The Albus

This is my first review but I plan on doing more as this is my first trip to Europe and am writing up different restaurants and hotels. The service at the Albus was mediocre at Best, but that was not my real issue with the hotel. I’ve traveled a lot over my life time for business and leisure and I have never once been charged a cleaning fee at a hotel upon leaving. Now I understand that if u were to damage something like the walls or the floor or anything I would be responsible for that In a monetary way but these people were absurd. I left towels on the ground and the bed unmade of course as well as trash from my shopping like tissue paper and shoe boxes and they wanted to charge me a 100 euro for cleaning that up and I lost it. Then she started to haggle with me on the number which tells u she is just trying to buckle and dime me like they did during my entire stay. I ended up paying 50 euro for absolutely no reason but I hope they really pay for it in the end when people read my review.

My girlfriend and I both thoroughly enjoyed our stay at this hotel. I was a bit worried because I accidentally booked a basement room through Orbitz which was non refundable. Check in was a little slower than normal but otherwise fine and we were offered coffee/​water while we waited. I was ready for my girlfriend to kill me but when we walked in we were greeted with a modern chic hotel room which may have been the largest we stayed at in Europe. The bed was very comfortable, we had a little sitting area, and a nice large bathroom. The room had a nespresso machine which was refilled each day and room service seemed to do a good job. There was an ice machine in the basement which was a huge plus and we never had to wait for the elevator. They sold metro tickets at the reception desk which was also a decent plus. The location was great and we got to everywhere fairly quickly. I really can’t say a single bad thing about the hotel.

Poorly run hotel. My third time in Amsterdam and thought I’d stay across the street from the place I stayed last time, the Carlton. The price was similar but I highly recommend you stick with the Carlton. The staff would be considered rude even by Dutch standards. I was led to my suite past the plumbing being ripped out and power tools being used. The kitchen was closed, so, no room service even though that’s a selling point of the hotel. Horrible experience and the whole chic thing is dated at this point and sad.

I really miss The Albus.
This was my first time in Amsterdam, so it’s difficult to compare this hotel against others. So, I won’t.
Instead, let me tell my holiday criteria and how The Albus helped meet this criteria.
— I am young
— I went on holiday with my girlfriend
— I can’t ride a bike
— I wanted to visit lots of Museums (but didn’t really care about the really boring ones)
— I wanted to be near all the Christmas markets
— I wanted to shop
— I wanted to go on a canal cruise
— I don’t smoke (but I was with people who wanted to, so we needed to be near some good coffeeshops)
— I wanted to stuff my face with lots of food
— I wanted to stay in somewhere with modern furnishings
— I wanted to stay somewhere quiet
— I wanted to stay somewhere that felt clean
The Albus is perfectly situated to do all of the things above. You’re pretty much smack, bang in the middle of everything. Museums and attractions that are slightly out of the centre are still within a 5 – 10 minute tram ride. For me, the convenience made the holiday more enjoyable. I was able to pop back to the hotel to have a quick shower, coffee, drop off bags etc whenever I wanted without it ever disrupting my day.
When it comes to hospitality, the staff were great. Checking in and out was smooth, no problems with room service and the staff were helpful when we wanted to stock up with any coffee/​tea supplies etc for our room. The staff are also happy to make recommendations about attractions to visit in the city and can help you with bookings for local attractions.
The basement room was plenty big enough for two people. Everything was clean and well presented. The bed was in a slightly odd position in the room was stayed in, meaning that only one person could walk around the end of the bed at any one time. This is a difficult thing to describe without seeing the actual room. It was a very minor inconvenience, but worth mentioning if you have a bad temperament.
Also worth mentioning that the walls are a little thin. Nothing major, but it’s worth knowing that each room isn’t completely sound proof.
Free, fast wifi was useful and there’s a Nespresso machine in every room. Kettles are also available if you just ask at reception.
Didn’t watch too much TV but it worked fine, there’s a whole load of channels and on-​demand things you can buy.
There’s a free safe to use in the room too and you get some free toiletries with room service (shampoo, body lotion and shower gel).
It’s quite a hot hotel and the room we stayed in didn’t have any air conditioning. As we stayed in December, this was not a problem, but I imagine it would be a little uncomfortable in the summer.
I would definitely stay here again.

Quelle déception !
C’est peut être la première fois que je constate une publicité mensongère à ce point.
Nous souhaitions prendre un hôtel cosy, proche du centre d’Amsterdam pour un week-​end cocooning, nous avons trouvé une offre sur voyage privé.
On nous vendait la chambre supérieure, «city view», la bouteille de prosecco en chambre.
Les avis étaient corrects et les photos sympas, cela présageait d’une chambre assez moderne et lumineuse.
Quelle né fut notre déception quand nous sommes entrés dans la chambre !
La «city view» était en fait une petite lucarne diffusant très très peu de lumière.
La chambre était étroite, et on voyait bien qu’elle était cheap, de par les murs et le mobilier, mais caché derrière de la déco moderne.
La salle de bain idem, un évier moulé, mais bon point: une baignoire.
On nous a vendu la bouteille de prosecco, c’était en fait une minuscule bouteille pour remplir à peine deux coupes.
Et pas de minibar! Donc pas de frigos pour nous qui comptions faire des petites courses!
La chambre n’était pas du tout isolée, on entendait bien tous les bruits de la rue, les claxons, les gens, le tram… etc, ceci toute la nuit.
Et pour conclure, le pire de tout: un matelas de quelques centimètres d’épaisseur, à même le sommier, bien abîmé, bien creusé au milieux du dos, pour s’en sortir avec un mal de dos tous les soirs!
Ce né fut ABSOLUMENT pas un séjour reposant !
Je déconseille vivement.

Very well-​situated and chic hotel in Amsterdam’s canal district. Rooms were well-​sized with nice décor, and full sized bath (including large shower in my room). I did note some of my travel companions had smaller showers.
Breakfast buffet was fine, though of course hotel pricing is always high on food. Only beer on draft is Heinekin, but the bartender was really friendly. There are plenty of restaurants around so neither of these matter
I stayed in October so AC was not a concern.

This is a nice hotel, very modern, and chic! The person who check you in beings you to your room!
Room was reasonable — upgraded to a larger room for € 15.
I do not understand how a hotel says its a 4 star hotel but does not have any air conditioning! After asking why no air conditioning. I was told we don’t advertise that we have it. (It’s a modern standard to have it, you should advertise you don’t have it) Asked if we could have another fan was told No!
It is so hot in this hotel. They give you one small plug-​in tower fan that has no power. The windows open a little bit but the bugs come in, yes no screens!
I’m sweating and sleeping in a pool of my own sweat!
Sheets were stained when arrived, front desk was attentive and change them.
*HUGE TIP* if your going to stay here while it’s hot out, do not get a high floor. Those rooms bake! Ran into 2 different people who said they moved them from the 8^th (top floor) on to my floor 2^nd floor.
Could not recommend to anyone to stay here during the summer time

We had a great stay at this hotel. The staff was very helpful and welcoming. We were greeted with coffee upon arrival and they did their best to check us in as early as possible as our flight got in early in the morning. Rooms were clean and comfortable with nice décor. Quiet at night and a great location– easy to walk to all sights.

Stayed in AMS prior to my London
2013 Location is great, I would say nearly anything and everything is a 15 minute walk. Close enough where you are walking through the streets with the canals and homes with personality.
Service, first off I arrived at 10 am, not sure what is check in — but a after speaking to the front desk they immediately told me what rooms were available. In addition they disclosed that the 1^st floor gets street noise (technically their 1^st floor is on the second floor of the building). I didn’t mind the street noise as I am one that hibernates — it was a nice gesture for them to have earplugs in the room.
Breakfast in the morning really hit the spot. All fresh ingredients, not too much or too little. If you are an early riser with an empty stomach the 7:00 am breakfast start is the best AMS gets. No restaurants open prior to 7.
Overall nice place — I do recommend it. Just keep in mind the website makes the place look hip n chic but that couldn’t be any further from the truth. There is tons of dust on those wine bottles and the bar is weak. Great free coffee in the morning and friendly staff.

Great little hotel.
Loved the location, so handy to and from the airport.
Facilities offered were excellent and a free upgrade to a suite is always nice too!

Convenient location. Rooms didn’t seem big for the price, though this is the only hotel I stayed in during my week-​long stay in Amsterdam so it’s not like I have other lodging to compare to within this city. It took some effort to shut the room door though. But receptionists were all nice and helpful!

My girlfriend and I spent two nights here and had a great time. The location is excellent — easy walk to bars, restaurants, cafes, shops, and tram stops. The flower market is right up the block (lots of souvenirs and shopping) and the hotel offers discounted tickets for a great canal tour.
Our room was large and very modern. Comfortable furniture, queen size bed, big TV, coffee maker, free WiFi, and a spacious bathroom.
There were a few surprises with the bill, not least of which was that they made a bunch of crazy charges on our card: First an authorization for one night, then an authorization for a second night, then a charge for the full stay. All before we even arrived in Amsterdam! Until all the refunds came back off a few days later, we had twice the cost of our stay pending on our account. Not a big deal, but they had specifically said they wouldn’t do that, and we had planned on paying in cash. Also, phone calls from the room ended up costing € 1.50 each, even though all of the calls were to a toll-​free calling card number. Again, not a huge deal, but annoying. They seem to kind of nickel and dime you for stuff.
Overall we were very happy, though, and would stay here again.