W Amsterdam - hotel review

Everything about progressively spirited Amsterdam and The W hotel goes hand in hand, so it’s surprising to think that the Marriott’s hip, upscale sister brand only recently opened its doors on Spuistraat.

One year on, the hotel has doubled in size, splitting its 380 rooms across a former 1920s bank and a telephone exchange building across the road. Now design-conscious interiors, smart dining options and a destination rooftop bar are positioning W Amsterdam as the place to stay in the city.

Where is it? Right on the doorstep of central Amsterdam, between the Singel Canal and the Royal Palace. Centraal station is a 15-minute walk away, while Dam Square is practically your next door neighbour. The nightlife and bars of the iconic canal district are within spitting distance while cultural attractions like Anne Frank House and the Van Gogh Museum are easy to reach on foot.

Style: The industrial interiors come courtesy of design powerhouse Office WINHOV and Baranowitz Kronenberg Architects, who’ve decked the entire place out with an air of typical W exclusivity. Inside you'll find a pleasingly lighter colour palette than its sister sites - Scandinavian shades of grey, concrete floors and colourful artwork bring a touch of New York cool to the Dutch capital.

Homage has also been paid to the building’s storied past. In the Telephone Exchange building, a historic property constructed in the Amsterdam School style of architecture, a brass lift takes you to an open plan rooftop lobby, lounge, rooftop bar and restaurant. The space is clad with 5km of copper piping, which nods towards the telephone wires and electricity lines which exchanged information on a daily basis when the building was home to the Royal Dutch Post Building. The Bank building has its own unique feel to it - retaining an air of glamorous 1920s Manhattan. If Jay Gatsby and Daisy Buchanan were going to sneak away for a weekend, they’d certainly head here.

The W collaborated with local designers to refresh the historic building with contemporary features inspired by its history - such as vault minibars, grand marble steps and indoor street lamps. Its retro design, however, stays on the right side of themed - a mix of heritage and contemporary style with an air of the Golden Age.

Facilities: Between its two buildings, W Amsterdam has catered for every whim and fancy - whether it's partying, relaxing or recovering from the night before. There are buzzing bars, cosy chill spots and Instagrammable details around every corner. The Exchange building is home to trendy chophouse Mr Porter and the adjoining W rooftop bar with panoramic views out to the historic Royal Palace. Out of the balcony there’s also a spectacular outdoor infinity pool, perfect for whiling away the hours with a cocktail on a hot and sunny afternoon or celeb spotting when the sun sets and the resident DJs take over. Upstairs there are 169 stylish guestrooms, including 10 suites and one Extreme Wow Suite - the W brand’s plush interpretation of the Presidential Suite.

Across the road, the vaults of the Bank building contain a hip and holistic Away Spa - where you can revitalise yourself with all manner of massages and anti-ageing treatments. Modern and contemporary, this urban sanctuary is also home to a gym, indoor heated swimming pool, sauna and hydrotherapy plunge pools. There's also the The Duchess - a sumptuously decorated dining space inspired by the splendour and eminence of the Belle Époque era. W Amsterdam has also launched X Bank on the site, its uber trendy in-house shop that stocks up-and-coming Dutch designers and artists - none that you will have heard of but plenty that you will want to spend your entire paycheck on.

Extra-curricular:

If you’ve already ticked off the tourist destinations, W Amsterdam has a team of ‘insiders’ on hand to help you to put together an off-the-beaten-track itinerary that can involve everything from the latest cool bar opening, underground gallery or must-visit restaurant. The W's rooftop bar has become a destination in its own right, so make sure you spend an evening mingling with the well-heeled crowd while sipping on cocktails.

Travelling on two wheels is a way of life in Amsterdam, so if you can brave the traffic and stand the bike bells clinging every couple of seconds, hire your own bike and peddle around the city’s pretty canals. For a different view of Amsterdam’s village-like charm, kick off your day on one of the many brunch boats that alongside the pavements, providing eggs, avocado and Prosecco as you pootle gently along.

The great thing about Amsterdam is that everything is in walking distance - spend an afternoon wandering around its boutique shopping streets, enjoying a cappuccino and taking in the higgledy piggledy seventeenth century buildings. You can't walk very far without bumping into a masterpiece. As well as independent galleries of practically every corner, there are also big-hitters to check off your bucket list. The Van Gogh Museum is a must, and sits just a few blocks away from the Rijksmuseum where you can see original Vermeers and Rembrandts.

Food and drink: No stay at W Amsterdam is complete without making a booking at The Duchess. A regal restaurant with James Bond-worthy interiors and the most spectacular atrium roof. The food is complex and delicious, with a Mediterranean dinner menu inspired by the light and refined flavours from Southern France and Italy. We tucked into a behemoth 15-course offering, the highlight of which was the ‘chocolate bomb’ finale - a chocolate egg that’s smashed open pinata-style by the waiters to reveal all manner of sinful treats inside.

Slightly less formal dining can be found across the road at Mr Porter - a modern steakhouse-come-chic-lounge. Head here for carpaccio and every type of beef cut your belly might be rumbling for. Turn up at breakfast for eggs any style, spanish omelettes and smashed avocado on toast.

Which room? While the standard rooms aren’t huge, they’re certainly spacious enough and filled with all the mod-cons you might expect from an inner city bolthole for well-heeled media types. We stayed in ‘Wonderful Bank’ room in the Bank building, that came with its own open plan living space and a huge king-sized bed that looks out onto a floor to ceiling view of the Singel canal. Adult in style and ambience, the rooms are unapologetically hip in their details and pleasingly modern design - arty coffee table books, complimentary records and boozy bar trolleys sit alongside an open plan bathroom and a contemporary furnishings. Each room comes with a Nespresso machine, iPhone dock and flat screen TV, making sure all the basic needs are ticked off.

There are nods towards the building’s history in the design - the shower and closet are hidden in vault-like doors that run along the walls of the room which can feel slightly claustrophobic at first, but you soon get used to it after a few trial pulls at the door mid-shower. If you’re likely to miss the bath, check into one of the 'Wow' suites - where the tub is likely to be twice the size of the one you have at home. Most notably, the service at W Amsterdam is impeccable - the brand's trademark 'Whatever/Whenever' service means you can get a cocktail or midnight feast delivered to your door at any time of night.

Best for: Those interested in fashion, design, art clubbing… or a spot of VIP celebrity spotting for a weekend.

When to go? Northern Europe is known to be wet, grey and a bit chilly eight months out of the year, so to make the most of the rooftop pool, make a trip at the height of summer.

Price: Rooms from £270 per night in the Exchange building (Wonderful Exchange room) and £295 per night in Bank building (Wonderful Bank room).

Details: W Amsterdam, Spuistraat 175, Amsterdam, 1012 VN, Netherland. wamsterdam.com

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