Sofitel Legend The Grand Amsterdam

Jack J5 months ago

What an absolute gem this place is. Situated in a beautiful building with a long and storied history (top tip: take the historical tour the staff offer, it's genuinely fascinating) the conversion into a hotel has been done in such a way that preserves that heritage while also feeling elegant and contemporary. ||Our bedroom, on the fourth floor, was quiet and overlooked the canal. Though the room itself was modestly sized, the super king-size bed was extremely comfortable. I've rarely slept so well in a hotel, in fact. ||In fact, my only real criticism - more of a plea, perhaps, from those of us with not so great eyesight - is that the lighting in the room was a little too subtle to be practical. It was midwinter when we visited, so rarely very bright outside, and even with all the lights on in the room we both struggled a little to see properly for things like putting on makeup in the morning. Spare a thought for your guests of a more myopic disposition!||We ate at Oriole, the more casual of the two restaurants, which was great. Sadly we didn't get a chance to eat at Bridges, the Michelin-endorsed fine dining restaurant, though it looks very good.||However, having praised this place for its style and comfort, I must say that the highest recommendation must be reserved for the staff. What a charming and professional team you have - and so impressively multi-lingual too! I wish I'd memorised some names, so my apologies to the concierge with the excellent beard, the charming man who took us on the historical tour, the young woman from Argentina who checked us in and made us laugh by telling us we had a lovely view of the sunken boats, and the two ladies who oversee the library bar and serves a mean afternoon tea. All of you will have to go by your descriptions and not your names, more's the pity, but the management should know that you all went that extra distance to make our stay so enjoyable. Dank jullie wel!||