A stone’s throw from Amsterdam’s central Museumplein is this grand hotel. Occupying the site of a former music school (hence its name), the Conservatorium is part of The Set group of high-end lodgings.
Rooms, all 129 of which are decorated in simple, elegant style that highlights the original late 19th century Dutch features, range from luxe to mindblowing. Into the latter category fall the Grand Duplex Suites, some of which boast a vast window overlooking the vast atrium – excellent for people-watching. These rooms are split into two separate spaces, with your sleeping area located upstairs, on a mezzanine.
Attention to detail in all rooms is second to none, with posh Floris toiletries in the marble bathrooms, and vast wardrobes. Little touches like a turn-down service in the evenings, where you’ll come back to your room to find slippers by your bed and a scented linen spray on your bedside table, make a stay all that more special. The true rock-star suites are a sight to behold – one has its own private roof terrace, another a vast marble bath which, legend has it, a previous guest once asked to be filled with camel milk.
For those with yet more cash to splash, there’s no dearth of spending options in the hotel, which is home to the excellent – and very popular – Tunes Bar and Taiko restaurant, and has its own shopping arcade where you can find luxury brands like Diptyque and Piaget. Should you be so inclined, you can even go browsing for a Bentley at the world’s first car showroom without any cars in it – guests can design their dream machine on a giant screen.
The hotel’s 1000-square-metre Akasha spa, the largest in the city, offers all manner of pampering treatments (try the Combined massage, €115, for a guaranteed blissful experience) – as well as a huge pool with jacuzzi, hammam and sauna, hi-tech gym and yoga studio. Other services offered by the hotel include bike rental, boat tours and more – the concierge can arrange pretty much anything money can buy. All in all, the Conservatorium is hard to fault – a true haven of luxury in the heart of Amsterdam.