Dam Good: Celebrating Amsterdam’s 750th Birthday In Style With Two Of Its Finest Hotels

It may not look it, but Amsterdam is celebrating its 750th birthday this year. Gefeliciteerd! To mark the auspicious occasion, Margaret Hussey checks into two very different hotels to explore the city’s past and present. Read on for her reviews of Pillows Grand Boutique Hotel Maurits at the Park and Canal House.

Review: Canal House & Pillows Grand Boutique Hotel Maurits At The Park

Chancing upon a beautiful painting in Amsterdam’s Rijksmuseum stopped me in my tracks. It was a snowy foreground scene of Oosterpark with buildings emerging in the background by Dutch impressionist George Breitner. When Breitner painted it, this park was under construction as a new part of the city. It was the perfect analogy for what is happening in Amsterdam today as it celebrates its 750th birthday. The old still very much merges with the new.

The painting was even more apt as we were staying in Oosterpark at Pillows Grand Boutique Hotel Maurits at the Park, originally built in 1908 as a university not long after George Breitner painted that scene. Our next stop was the equally historic Canal House, with more on that below. Both hotels are members of the Small Luxury Hotels of the World group and both are rich in history, yet thoroughly 21st century.

Inside Pillows By Maurits

Pillows by Maurits has maintained and restored many original features from its university days, from its stained glass windows to its high ceilings, plus immaculate brickwork which looks as fresh today as it did at the turn of the century. The hotel is a good 20 minutes walk from the city centre and its leafy location and position by a quiet canal is a real draw. After a day’s sightseeing this Pillows was a real cushion from the noise outside.

Its 88 rooms have Egyptian cotton from the hotel’s own Fables and Feathers brand – the lovely scent of its candles wafts through reception too. The hotel has a Green Key Gold certificate and the bathroom, with its very large and powerful shower, has refillable Diptyque products.

The food and drink options here are very impressive too. We kicked off at its sophisticated Van Oost restaurant, a fusion of Japanese and French cuisine with an emphasis on seasonal and local produce. The tasting menus go from five courses to seven, with starting prices at €99. There’s duck with Madeira and mushroom, plus sea bass with fig leaf and hazelnut. My veggie option had carrot with shiso and ginger and the most delicious pearl barley with Olde Remeker cheese – we were in the Netherlands after all. And pudding was a hugely moreish raspberry dessert with licorice, sesame and chocolate. All courses were beautifully matched by fabulous wines including a very quaffable Gizella from the Tokaj region in Hungary.

Feeling full and happy, we retreated downstairs for a nightcap at the hotel’s Fitz’s bar, which has the feel of a 1920s speakeasy. Its buzziness was a total contrast to the serenity of the floors above. Its cocktails start at €18 while a lager is a very reasonable €7. We sensibly chose the latter as the next day we had to be up bright and early to explore. The hotel also has a rooftop terrace open in the summer and The Living lounge for resident guests only. You can pop in here to work or have a drink at the honesty bar. Plus there’s an urban spa, where you can book a massage or the private sauna by appointment.

Next day came the most delicious breakfast at the hotel’s Spring Café Brasserie, served by the friendliest, most helpful and stylish staff. I kicked off with a ginger shot, followed by an impeccable fruit bowl and a perfectly made flat white.

Pillows is a great location from which to explore. You can get the number 14 tram just across the road, ask the concierge to help with bike hire or just walk, as we did. It’s so lovely to see a sustainable city that doesn’t rely so heavily on cars. You really notice how few there are as everyone is on bikes or the tram. And Amsterdammers are so deft at cycling. We saw people going one-handed, on the phone, eating their lunch or ringing their bells to alert us of their approach.

Amsterdam is also such a pretty city and wandering around you can’t help but admire the feat of architecture that are the houses, many now wonky and needing to be propped up. Look out for the Blauwbrug Houses, also known as the Dancing Houses over the River Amstel. Their wonkiness gives the feel of movement.

While there, we also popped by the riot of colour that is the Bloemenmarkt, or flower market, where a bag of tulip bulbs costs €9.99. While Noordermarkt in the trendy Jordaan area is great for clothing and food. There were racks of vintage Burberry trench coats as well as piles of moreish Dutch cheese, plus Café Winkel 43 with its huge slices of apple pie and pastries the size of plates. Café culture is huge in Amsterdam and you will be spoilt for choice. We loved Café ‘t Smalle and Café De Nieuwe Lelie, both full of atmosphere and friendly locals.

All this food was fuel for the thousands of steps and hours we covered in the fascinating Rijksmuseum. As well as the aforementioned impressionist painter Breitner, there are a few works by Van Gogh plus a huge selection of works by Vermeer including The Milkmaid and The Little Street, plus Rembrandt’s world-famous The Night Watch.

Discover The Canal House

Rembrandt lived in Amsterdam in the 17th century and you could well imagine him wandering around our next stop – the Canal House. Doing very much what it says on the tin, this beautiful hotel overlooks Keizersgracht and is a much more central location than Pillows, as it’s just minutes from the Anne Frank House.

It is three 17th century houses put together with just 23 rooms. Its higgledy-piggedly nature means all rooms are different. And its dark decor with colour drenched walls in black, plum and purple accessories, plus dark roses and accessories, all add to its charm. You could picture people wandering around these rooms by candlelight back in the day.

These days, however, the downstairs bar is lit very 21st century style and is a great place for an aperitif.  The breakfast room has huge chandeliers and many original details have been kept – although I’m not sure avocado on toast with a cappuccino was quite the order of the day in Rembrandt’s time.

Check out too its beautifully landscaped garden. The purple hues of the house continue outdoors with cushions and planting – and it’s so surprising to see a garden this size in Amsterdam. It was designed by English landscapers Rose Dale and Laura Heybrook and it even has its own summer house for two people.

The 21st century vibes were ramped up in our room with a big screen TV plus the art works were modern takes on Old Masters. The Delft tulip vase was a nice nod to the past too. We had a huge roll top bath – a feat of engineering in and of itself to get it up to the top floor – and a massive shower with very generous, refillable and sustainable Green & Spring products.

The sustainability continued with our journey home. We hopped on the tram to Amsterdam Centraal station for our return with Eurostar. You can now travel directly from London to the Dutch capital in just over four hours. It was so easy and smooth. There is no decanting of liquids for security, plus you can bring as much luggage as you want. Just as well as I needed that extra space for my hefty cheese purchases plus a Breitner-inspired sketchbook.

Room prices at Pillows Grand Boutique Hotel Maurits at the Park start from £314 per night on a room only basis. Room prices at Canal House start from £309 per night on a bed and breakfast basis. Both hotels are members of the Small Luxury Hotels of the World. To book visit www.slh.com 

London to Amsterdam costs start from £39 for one way. A fifth service on this route starts from December. Figures from Eurostar show a journey from London to Amsterdam is 3.9kg of C02 per person, 96 percent less than a plane journey. For more visit eurostar.com