We
booked the NH Carlton Amsterdam because of the location, and we weren’t
disappointed. If you arrive before
check-in, you'll need to wait until about 2 PM. If you can stay on your feet
despite jet lag, there's the flower market with cheese shops and cafes—only a
few steps from the hotel’s doors. You’ll
see more tulips than you can imagine, sample loads of cheese varieties, and
enjoy a snack or meal at an outside table.
Even on Sunday, when nothing else seems to be open, you’ll find plenty
of people watching and food sampling to kill time and acquaint you to one of
Amsterdam’s famous sights. If you want to get a feel for the city, ride the
tram, which is less than a quarter of a mile away. It’s cheap and clean.
But if you’re too tired
for touring and have arrived too early to check in, go to the second floor and
relax in the massage chair or on a couch, which is what we did. No one bothered us for hours.
The breakfast is much too
expensive for what you get (buffet-style with staff hosting) but looked great. Maybe,
we’re just cheap because it was full of takers willing to shell out 20
eruo. But once we figured out that they’d
sell us coffee to go for 3 euros, we did that. Thereafter, we discovered my
favorite coffee, Illy, being sold nearby.
Go up the flower market (there’s only one way because the hotel is at
one end) and turn left down the first street.
Ok, so now you’ve checked
in. There’s not much to disclose about
our room except that the carpet was noticeably stained; otherwise it was big
enough and very clean. Don’t count on the TV for loads of English channels, but
you shouldn’t be channel surfing anyway.
You’re in Amsterdam!
When you’re ready to
navigate the city, head back down to the lobby.
We found both the day and night reception staff to be quite pleasant and
very helpful, serving as concierges, as well. So don't hesitate to approach
them and be sure to secure a city map.
Checkout was a breeze. You
may get a coupon for your next cheap NH hotel.
Again, you can't beat the
location. The only caution I’d offer is that we noticed several NH hotels when we rode the trams around. So be sure to pick the one by the flower
market.
