Pulitzer Amsterdam

My friend Sara calls the Pulitzer the most Amsterdam hotel in Amsterdam. Having been there multiple times — for drinks, for dinner, and once for a friend's birthday — I think she is right.

The Pulitzer is spread across 25 connected canal houses on the Prinsengracht and Keizersgracht. Twenty-five. You walk through the lobby and there are these little passages connecting different buildings, each with its own character. It feels less like a hotel and more like a secret neighborhood within a neighborhood.

The inner garden is something special. Hidden between the canal houses, it is this quiet green space that feels completely removed from the city. My friend had her birthday drinks there on a warm evening and it was genuinely magical. The kind of place that makes you understand why people romanticize Amsterdam.

The rooms vary because you are literally staying in canal houses from different centuries. Some have exposed beams, some have modern minimalist design, some have that perfect blend of old and new. My friend Sara stayed in one overlooking the Prinsengracht and sent me photos that looked like a postcard. Every room tells a story about the building it is in.

This is firmly in the splurge category. Rates typically start around 300 euros per night and go up from there. It is an investment, but the kind where you are paying for something genuinely unique, not just thread count and a minibar. My friend's parents stayed here for their 30th anniversary and called it the best hotel experience of their lives.

The bar, Pulitzer's Bar, is excellent and worth visiting even if you are not staying at the hotel. My coworker Thomas and I have gone for after-work drinks a few times and the cocktails are consistently great. The Jansz restaurant is also solid — modern Dutch cuisine in a beautiful setting.

Location: you are in the absolute heart of the Jordaan. Step out the door and you are on the Prinsengracht, surrounded by galleries, cafes, and shops. The Anne Frank House is a five-minute walk. The Negen Straatjes are right there.

During the summer, they run the Pulitzer's Garden concerts and occasionally have a boat on the canal that you can book for private cruises. My friend Sara went to a garden concert last August and described it as "unfairly romantic."

If you are celebrating something, or if you just want to experience Amsterdam at its most beautiful and historic, this is the hotel. It is expensive, yes, but it is the kind of expensive where you feel like every euro went toward something real. Check rates on Expedia — they occasionally have deals, especially midweek.