Navigating Amsterdam’s cobbled streets and canals for the first time, unaware that I was mere steps from the notorious Red Light District, I could not yet have known how much I would appreciate the tranquillity of my hotel.
I spot ‘The Grand Amsterdam’ hitched on a stone wall above an arched, cut-out entryway, and cross a quiet private courtyard to the revolving glass doors, where I am welcomed by doormen into a lobby of marble floors and plush sofas in shades of purple, indigo and burnt orange.
I’m told that the delicate little baubles dangling from the ceiling are actually tiny butterflies, designed to reflect the painstakingly restored butterfly pattern of the original marble floors, which date back to 1411, when the building was St. Cecily’s Convent.
Impressed by the hotel’s incorporation of modern style into its illustrious foundations, I learn over the coming days that The Grand Amsterdam is also a master of the finer details that make it feel more like a home away from home than a hotel.
The fresh madeleines beside the concierge desk are replaced daily for guests to help themselves to, and an eye-catching abstract mural on the wall outside the hotel’s Bridges restaurant turns out to be the work of iconic Dutch artist Karel Appel.
The stained-glass window beside the lobby, which doesn’t seem out of place in this heritage building, was a gift from Rotterdam to celebrate 650 years of the City of Amsterdam, a remnant of when the building served as City Hall. On my way to the lifts that will take me up to my suite, I notice the black and white photographs on the walls are prints of Jimi Hendrix, Frank Zappa and Debbie Harry.
Prestige Suite 102 has the same blend of old and new styles with acute attention to detail. The one-bedroom suite opens with a cosy living room of soft carpeted floors, a wall of windows overlooking the canal outside, and a colour scheme of lilac, deep purple and cream. A sofa, flat-screen TV and work desk are next to the windows, and there is an en suite bathroom beside the doorway.
Sliding doors reveal the bedroom, with a king-size bed and damask-patterned inlaid headboard facing a second flat-screen TV and entertainment system. Beside the bed are bottles of Evian (replaced daily), copies of Vogue, and master switches to control the lighting and temperature. An abstract mural on the bedroom wall is actually a portrait of Frederik Hendrik van Oranje, former prince of Oranje and a guest of the hotel in 1628.
The bathroom, nearly as big as the bedroom, is wall-to-wall slate grey stone tiles and black lacquered surfaces. A large double bath sits between twin sinks, in front of a sliver of brick wall, in which a waterproof TV is embedded. Opposite the tub are frosted glass doors, which can be opened at bathtime for views of the canal. Heated towel racks are just outside the stand-alone double shower, and the room is stocked with Hermès products.
Most of all, it is the thoughtful service here that exceeds my expectations. Running late for a meeting one day, I ask the concierge for directions. A few words are spoken to a young man in a uniform, and suddenly I’m being whisked along the streets of Amsterdam in a golf buggy, arriving at my destination right on time.
Every night I return to my suite to find a different artisan chocolate (raspberry with toasted almond, for example), alongside a quote by an author or poet printed neatly on a note. And after a night out in Amsterdam, I’m most thankful that the purple velvet drapes block out all the light, so the Red Light District need only be a memory.
THE IMPORTANT BIT
What: Prestige Suite 102
Where: Sofitel Legend
The Grand Amsterdam
Price: from EUR 860
(US $1,100) per night
Tel: +31 20 555 3111
www.sofitel-legend-thegrand.com
