W Amsterdam

Every single staff person we met, from the front desk, to room service, to housekeeping went above and beyond to be cheerful and helpful -- responding to any request with amazing speed and then asked if they could do more. The room was extremely comfortable and clean and the unique layout was very well thought out and worked well for us. One of the biggest showers we've encountered in our travels in Europe.

I haven't stayed at a W hotel before and I understand they are supposed so be quite "hip" and stylish. Had I not taken than into account when writing this review, I'd likely be even more scathing of the hotel's general appearance and level of upkeep noticeable in my three night stay there. First off, on entry it looks and feel like you're entering a 3 star hotel with no offer from the front desk for anyone to carry ones luggage up to the room. Come to think of it you don't get much of an explanation of anything other than the slightly oddity that the hotel is built across two adjacent buildings requiring you to cross a road so as to get from one to the other and access facilities in the other building. Whilst my room was in the same building as the rooftop bar and Mr Porter - and is where breakfast would be served each morning, one had to cross the road to the other building to access the gym, swimming pool, etc. which I never did. The corridors and lift are very shabby with their best days behind them. Imagine something between a concrete storage facility and a bunker. I will add though that it is superbly placed in central Amsterdam and from a location perspective it doesn't get any better - close to pretty much everything without being directly in the center where street performers and pickpockets may make themselves a nuisance. I think the biggest disappointment though was my very weirdly configured room which felt like a studio apartment with what seemed like a kitchen sink directly behind the bed. There was always a concern that washing ones hands could result in your pillow getting wet. The lighting in the room requires a choice between blackout, dingy and dark. There was a separate shower cubicle which seemed too much in the middle of the room and a separate WC which felt like it was inside a radioactive cave on account of its orange aesthetic. The ceilings were quite high so credit where its due and I'm sure that gave the room the appearance that it was larger than it really was. It also seemed generally clean in contrast to some of the other more recent reviews I came across. In summary, a very good example of style over substance. If that's your thing go for it but I suspect there are much better options at this price point.

It’s a shame that this hotel is so poorly managed and does not represent the W brand in other cities. Issues Air conditioning in both my room and our friend’s room did not work. The temperature of the room would not go below 23 degrees. After complaining nothing was done Check in was terribly slow even though we were the only ones there. It seems like lack of training for front of desk staff. More importantly both my room and my friend’s room accidentally left some clothing in the room when we checked out. We immediately called the hotel on the same day as we had already arrived to the airport. We spoke to a male on front of desk who said he would check and call us back. We received no call back and was later advised when we called again we must do this on email. After emailing into the hotel. They told us either items in both rooms were not there even though I left my t shirt on the bed folded. I find this incredibly hard to believe and feel I’ve just simply been fobbed off. Anyway the hotel clearly lacks and senior management and I would not return to this hotel.