The Tivoli Doelen Amsterdam Hotel is a XVI century property in the classicist style overlooking the Amstel Canal and is considered to be the oldest hotel in the Dutch capital. The original home to Rembrandt Van Rijn’s famous painting The Night Watch (which was completed in 1642) it hung on a wall inside one of the bedroom suites until it moved to the city’s famed Rijksmuseum.
Centrally located in Amsterdam’s historic city centre, walking distance from the main touristic attractions, the heritage property has 81 guest rooms including seven suites, most of them overlooking the canal, and a new gastronomic concept in its elegant Omber restaurant and bar, inspired by the art works of Rembrandt, who lived very close to the hotel.
Inspired by the Dutch Golden Age and the unique atmosphere of Amsterdam, Tivoli Doelen’s interiors blend an old-world elegance with contemporary service and special Tivoli touches. The guest rooms and suites offer views over the canals or the city, with the interiors featuring pastel tones with red splashes of colour for a relaxing but vibrant atmosphere, combined with touches of wood.
New beds and bed linen provide the best night’s sleep and the marble bathrooms feature special amenities from the French luxury brand Lalique.
For an ultimate Dutch experience, guests can book the 47-square-metre Rembrandt Suite where they can view a perfect replica of The Night Watch, in the room and on the exact wall where the masterpiece originally hung for 70 years.
Another interesting room is the Empress Suite that was once the boudoir of Empress Elisabeth of Austria, most well-known as Sisi. With a unique C-shape design to maximise the canals views, the suite has a king-sized bed with Dutch shields on the ceiling, which are a symbol of protection.
On the ground floor and overlooking the canal, Omber restaurant and bar now offers a Mediterranean-Dutch fusion menu. Inspired by the craftsmanship of paint making and the limited colours Rembrandt used, Omber is a signature colour in Rembrandt’s art. Every dish on the menu contains an element inspired by his colour pallet.
For the Omber Bar, several signature cocktails have been created with Jenever, the typical Dutch gin, which was also Rembrandt’s favourite drink. Most of the cocktails are made with a local Jenever producer, Wynand Fockink, which operates a similar distillery process to that used in the Dutch Golden Age.
The star cocktail Night Watch is based on an old recipe found in the hotel archives dating back to the 17 th century and is made with old Jenever, coffee liqueur, syrup and cherry bitters. Daily at 4:30pm, Omber Bar celebrates the aperitivo moment offering guests some local sips to savour.
Tivoli Doelen Amsterdam helps guests make the most of its canal side location with a range of personalised tours starting and ending at the hotel dock, exploring the vast IJsselmeer, the city canals or Oudekerk aan de Amstel.
With an immersive ‘In the Footsteps of Rembrandt’ tour, guests can visit his home and studio, the gothic Zuiderkerk, his family church featured in his art, and the artists’ guild of De Waag, one of the oldest buildings in the city, which he also painted. Along the way, the guide will share more details about Rembrandt’s life, as well as his connection with the Doelen property, that commissioned his most famous painting, The Night Watch, in 1642.
