I arrived from Schiphol airport on a late Saturday night, mind you I worked that morning at 6am as…read morewell. Yes work on a Saturday morning, so basically I was exhausted. I took the bus from the airport and was relieved to find out; Hey this bus dropped me off at a major train station (Station Bijlmer ArenA). Little did I know that station was my one-way train ticket to downtown.
Not far from the station is the Holiday Inn Express - Arena Towers. I had to walk about a quarter mile from the station to the Holiday Inn Express. Along the way, I was surprised to even notice the Amsterdam ArenA. Hence the reason for distinguishing "Arena Towers" in their name. Plus the hotel is made up of both a regular Holiday Inn, and an Express type.
I checked-in with Romy who was super welcoming! She verified my IHG membership, and made sure I was taken care of. And apparently the only room available for me was on the top level (the 17th). Sweet! Not only did she hook up a nice room, she helped me with planning my trip to Centraal Station. She explained the layout of their hotel, and the complimentary breakfast from 6:30am to 10:30am. I even got hooked up with a plug converter, only requiring a small deposit.
The room ran me $348.35 or €308.23 for one night. Yes, pricey but every hotel downtown was booked since it was a bank holiday Monday. The room in general was average looking; Clean in my opinion though. Loved the blue light in the bathroom, as well as the standup shower with detachable showerhead. In the open, next to the bed was a set of hangers, a monitor for cable, and a bed. WiFi worked without a hitch. The bed was slightly firm and the beddings were nice and white. The view of the land, excellent!
So overall, I enjoyed my short stay here and wouldn't mind staying again. The hotel was simply convenient being next to the station, the arena, and various food joints. The staff was on-point with everything, and I finally got some much needed rest. It's the reason we stay right, for sleep and rest? It's rare for me to give five stars to a corporate company, but service overshadowed the average stay. I'd never thought I'd say this, but "Thank you" Holiday Inn Express for the warm hospitality.