantastic.
There was an interesting "bar crowd" in the evening at Hotel Josef with fun people watching.

TrendGirl2

So excited to hear that, TrendGirl2! We love bar crowd watching (and drinking!).