Stay Away

I have visited Amsterdam about a dozen times in ten years. I have stayed at numerous 4&5 star hotels. January 2004 was my first and last stay at this crowne plaza.

Upon check in there was no bellboy present, so I had to lug my suitcase to the reception area myself. There were two clerks on duty and I was the only one in line. It took them about three minutes to acknowlege my presence. I had a reservation for a club room. The first room that they gave me had a bad odor coming from it. The second room had a similar odor, and of course none of the windows opened. Finally I was given a room that was acceptable. It had a king size bed. Not as nice as , Krasnapolsky, Victoria, Swiss, SAS Renaissance, Hilton, I could go on.

Next mrning I discovered that the ceiling in my bathroom had collapsed over the shower. I went down to the reception and explained what had occurred. The guest agen didn't really seem all that surprised or concerned. She called maintenance and had me wait. Maintenance called back about fifteen minutes later to say that they didn't know where the leak had come from and that it would be best if i got a new room. I was then told non chelantly that another rrom would not be available untill around noon.

Later in my stay I got stuck in one of their elevators. I rang the bell and nothing. I then picked up the phone and was put through to the reception. I explained my predicament and they told me that it would not be long and that she was going to call someone. She then proceeded to hang up. After about ten minutes it began moving again. No apology and no explanation given.

On my third night. At around noon I called the front desk and asked if my room could be cleaned while I would be out for a couple of hours. I was assured that it would be. I was actually gone four hours. And when I returned with my guests my room was the mess that I left it in. I went down to the reception and demnded an explanation. The young clerk explained that they were very busy. She then told me that it would be another hour before my room would be cleaned.

The long distance charges are a complete rip off. I don't mind paying a higher surcharge to call from my room, but their prices are just completely out there. 25 minute call to North America was about 45 euros.

I would saty away, the Victoria, Krsanapolsky, Swiss, Renaissance, Marriot, are all much cleaner better staffed and better values.

Great value and truly very comfortable!

The hotel is centrally based and convenient for all attractions. Trams stop every 2 minutes just outside the entrance. I booked the club room for myself and my 2 kids online at 109 euro/night for 2 nights. The room was clean, spacious with very comfortable beds. Although on the roadside the noise from the trams was well shut out by the double glazing. We were pleasantly suprised that having a club room meant we could use the roof top Club Lounge with balcony and views, free internet access, comfortable lounge chairs, free local phone calls, large tv, free drinks (including wine) and nice snacks. In the morning it served as the breakfast room which was also included in our 109 euro night rate. The kids were pleasantly surprised that the pay movies were also free with the club rate. We all really felt relaxed in this hotel and my children voted it their favourite by miles! We travel alot and the kids have a strong opinion about what they like!

Club Rooms do the job

Spent 3 days here right before Christmas. Got a club room for 109 Euro's per night. Plenty of room with a balcony to boot. Would have been great except for the fact it was cold and rainy the last day so I wasn't able to enjoy sitting outside. Nice to have the use of the Club Lounge too, coffee and cokes always available. Would stay again if I could get a good price. Location is central to good shopping but a fair walk from the Museum area.

Wouldn't go Back

We stayed at the Crowne Plaza at the end of October. We booked the room on the Crowne Plaza website. The location of the hotel is good and it was easy to find from Central Station. Check-in was fine to and the staff were very friendly and helpful. However the room was very standard and not worth the money that we paid. Very basic and they could be doing with getting the bathroom redecorated as the tiles looked very old and dirty. I i was to go back to Amsterdam i would certainly pick another hotel as i think this one was definitely not worth the money.

It'll do

Stayed at Crowne Plaza for 3 nights mid-October. Chose the hotel as it was one of the few in the middle of town that could offer us a room to sleep family of 4 comfortably. Room was fine in that respect. Not overly huge but we've stayed in smaller. Room was clean and everything worked. Hotel is basically modern anonymous box, but we weren't asking for much more. Pool was very small but it did for a dip for our children. Position was fine near Central Station - trams outside front door. But we have stayed near the flower market previously and that was much more central. Though honestly, nothing is very far away in Amsterdam! A couple of problems on check-in and check out, not helped by surly receptionists. On check-in we were informed they had no Non-smoking rooms available, despite the fact that we had booked and pre-paid for one. Much shrugging of shoulders until we advised them that we had two asthma sufferers in our family and it looked like we were going to kick up a fuss - then lo and behold (!) a non-smoking room materialised!! On check-out we were charged for a couple of things from the mini-bar which we hadn't used (does anyone?!!) - there was a bit of grumbling but finally the changes were made to our bill. Final verdict? It served our purposes - a clean, no fuss bed for the night in a reasonable location. If we were returning with the family again we probably would use it again as family rooms are hard to come by. But if we were travelling as a couple we'd probably go somewhere else - nearer the centre of things.

Overpriced and Poor Facilites

I stayed at the Crowne Plaza City Centre October 8-14. For the high rate I was charged I expected a deluxe room, but that did not happen.

Mold in the shower, air conditioning was out of order with the windows painted shut and the Men's Sauna in the Health Club was out of order. I complained about all the problems 3 days in a row. Each day I was told that the problem was scheduled to be fixed the following day. I was there 5 nights and nothing was fixed. When I commented on the problems when I checked out I was told that they would look into it. No apology given and no partial refund offered for the inconveniences.

If you want to go Dutch, go elsewhere

It really does all depend.If you want a reliable standard international hotel in the centre of amsterdam-and you can get a good rate -this will be fine for you. The bathroom might be a bit small and windows might not open but everything will work.And if you have the Priority Club gold card then your room will be as good as any for the price in Amsterdam.And the Club floor breakfast is excellent.

But you could be in Minnesota . If you want to go Dutch you will have to go elsewhere.

Great location, not so great rooms

The best thing about this hotel is its location. It is very close to the central station and also has a tram stop just outside. You can easily walk to Anne Frank's house and the canal boats. We had booked through crowne plaza's web site and had quite a few problems when we arrived. They had the wrong rate and also had put us in a king bed room when I had specifically booked a twin (we were 2 colleagues who had no wish to share a bed!). They resolved the room rate but the only option was to have a put-up bed in the room which was very a tight squeeze.The room was small and there was noise from the street below. The bathroom tile grouting was covered in mould and the bathroom was very small. The second night we had a twin room which was much better. However, they did compensate us with free access to the club lounge which is very nice with a roof terrace.This is not up to the usual standard of a crowne plaza but OK if you get a good rate.

Great Choice

I had a great stay here from 12/26/02 to 12/30/02 on an amazing rate. It landed me in a low floor with no view, but who cares for 70 euro a night during the holidays.

The room was standard American style large hotel fare with two beds, sitting area, safe, mini bar, clean bath, and windows that did not open. The common amenities were great with several bars/resturants. The Dorrius had amazing dutch cuisine and service. A pool, workout room, message therapy, and tanning bed rounded out the mix of amenities.

The hotel has fee based wireless broad band. I opted for it before realizing I did not have my CD drive to install the driver software. I was too disorganized to take it back down to the front desk until the last night. My only goal was to simplify check out the next day. When they asked about the speed I experienced, I told them I never got around to using it. They took it off my bill. That was a nice touch, since I was not really asking for or expecting anything. I was the one too lazy to turn it in when I realized it would not work for me.

The location is ideal for exploring the central NW of the old city. Damrak is one block over and the street out front is 4 lanes (a rarity in A'dam) which made it easy to get a cab. The walking streets came up behind the hotel.

I would definately recommend this place for people who like large, clean, and predictable hotels. It your are looking for a boutique experience, you should keep looking.

Dont let Crowne plaza ruin YOUR trip to Amsterdam!!

I stayed at the Crowne Plaza City Center from 12/18/02-12/28/02 at a great room rate. The hotel seemed to be nice enough. As usual, upon check-in the receptionist asked for a credit card for a "guarantee". I assumed it would be a pre-authorization that would be either removed upon check out, or simply applied to the bill,as is the case for most

hotels. I did not have to sign any receipt upon check in. In the evening of 12/27/02, I received a "message waiting" signal on the telephone. After waking from a nap, I went to

the receptionist to retrieve my message. (about 1 AM on 12/28/02) The man informed me that he was running the nightly report, and the only thing he could tell me at that time was that there was a problem with my credit card. It was a Visa check card, so I knew exactly how much money I did have available. I told the receptionist that I suspected that a pre-authorization was made on the account that is not being considered as part of the payment. He assured me that he fully understood what I was saying, although he could not verify it in the system. He told me not to worry, it happens all of the time, and can be

easily taken care of upon check-out later that same morning. I agreed. My flight home was scheduled at 13:30. I went down to check-out at about 11:00. The receptionist (a different man) told me that he had trouble with my credit card. He would not listen to me at all. I didn't have any other method of payment. To make a long story short, the hotel took a total of more than 500 Euro past the bill amount. Finally, at about 12:30, I was

allowed to leave and the manager on duty assured me that she would "sort it out with

Visa". I missed the return flight home, and as a result, was forced to use my cash that was

to pay for my parking at the airport, to reserve another night in Amsterdam. The ordeal

cost me a lot of money, not to mention the humiliation!!