We stayed at the NH Schiller on Rembrantsplein for 5 nights and 2 nights at the Amsterdam Marriott near Leidseplein. Got each room for under £50 (UK pounds, not Euros) per night via priceline.co.uk.
Both were decent hotels in great locations with different pros & cons. Personally I preferred Rembrantsplein - really 'cosy' feel to the place, several coffee shops within seconds strolling distance, the wonderful Tuschinski cinema just round the corner, supermarkets & delis for buying snacks. But Leidseplein was wonderful place to stay too - really near the Van Gogh and Rijksmuseums and the ConcertGebouw and the American Cafe. God it's a great city.
I was with my 12 year old daughter and our main reasons for visiting were to spend time with Dutch relatives and soak up some culture. So it wasn't a typical stoner trip. But being one to enjoy the odd spliff I did do a bit of coffee shop research beforehand just in case I got the nerve to enter one!
Biting the bullet, after checking in and before meeting relatives for dinner on the first evening, I went for a short stroll on my own... the first coffeeshop I happened across was Sevilla. Not a place I'd read about but it didn't look too daunting so I walked in, asked to buy some weed and within seconds I was walking out with 2g of White Rhino in my pocket and a big smile on my face
The very pleasant woman at the counter had calmly shown me the menu, answered my nervous questions in a friendly way - basically it was an easy, stress-free transaction! I went back to Sevilla a couple of times, just to buy and go but I would have felt comfortable to chill out a bit there if I'd had the time.My other 'local' in the Rembrantsplein area was Stix - just down the road from Sevilla. Went here three or four times, bud-tenders were friendly, professional, weighed everything out in front of me, teased me by asking if I was 18 already. Caramello and bubblegum are the two purchases I remember making there - both very decent! Of all the shops I went to this was definitely my favourite - it just felt very well organised and above board, I imagine it's the type of place locals would use but tourists were treated with respect too.
Betty Too was another easy place to pop in, buy some bud and go
And on the one day I got to myself without kids / relatives I wandered around Leidsestraat a bit until I saw a shop which looked approachable and endedup spending a couple of hours in Tops, cheap internet cafe, some good bargains on the menu and some chilled out tunes. The week flew by and we'll definitely visit those relatives again and this time I'll take some of my festival companions along so we can explore the coffeeshop scene more
So good in fact I came straight back and booked another trip with friends. Roll on May (no pun intended