So this is a bit long over due but we still wanted to share with you some insight and images into a recent stay that we had at the Lloyd Hotel in Amsterdam.

About a year and a half ago a good friend and Motel designer Claire moved with her boyfriend to Brussels. I'd been meaning to visit for ages but as with everything time seemed to disappear but we managed to sort out a date and i made a little surprise weekend for me and Carlos starting in Brussels with Claire and Ian and then travelling up to Amsterdam for two days to go and see a band we love The Black Keys. Sadly as the date got closer the gig got cancelled to an injured drummer but this wouldn't put a dampener on anything we were still excited for a fun weekend away! 

After a great few days in Brussels we made our way by bus to Amsterdam, i managed to get a bus for €7.00 per person throughEuro Lines - I had wanted to get the train but it was nearly the same time and then price was more than the return flights!! The journey ended up being quick and easy and completely worth the saving of the money!

We'd booked in for a night at the Lloyd Hotel in Amsterdam and having known someone who has stayed there and looking at all the online pictures we were really excited to arrive and see our 5 star room!

When we arrived in Amsterdam we got a short tram 5 minutes (i think 4 stops) away and arrived a short distance from the entrance of the Hotel.

The building was established in 1918 in the eclectic style, designed by architect Evert Breman, commissioned by the Royal Holland Lloyd (KHL). The KHL did use the hotel as advertising, to recruit clients for passengers heading to South America. When it was completed on June 1, 1921, it had cost eight times more than originally estimated, contributing to the subsequent bankruptcy of the KHL.

From 1921 to 1936 the building was used as temporary accommodation for immigrants, mostly poor Eastern European Jews. In 1936, the KHL went bankrupt and the building was purchased by the City of Amsterdam. Subsequently, from 1938 it was used as a shelter for Jewish refugees from Germany and during World War II, the building was used as prison. After the war it continued to function as an adult prison, and later became a juvenile detention center in 1963. The name "Lloyd Hotel" is named after this centre 'T Nieuwe Lloyd'.

In 1996, a competition was held to decide what the building would e best used for. The designer Suzanne Oxenaar and historian Otto Nan presented a design for a hotel, a "cultural embassy" of culture in Amsterdam. In order to enable the building to be used once again for its original purpose as a hotel, the architectural agency MVRDV was commissioned to realise the design. One to five star rooms are connected to the main hall at the centre of the building, where there is an exciting interplay between communal and private spaces. The interior design is a collaborative effort, of amongst others, Claudy Jongstra, Atelier van Lieshout and Richard Hutten.

We were fortunate enough to be giveen a guided tour around a selection of the 1 to 5 star rooms with our lovely guide Suki and both Carlos and I were amazed at all the rooms quality and design regards of the star rating they were given.

Can you believe that these images below were taken from some of the one star category?! It shows you don't compramise of size or style when you book one at this hotel. They were simply cheaper as you had to share a communal bathroom. A small price to pay we think!

I really loved all the different levels and mix of open spaces where we were told about all sort of cool events that happen in these spaces. Most of all though i liked the fact that from a section in the restaurant and ground floor you could look all the way up to this open bright glass ceiling, we were told that due to the darker elements of the buildings history they wanted to create this open shaft of light to make the building feel as though it had been set free of its darker times and that it was now filled with light.

You could read all about the history and see a timeline of photos through one of the central stair ways in the hotel.

After a grand tour we finally arrived at our bedroom..

Our room was amazing! We were so impressed with the size and layout and my bedroom in London is in a roof so it made it feel like home and all cosy, with amazing views over the city.

The shower and bed were made as a free standing feature and what looked like a fold out box placed in the room, the design was incredible and such a contrast between the wooden beams and the more modern bathroom feature.

You might recognise these swing shots from our Instagram! What a cool additional feature to the room?! We had endless fun on them!!

After our lovely guided tour we went for a walk around the city, not to do much but soak up the environment and eat lots of nice food! The sun decided to come out for the first time over the weekend too so although it was still a little windy, it was nice to feel the rays!

When we got back late in the evening we returned to this cute bowl of fruit and a note from the hotel staff - they were such great hosts! They'd also put 'Mr and Mrs Costa' which got me a little giddy inside!

We were officially knackered and couldn't wait to sample our massive bed! Which might i add was one of the most comfortable best we have ever slept in!

The wind started to pick up and it also started to rain... this was bliss to my ears as theres nothing more i enjoy than being cosy in my bed with the noise of the wind and the rain on the roof, however, if like my house mate this is something you dislike, i'd suggest maybe (weather pending) this room wouldn't be for you! I slept like a log and unfortunately i'd had a few wines so when this happens i generally sleep happy and have a little snore (sadly for Carlos).

The breakfast was a lovely buffet with enough choices for us (we're both veggies!) to keep our bellies satisfied. I actually went for two rounds ending up on a bowl of cereals which I've not had for years!!

Overall we really loved our stay at the hotel and we'd be back in a flash! They have another sister hotel in Amsterdam called The Hotel Exchange so maybe next time we'll be trying out this one!!

We really want to get out there and sample as many hotels as we can world wide so please let me know of any recommendations you might have!