Holiday Inn Amsterdam - Amsterdam, Netherlands     

I was at a conference at the VU university, which was a 10 minute walk or a two tram stop ride from the hotel. The number 4 tram takes you to central station if you want to go into the heart of Amsterdam. There are no supermarkets or eating areas anywhere near the hotel. I had something go missing from my room, which took 4 days to resolve. I was eventually refunded and given a late check out but it was a service debacle, with me having to chase up the hotel staff. Some of the staff had difficulties with English also. However, the rooms were very clean and the hotel is non smoking which was a plus. I would have stayed more in the heart of Amsterdam, closer to amenities if I had my time there again. Taking the tram for 30 minutes each way just to get something to eat (as it is far too expensive at the hotel) or see the sights was too taxing.

This hotel is about a fifteen minute tram ride from downtown Amsterdam. The check in was very easy and the staff was very nice. The hotel itself was very nice. The rooms were large and clean and the bathroom was exceptional. Our sofa bed had no sheets on it when we pulled it out so I asked the maid that was down the hall for some. He did not speak English but he must have told someone we needed something because about 2 minutes later the hotel staff was at our door with everything we needed. I liked the fact that the hotel was not downtown as it was nice to be able to get away from the city center. The only drawback was that there were no restaurants or stores to get food in the general area. There is a shopping center down the road about a mile that does have a grocery store but its a little far if you have no car. We took a cab from the train station because we had no idea where to go and that cost around 40 Euros but the tram #4 goes directly from the train station to the RAI station and only cost aout 7Euros for 4 people. We would definitely stay here again. The surrounding area was pretty and the hotel was really comfortable. We did not eat in the restaurant but it was usually busy with business travelers so I would guess it was good although from the menu we looked at it was a little pricey.