2 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.

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.