"Why book?
A completely modernized historic hotel with stories to tell, this centrally located grand dame of Amsterdam is stylish, purposeful, and full of surprises—and now finally with five-star service to match.
Set the scene
With the front façade and two popular ground-floor restaurants on the facing Dam Square, directly across from the National Royal Palace, the lobby here is bustling with locals and tourists—a mostly older, well-traveled crowd but there are some families with kids and a few younger, cosmopolitan types who might not be in the city for the coffee shops. And while you may not see them, the hotel also plays host to dignitaries and presidents—President Macron of France was there the week before our stay.
The backstory
This hotel is actually comprised of 55 canal houses stitched together, going from Dam Square in the front to the Oudezijds Voorburgwal canal in the back, leading to some idiosyncrasies like a bridge over an alleyway and multiple elevators going to different wings. In 1856, Mr. Adolph Wilhelm Krasnapolsky, who had been a tailor (hence the hotel bar named Bar the Tailor) first opened a coffee house on the site that is now Grand Hotel Krasnapolsky. As the café grew in popularity, he added rooms for rent, later rebuilding it into a modern hotel. Through the years, more buildings were bought and added to the hotel, which came under the Anantara flag in September 2022 following a renovation, bringing it to five-star status.
The rooms
Post renovation, rooms are contemporary and clean, in neutral grays and beiges, with comfortable lounge chairs and spacious bathrooms. Decorative embellishments mostly come in the form of sleek, boldly modern chandeliers and large-scale photographs of the city—the real star is out of the large windows, if you nab a room with either Dam Square or canal views. Our favorite detail was a copy of the coffee table book The Devil Is Old: A Photographic Ode to the Senior Citizens of Amsterdam in every room. There are several room types that work for families of various sizes but a regular premier room is perfectly suitable for two.
Food and drink
There are four dining options, each unique and worth visiting. Mornings start with a grand breakfast buffet in the grand Wintergarden, a conservatory-style plant-filled room with a lofty glass ceiling dating to 1880, offering hot and cold items from aged gouda to salmon rillettes to pancakes. At 4:45 pm, if you find yourself in the lobby you’ll be treated to the End of Day ceremony, where two bar masters perform a ritual with flaming alcohol to make a delicious cocktail they then serve to guests. After, follow them to Bar the Tailor, which is filled with tailoring references, from the décor to the menu, which changes its craft cocktails seasonally. For a more casual dining experience, head to the ground floor Grand Café Krasnapolsky, with windows facing Dam Square and sleek minimalist design. There you’ll find a seasonally inflected European menu (definitely ask for a visit from the cheese trolley filled with all Dutch cheeses), plus an adjacent Champagne Room and a fabulous Cake Room, turning out high-end pastries and chocolate truffles and sculptures. The feather in the hotel’s cap is the grand one-Michelin star White Room, derived from ‘De Witte Zaal’, the name that was given to the restaurant when it first opened in 1885, making it the oldest restaurant in Amsterdam still in its original condition. While the white and gold room is traditional, the cooking under chef Jacob Jan Boerma is modern and fresh, with a focus on bright, clean flavors.
The spa
Although the spa is small, it is still worth a visit for its sauna and steam rooms and to indulge in a treatment that utilizes Asian techniques (due to the fact that the hotel is under the Asian-owned Anantara brand) in one of the three cozy treatment rooms. However, the locker room is a bit too cozy, with men and women sharing the locker space and only very small, separated one-person changing rooms.
The neighborhood/area
The hotel is really in the heart of the city and its main square, with easy access to the colorful De Wallen district, a short walk to the Museumplein, and right by one of the busiest canals. It’s a touristy area for sure, but it’s nice to be able to walk back there from almost anywhere that might be on your list of attractions.
The service
Service is definitely at the ready now that it’s an Anantara—from the friendly reception to the bustling concierge desk that can help with car and restaurant bookings to competent bellhops and smiling restaurant wait staff, everyone is there to help.
For families
There are some great room configurations for families here and kids are welcomed with mini robes, kid friendly snacks, and there are cribs for babies. One night we even returned to our room to find cookies and milk for the kids and tea service for the parents. The Wintergarden and Grand Café are great for children, and we even had Bar the Tailor gladly serve our seven-year-old a special mocktail. The GM also shared that they are writing their own children’s book about the hotel, with proceeds going to a local orphanage.Accessibility
Although the hotel is made up of several old buildings, there are ramps and elevators in place where needed.
Anything left to mention?
The hotel has several signature experiences, including a behind-the-scenes tour of a four-generation family atelier where diamonds are cut and polished; a visit to two city distilleries, one that has been making genever on site since 1679 and another more modern one that makes rum; and in spring there is a special Tulip Experience that takes guests in private transport to one of the famous tulip fields outside the city for a private picnic among the flowers, complete with caviar and Champagne." - Devorah Lev-Tov
