Travel Question

TomNativeNewYorker · Post by **TomNativeNewYorker** » Mon Dec 08, 2008 5:46 pm

I am looking to use some frequent flier miles to book a week or so long trip to Amsterdam for New Years Eve time frame.

Since the airfare is pretty much close to a freebie, I am looking at different options for lodging for this trip.

Hotels in Amsterdam are pretty high year round, but even higher the period I plan on traveling. I want to do this trip but the hotel prices are going to price me out of the ballpark.

I considered(only briefly) hostels as an option, but that isnt my thing even though the prices are more manageable.

Somehow, I ended up at a website where you can hook up and find people that rent out parts of their houses/condos/apartments to travelers. I found one place that I can get use of a bedroom and common areas of a townhouse in a good location of the city.

Has anyone ever heard of or used http://www.airbedandbreakfast.com/ ?

There isnt much about it on the web since the site has only been around since 2007. There are a few news articles pointing out that people are utilizing the site to rent and rent out places in DC for the inauguration.

Any opinions or comments?

cnpeters · Post by **cnpeters** » Tue Dec 09, 2008 8:33 am

Are you going to have a car? I stayed just outside of Amsterdam one year in the town of Aalsmeer ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aalsmeer ), famous for the flower markets and giant flower shipping warehouse at a B&B cheaply, compared to the higher prices and noise in Amsterdam. As an annual Euro traveler, my favorite sites to find deals are:
www.venere.com
www.tripadvisor.com
I use mainly the first one, and scored less than a $100 a night in the heart of Venice and Rome a couple weeks ago - both were awesome places with big breakfasts (the Venice place would be considered a luxury room in the US) . Both websites have extensive travelers' reviews including uploaded pics in some cases - whether in this country or abroad, I have never had a miss with the locations that were high up on the ratings list. Good luck.

Womack2005 · Post by **Womack2005** » Tue Dec 09, 2008 2:06 pm

I lived in Amsterdam for four months in 99 when I did some work for KLM. I stayed at hotels the whole time and I saved a lot of money by calling the hotels and asking for discounts. The hotels would sometimes reduce the rate by as much as 50%. My favorite hotel was the Renaissance. It is the bomb and they always gave me a discount.

Another point: you don't need a car if you are staying in the city. You can take the trains anywhere you want to go.

TomNativeNewYorker · Post by **TomNativeNewYorker** » Tue Dec 09, 2008 4:51 pm

This is my second trip to Amsterdam, and pretty familiar with the city. I plan on staying in the central section of the city and not planning on a rental car. I will be sampling the many different beers there, so skipping a rental is a wise decision. I can get an unlimited pass for the tram/bus system for about 20â‚¬. Since this trip is on a free airfare, trying to stay a little bit on the low budget side.

When first looking, it appeared I was going to hit Amsterdam on the 26th and the hotels between Christmas and New Years are pretty much higher than the usual high prices. Looks like i get in on the 31st instead so my options for better pricing on hotels just improved. Still looking, and always keeping alternate options in mind.

Womack2005 · Post by **Womack2005** » Tue Dec 09, 2008 5:21 pm

Thats another factor I forgot. When I was there the US Dollar was worth about twice that of the Dutch Guilder. Now that they have switched to the Euro..........

Good luck with your trip. I would be interested in hearing how it all turns out.