I've been going yearly to this hotel since 2004 and every stay has been enjoyable (save for the cons below). I can't comment on the costs of the hotel since all of my stays here have been through a company that I used to work for. This three star hotel features large but stark rooms with large bathroom. It's centrally located, near the subway (station is Weesperplein), and near the touristy areas of Amsterdam.
The continental breakfast (cereal, meats, yogurt, toast, etc) is of decent quality but make sure you don't eat everything in one sitting. The breakfast is the same every day and you will get tired of it very quickly if you don't try something new each day. The staff (Nancy and all the rest) are very friendly and I've spent hours over the years chatting with them in the "bar" next to the front desk. This is a very enjoyable hotel and will definitely use it each time I'm in Amsterdam. Now for the cons that made my stay interesting, to say the least:
- This hotel introduced me to the German toilet and, as an American, I am NOT amused:
http://asecular.com/~scott/misc/toilet.htm
Ok. So imagine me lifting up the seat and find a SHELF sitting there staring at me. So I roll with it, open up my fly, my pee hits the shelf and sprays EVERYWHERE! Gaaahhh!! Stupid, stupid shelf! So the next time I go it feels like I'm in the Olympics as I aim for a tiny, tiny bit of water on the front of the bowl. Now imagine the adventure when I go sit down and poo. So there I am sitting on the throne, I push, and within a few seconds I start to sneeze from the smell wafting up. I look between my legs and there's what looks like a tanned, drunken Jabba the Hutt smirking at me. Gaaahhh!!! Nooo!!! So I flush the nasty thing and you would NOT believe the skidmarks that followed. It was like an airplane crashed over land and spread itself out for miles. It took multiples flushes to get it close to clean. With this type of toilet I carefully learned how to "dump and run" and make sure that I have fiber throughout the day. Gaahh!! Stupidest toilet design and much, much worse than the effects of squatting too high on a squat toilet and suffering the aftereffects of an asteroid-impact-like explosion as "things" hit the water.
- When the housekeeper cleans the room they would sometimes leave the balcony doors open to air out the room. Of course, Amsterdam being surrounded by canals everywhere, mosquitoes would fly into your room and make themselves at home. I've spent nights awake as tiny little mosquitoes buzzed my ear and I would box my ears trying to swat at them. I've made myself deaf on a few occasions as I missed and hit my ear. Ugh!! Bring some DEET or citronella candles in case this happens.
- Make sure you pack light. There are no elevators and the stairs are small and steep. You have been warned.
Overall, all of my stays at The Bridge Hotel were enjoyable and I would highly recommend them. read more