Hotel 717

Excellent service and great location.

Do not stay at this hotel if you don't want to ruin your vacation. My husband and I went on vacation to Amsterdam, and after spending a few days in a very good hotel, Krasnapolsky, right on Dam Square, we decided to move to the boutique hotel 717, after reading positive reviews on Booking, although I still don't understand who could write positive reviews about this hotel, which absolutely does not meet the level of 5 stars. We booked the hotel for two nights, non-refundable, and when we arrived at the hotel, we were checked into a room right by the front door, with a small reception table in the narrow hallway outside our door. We were just shocked by what we saw. We entered the room, and the first thing I did was open the closet, where we found electrical panels. The room was very noisy, you could hear everything happening on the street and in the hallway because this hotel has absolutely no soundproofing, and the windows are very old and thin, with only one pane. Plus, right outside your window is the hotel entrance and front door, which guests slam every five minutes. The room itself was very dusty, dirty, dark, with a low-ceilinged bathroom that smelled like sewage. A couple of bottles of cheap cosmetics is what you'll find in your room for 500 euros a night. There's no reception, no lounge, nowhere to sit, and steep stairs on which you'll have to drag your suitcases to the room. When we said it was impossible to live and relax in this room, we were offered earplugs. We asked to change rooms, but the manager said it was impossible, as the hotel was fully booked for both nights. So, we decided to return to the Krasnapolsky hotel and arranged with the manager that they would refund us for the second night. The next morning, we checked Booking and saw that two rooms were available, meaning they could have moved us the next day but didn't want to. That evening, both rooms were sold, meaning our room was sold twice. When we called them the next day and asked for a refund as promised, they refused and said they had every right to sell our room twice and would not refund us because we were rude to them, which wasn't true. We contacted Booking and found out that the hotel manager had pulled a scam and set up the situation as if we were no-shows, canceled the booking, and now we can't leave a review on Booking. Honestly, we haven't encountered such lousy treatment from a hotel in a long time, and it seems to us that this hotel uses its high rating on Booking to scam clients and sell rooms twice.

We checked into the hotel, but upon entering the room, we found that it did not meet the level of the hotel we paid for and that was advertised on the Booking website. The room was the last one available, and its door was just a meter away from the hotel entrance, with doors slamming every five minutes. Additionally, the windows faced directly onto the street, just a meter from the road, so besides the slamming doors, the street noise made it impossible to stay there - it was like living on the street. The windows facing the street have no soundproofing, which the hotel confirmed. They offered us free earplugs, which felt like a cruel joke. When we opened the closet, we found a large electrical panel covering the entire wall (1.5x2 meters). I said it was dangerous to have that in the room due to electromagnetic radiation, but the manager, Victor, said it was safe and just our personal opinion. He claimed the room was great and that he couldn't do anything about it, blaming Booking. He said he would be happy to refund our money but couldn't. Later, he mentioned they would refund half if they rented the room to someone else for the second night. When they did rent the room out, Victor told me the next day that I was rude to him, so he wouldn't refund us. I was not rude to Victor; I was just not pleased with the situation and mentioned that it looked like fraud, and that it would come back to him if he deceived us. As it turned out, it did. I uploaded videos and photos so other guests can see for themselves and avoid having the same negative experience. Selling the same room twice was apparently normal practice for them. I was shocked by this level of service from a 5-star hotel. We moved to Krasnopolsky, also booked through Booking, and had a wonderful time. We just want justice because this feels like fraud. Victor's attitude made it seem like the whole situation was planned - renting out that room for 500 euros a night, then double-booking it to earn extra. We would like a refund, at least partially, because the hotel earned twice, and we paid twice. It's unfair.

Nice location and good interior but don’t expect service or hospitality. We’ve not been able to get any service from the staff, except for Georgio at breakfast. Like they go out of their way to be nice to your face but don’t follow through on any request.

I was fortunate to stay at Hotel 717 twice in May for business. The hotel is in a charming building overlooking the canals in a central area close to all the museums and restaurants. The staff were all amazing and friendly. After a long 10 hr flight from Los Angeles, I was grateful to the staff for helping me with an early check in so that I can freshen up for my meetings. I was able to connect with one of the Butler/Doorman Tri Nguyen who was very nice to talk with. He shared his knowledge of the city, the culture of the people and was very helpful. There is a small kitchen that serves a nice menu for breakfast and drinks in the evening. The rooms are clean, spacious and nicely decorated. I highly recommend and would stay again.

I have been to so many boutique hotels in my life, but this is definitely one of the best I have ever stayed in. A welcome that could not have been warmer, the beautifully decorated rooms, the tranquil garden where you can hear the birds singing while sipping on a glass of perfectly chilled rosé (that‘s me sipping, not the birds ;-) )… Located in probably one of the most charming areas in Amsterdam, with all the museums, shops and restaurants within walking distance. Having originally booked one of the smaller rooms, we were upgraded to a gorgeous family room - I cannot say thank you enough for this generosity. It was overwhelming. But what made our stay so outstanding were the staff. Whoever you encountered, there were so many smiles, so much warmth and heartfelt kindness, we were made to feel truly at home. Thank you everyone at Hotel 717, thank you Victor & Victor, and I can‘t wait to be back very very soon!