18 Best Hotels in Canal Rings, Amsterdam

Friday's book market on nearby Spui Square lends a literary ambience to these 15 connected, stylishly decorated 17th- and 18th-century houses, where charming guest rooms are decked out in rich fabrics and colors, with striking details (wood-beam ceilings, elegant chandeliers) and modern 20th-century paintings. Canalside rooms are spacious, with large floor-to-ceiling windows, and service is attentive and friendly. Public spaces are also beautifully decorated with Oriental rugs, chandeliers, clocks, paintings, and antiques. Restaurant Ambassade offers French cuisine in a setting filled with colorful Dutch paintings from the CoBrA movement, while the Library Bar serves up cocktails surrounded by thousands of books, all signed by authors who have stayed at the hotel.

Whimsical, modern interiors from famed Dutch designer Marcel Wanders combined with nods to history are found throughout this hip Hyatt offshoot, housed in a former library and extremely well located on the Prinsengracht canal, near many of the city's popular shopping areas, including the Nine Streets, Leidsestraat, and Kalverstraat. Wanders's imprint includes oversize, almost cartoonish red tulip chairs, lamps dripping with crystals, and Delft blue chandeliers in the lobby and bar areas. The over-the-top decor is toned down a bit in guest rooms, where you'll find comfy beds, large double-sided concrete vanities with sinks in the middle of the rooms, and sizable separate bathrooms; many rooms offer iconic canal views. Unique touches include 50 video screens placed throughout the hotel that show original video art 24/7 (you can also watch the full videos on the TV in your room), and complimentary bicycles for guests to use. Add to that a 24-hour fitness center, small spa area, and the well-crafted cocktails at Bluespoon Restaurant & Bar, and you may want to spend more time inside the hotel than out.

Lacquered trunks, mahogany screens, modernist hardwood tables, and luxurious upholstery all lend design flair to these lovely and relaxing canal-front quarters on the site of the historic 17th-century Municipal Theater. The best rooms command a view of a canal, while many overlook a serene central courtyard. The hotel's Michelin-starred restaurant, Vinkeles, offers a French menu in a voguish setting (dinner only). Chef Jurgen van der Zalm also cooks for the brasserie OCCO (lunch and dinner), with courtyard service in good weather; the High Wine, four small bites served with four wines (daily 3–4 pm) is highly recommended.

Set on a picturesque canal near The Nine Streets shopping area, this cozy, family-owned hotel is designed with loads of old-world charm. Flowery wallpaper, boldly upholstered furniture, antiques, and crystal chandeliers are put together harmoniously, and the comfy public areas of the six interconnected houses—a breakfast room, a lounge, and a library—invite guests to linger and relax throughout the day with free coffee, tea, candy, and often cookies or cake. All this traditional beauty comes with a modern touch: free Wi-Fi in all rooms.

So many hotels promise “a home away from home,” but this chic, renovated 19th-century canal house, which once belonged to a wealthy sugar trader, nails it. With its prime World Heritage Site location, focus on personal attention, and perfectly styled interior, it’s easy to understand why this hotel is so popular.

A labyrinth of narrow halls leads to surprisingly large and modern guest rooms, with wood-beam ceilings and stylish contemporary decor, that overlook the Prinsengracht and the Keizersgracht canals or nicely landscaped courtyards. The surprisingly coherent-yet-rambling assemblage was created from a clutch of 17th- and 18th-century houses—25 in all—and an appropriately historical soundtrack is provided every half hour, when the nearby Westerkerk chimes. Pulitzer's Bar is a cozy place to get a seriously good cocktail, and Jansz restaurant serves up contemporary cuisine in a stylish setting. The location is perfect for shopping in The Nine Streets, visiting nearby Anne Frank House or wandering through the lovely Jordaan area.

Encompassing five 17th-century canal houses on the Herengracht and Singel canals, fun and vibrant The Hoxton, Amsterdam delivers a coolly sophisticated vibe in a prime spot next to the Nine Streets shopping area. The masculine-looking rooms (think dark wood, copper details, and mid-century-modern furnishings) with ultracomfy beds come in four sizes—Shoebox, Cosy, Roomy, and Biggy—to fit a range of budgets; many feature wonderful canal views and traditional details like beamed ceilings that lend elegance to the contemporary feel. The large lobby/lounge area, outfitted with brown leather couches, cushy chairs, and communal tables, invites both working on a laptop or lingering over a cocktail from the inviting bar, and when hunger strikes, casual in-house restaurant Lotti's serves internationally inspired brasserie-style dishes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

A collection of 17th-century merchants' houses meets 21st-century style in this boutique charmer that mixes modern comforts like iPhone docking stations with opulent design elements that recall Dutch art and history. Located in Amsterdam's UNESCO World Heritage listed Canal Ring, the canalside hotel features restored original features like timber beams, fireplaces, and decorated ceilings accented by contemporary touches including leather headboards, locally sourced minibars, and the knickknack collections of recent owners. The 23 rooms are separated into six categories—Good, Better, Great, Exceptional, Outstanding, and Best—mainly based on size and view; top categories have double sinks, sitting areas, canal or garden vistas, and custom-made furniture. Though tall and narrow like traditional canal houses, these interconnected structures boast unique elements like a central, high-ceiling Great Room (now the main lounge) and triple-width garden outfitted with seating areas and two garden houses. Breakfast is included (though warm items are extra), and snacks and drinks are available throughout the day (there's no full service restaurant).

Behind a re-creation of a vintage Amsterdam exterior are seven floors of rooms with all the mod cons and hallways lined with brightly colored contemporary art. Small windows and a color scheme heavy on brown, black, and purple mean that many rooms feel dark. Still, even though the decor won’t be to everyone’s taste, at least they’ve tried to veer away from the usual safe corporate blandness. On the plus side, the beds are supercomfy, with great cushions and Egyptian cotton bed linens.

A touch of the 19th century still hovers about this family hotel, which is located on a quiet street in Centrum, but recent refurbishments mean that everything looks spick-and-span. Clean and contemporary guest rooms are split between singles and twins, decorated in a color scheme inspired by the large reproductions of famous artworks on the walls---most of which can be viewed in the nearby Museum District. There’s a lovely lounge area to relax in, with comfy chairs, molded ceilings, and chandeliers.

The well-designed public areas and guest rooms are a pleasure to experience, a hip showcase of contemporary furnishings that lend a spacious and welcoming atmosphere to this good-value boutique hotel on the edge of the Eastern Canal District. The staff are openly passionate about Amsterdam and keen to point guests to the latest nightspots and best new eateries. The popular De Pijp area and the world-famous Museum District are an easy walk away. When you're done exploring, settle into the massive leather couch in the lobby to enjoy a drink.

Individually decorated (though dated) rooms, a cobblestone street out front, and a busy adjoining square all lend a Parisian flair to this cheap and cheerful little getaway close to Rembrandtplein. There is no elevator, although the stairs are modern and easier to navigate than the steep staircases in many Amsterdam hotels. The hotel is located on a square with lots of late-night bars and restaurants; request a room toward the back if you're a light sleeper.

Lovely Art Nouveau style, packed with stained glass, paneling, and wrought iron, distinguishes the premises of this 1912 landmark smack on bustling Rembrandtplein; even the blandly modernized guest rooms are enlivened with colorful paintings by founder Fritz Schiller. Brasserie Schiller hums with espresso machines and a friendly vibe, and the atmospheric next-door Schiller Café is a popular meeting place, though no longer part of the hotel.

A baroque vibe prevails in these two 17th-century canalside buildings, with red, purple, and gold color schemes; lots of velvety fabrics and chandeliers; and lights that can be changed to different colors for different moods. The overall atmosphere is exceedingly romantic: some rooms include fringed four-poster beds, whirlpool baths for two, and private outdoor areas. The atmospheric bar is a great place to grab a cocktail or a light snack.

These uniquely styled guest rooms—meticulously decorated with marquetry antiques, Persian rugs, and handcrafted Art Deco furnishings—overlook one of Amsterdam's famous sights, a lineup of seven consecutive bridges across the Reguliersgracht. The proud owners of the 18th-century house scout the antiques stores and auction houses for furnishings, and all have thorough documentation. Top-floor, beam-ceilinged rooms are the smallest and are priced accordingly; by contrast first-floor Room No. 5 is practically palatial, with its own private terrace.

Modern functional furniture fills the larger-than-average guest rooms of this 17th-century canalside house; those in the front overlook the canal, while those in the rear are blessedly quiet. Beware that the traditional Dutch stairs are steep and narrow—a chairlift is available if you need one. Coffee and tea are available in the cheerful lounge/breakfast room throughout the day. There is no 24-hour reception, but you'll be provided with a key to the house so you can come and go as you please.

The understated elegance that defines this canalside hotel, created from six 17th-century houses, can be seen in such details as its fine-dining restaurant, the first Guerlain spa in the Benelux, and what’s purportedly the largest private garden in Amsterdam. Spacious rooms are sophisticated if a tad bland, although the beam-ceiling loft rooms offer a little more character; all rooms have either a canal or garden view, and most feature a separate shower and tub, some with a Jacuzzi. Reserve well in advance to dine in the top-notch Spectrum restaurant, or at least try an exquisite cocktail or rare Scottish whiskey in the subterranean Vault Bar. After a full day of wandering the canals, the luxe spa's indoor pool, steam room, and sauna are the perfect treats.