Marriott Amsterdam

A very nice Marriott near the center of Amsterdam...

I went to Amsterdam to have a meeting with ING, and since I'm in the middle of my expat process in the UK, there was no difference if I stayed in Amsterdam over the weekend or in London. That was an easy decision.

The location is just a few hundred feet away from Leidseplein, so for someone who likes to be in the middle of the city, this place is perfect. It's also really easy to arrive into Amsterdam by train. Just take the 1,2, or 5 tram from Central Station to Leidspein and you're set.

The bath room was good enough. I feel like the shower was a bit weak, and was set at an odd angle. It had consistent water temperature and pressure though, even if it was a bit weak. The soaps that are provided are the fancy ones that smell like lemongrass.

They get decent TV stations as well. I like comedy, and comedy central has been expanding its brand into Europe (like the recent rebranding of Paramount Comedy in the UK). They had that, which was nice.

The staff was as helpful as you would expect, and the concierge has tickets to all the local museums, so in that respect they're good. I was also able to get them to order me a taxi to take me to the airport, and they made sure the taxi took American Express.

To me, good location is everything, unless they make some sort of major offense somewhere else. Due to their amazing location, I would definitely stay here again.

The Marriot was OK. It was OK, but not exceptional, in every single respect. The beds were OK, and the toiletries were nice enough (although not really enough for the four people who were staying), and the towels were alright. The service was acceptable. The decor was standard international hotel, nothing distinctive. And we gave up waiting in the restaurant and went through to the bar, because no-one was serving anyone in there.

The bar, on the other hand, was staffed by a really hard working girl who went out of her way to help, and the decor was comfy and pleasant, and the bitterballen were lovely. ANd you really can't fault the location, right on Leidseplein and the No 5 tram route.

This hotel would irritate you if you were used to business or luxury, because of the mediocre service, and is really too expensive for travelling for fun. I enjoyed my stay, and the internet deal we got made it great value for the money we spent, but in any other circumstances I'd stay anywhere else.