Upgrading the ”Home Experience”

Let‘s be honest, it‘s not easy to find a sense of ”home” in a foreign country. Unfamiliar streets,strange food, and limited hotel rooms... Especially in shortterm trips, these ”out of the comfort zone” shock are especially apparent. Luxury hotels all over the world are all devoted to solve those problems, but how to achieve the balance between the ”customized service” and leave space for customers to be themselves, is what the hotel should ponder on.

On the ”small island” surrounded by a canal in the heart of the old city of Amsterdam, a brand new hotel Luxury Suites Amsterdam was born in this ancient community. At first glance the fivestory red brick building is no different from the surrounding houses, maybe it was the hotel‘s deliberate doing. In this 25room boutique hotel, we finally found the feeling of ”home” in our trip of Europe.

A LongAwaited Outstanding Work

Surrounded by water on four sides, the Luxury Suites hotel on the ”small island” is only connected to the surroundings by three bridges, which ends with excellent privacy.At the same time, the three bridges also connect almost all functional areas, museums and attractions within the community and the city. It is filled with attractions in hundreds meters radius. Adjacent to the famous Amsterdam diamond factory GASSAN, the Rembrandt House is only one block away;;15 minutes walking along the canal will take you to Waterloo Square, and the Waterloo Market nearby is a paradise for fetishists.

The hotel has a unique eye for such a crown jewel land, and in order to get this place,it went through a long process. Oudeschans, the street where the hotel is located, is named after the adjacent canal, which was excavated in 1516 and has a history of 500 years. The original site of the hotel was originally a granary on Oudeschans Street. Large amounts of wheat was transported and stored there. The granary was burnt down in 1949. Three years later a new building was born and in 1974 it became the famous jazz bar The Bimhuis – well known for its excellent improvised Music. In 2004, The Bimhuis moved to the new site. In 2009, a hotel was decided to be built here and in order to realize the blueprint of this fivestar luxury hotel, the original building has to be knocked down. However, the plan is never a small deal in Amsterdam, the government cherished historical heritage of the city so much,that they has to thoroughly explore the historical preservation of the original site, measures and checks every detail. Nearly ten years have past, and Luxury Suite Amsterdam was finally built.

Be the Family,be the VIP

With so much hard works and expectations, the hotel is devoted to do their very best. In this more than expensive city center, the hotel reduces the number of rooms to create a hotel with only suites and simply named it ”Luxury Suites Amsterdam”. To this hotel, every customer who comes in is their VIP, so all guests equally enjoy their best service , everyone live in suites of only 25 here , and every room is a favorite room.

The 25 suites range in size from 50 square meters to 90 square meters. Different from traditional suites, they are inspired by the contemporary home, all the suites here are open planned, with spaces invisibly divided by furniture, decorations,fabrics and different materials, etc., so that the living space is more spacious and open. I especially like the design that separates the bed area with gauze, which is decorative but also subtlety increases the privacy. The rooms are designed in a modern art deco style. The main colours of pearls and grey are mixed with velvet purple, that are elegant and quiet. Crystal chandeliers and dim lighting make the atmosphere warmer,and the paintings of Rembrandt and Van Gogh on the walls bring back the local art. The canal scenery outside the floor toceiling windows is close at hand, and some suites have a separate balcony, surrounded by ivy. The size of the bathroom is also ”generous” enough to match a small bedroom. Whether it is family sharing or living alone, the suite is just everything you need, with some space for your own ideas.

The Perfect Balance Between Service and Autonomy

What‘s more considerate is that every suite here is equipped with a simple open kitchen, which makes this ”home” complete . When you can pick fresh ingredients at the nearby market and make your own dishes at any time, the ”distance” to a strange city will naturally be shortened. Of course, if you are not good at cooking, you can always tell the hotel what you like, and the chef will try to cook your familiar taste and deliver it to your room. In order to maximize the customer‘s preference, the hotel breakfast is not buffet, but a la cart style, you can communicate with the staff to adjust the food. As long as the kitchen can make it, you can order the dishes that are not on the menu This is the sincerity of treating someone like their own family,and the hotel has found many returned customers, some have even lived here for half a year.

After got enough rest, exploration should be started. If you don‘t want to follow the footsteps of the tourists, you better have a chat with the golden keys from concierge before leaving. As a live map of Amsterdam, they will recommend you places based on your interests, from them you may know which church has a beautiful roof, which restaurant is more suitable for the Chinese stomach ... you can just leave the itinerary completely to them, and feel free to be surprised and touched through a private travel map.