Soho House Amsterdam
The monumental 1930s Bungehuis, which most recently served as university faculty offices, is now home to the Amsterdam outpost of this hip hybrid hotel/members’ club. The impressive renovation, completed in 2018, retained much of the original building’s Art Deco flavor, with wood-lined corridors, glazed wall tiles, and stained glass and brass accents—all complemented by new and vintage mid-century-style furnishings. The design scheme carries over into the rooms, which come in all shapes and sizes due to the building’s landmark status; they feature parquet floors, soaring ceilings, and clever touches like gable-shaped headboards and retro mini-bars. Many of the canal-fronting rooms sport tall bay windows with lovely views of turreted canal houses across the Singel, but the single-pane glass can make for a noisy stay (it’s the reason we’ve docked this hotel one star). Most appealing are the club amenities—all open to hotel guests—that surpass those of the city’s most luxurious hotels. Best is the rooftop terrace, complete with heated outdoor pool and comfy loungers where you can soak up the sunset over neighboring Dam Square; a close runner-up is the private cinema, outfitted with 36 plush velvet seats and screening free first-run movies nightly. Mingle with members—mainly young, fashionable creative types—at the exclusive fifth-floor House kitchen and bar; the latter serves particularly good cocktails.
The monumental 1930s Bungehuis, which most recently served as university faculty offices, is now home to the Amsterdam outpost of this hip hybrid hotel/members’ club. The impressive renovation, completed in 2018, retained much of the original building’s Art Deco flavor, with wood-lined corridors, glazed wall tiles, and stained glass and brass accents—all complemented by new and vintage mid-century-style furnishings. The design scheme carries over into the rooms, which come in all shapes and sizes due to the building’s landmark status; they feature parquet floors, soaring ceilings, and clever touches like gable-shaped headboards and retro mini-bars. Many of the canal-fronting rooms sport tall bay windows with lovely views of turreted canal houses across the Singel, but the single-pane glass can make for a noisy stay (it’s the reason we’ve docked this hotel one star). Most appealing are the club amenities—all open to hotel guests—that surpass those of the city’s most luxurious hotels. Best is the rooftop terrace, complete with heated outdoor pool and comfy loungers where you can soak up the sunset over neighboring Dam Square; a close runner-up is the private cinema, outfitted with 36 plush velvet seats and screening free first-run movies nightly. Mingle with members—mainly young, fashionable creative types—at the exclusive fifth-floor House kitchen and bar; the latter serves particularly good cocktails.
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