This hotel meets my definition of a five star hotel and obviously doesn't meet the standards of some other reviewers.

First of all, the Pulitzer Hotel has a great location. Its "front door" and its "rear door" are each on beautiful canals. The hotel is a collection of 25 old and well maintained 17th century , ~ 5 story townhouses that are intricately connected (a maze). Elevators are there but we had an upgraded, canal view "executive" room (top floor with cathedral ceiling) that needed 15 attic type stairs to access! The room was a good size with marble bath and tv, but to be picky, the two single beds were lousy.

Transportation (Trams 13 and 17) and a "Connection" bus are a half block away.
Tour ("Key Tour") buses are a brisk 10 minute walk away.

Nearby sights include the Anne Frank house and a canal boat stop for cruising and hop-on/off cruising options.

The fact that our 5 night stay was essentially free (on award points) certainly made a big difference - I wouldn't/can't pay 369 euros per night for a late March, 2008, 5-night vacation!!!

Drinks in their bar were 12 euros each - ouch! - with restaurant prices to match.

Fortunately, there's lots of neighborhood restaurants and cafes with excellent food offerings for breakfast, lunch and dinner - some however have odd business days/hours.

There is a large Catholic church and a large Protestant church in the area.

We stayed at this hotel in March 2008 and were extremely disappointed with the accommodation and service, particularly since the room rate was £200 per night.
Our room was on the top floor, and felt like an attic room with only a small window (overlooking the back of some houses) to let in any light. While the room was clean, its facilities were disappointing and tired. In particular, there were no tea / coffee making facilities, and no drawers for clothes, aside from a small chest inside the wardrobe. The king bed was extremely comfortable though, and had a thick feather duvet.
The worst experience of the hotel was at breakfast - at weekends the Pulitzer advertises "Amsterdam's longest breakfast" until 1pm - although there are barely any staff around and the buffet was absolutely decimated by 10.30am - there was no orange juice, scrambled eggs or croissants and despite us and other guests requesting these numerous times from the staff and being told that they were coming, we had to wait 50 minutes to get some croissants served to our table, and even then the buffet wasn't replenished. Add to this the unwiped table that we were sat at one day and the dirty glass the next, breakfast was an absolute shambles (and certainly not worth the €27 price tag).
The same cannot be said for the trendy Pulitzers bar - the service, drinks and food were impeccable (although at €14.50 for a cocktail, still a little steep), and the ambience was that of a modern bar with a brown cafe feel, with comfortable sofas and leather chairs. Service in the bar was exceptional.
All in all, I would recommend a drink at the bar, but for the standard room price tag, our room did not overlook the canal, was dingy and old-fashioned, and the service was certainly way below that of a five star hotel.

This hotel is actually quite a quirky one. It consists of a number of former houses all converted into one grand hotel. As a result the place is a bit of a labyrinth and easy to get lost.

The staff at the front desk, although rather slow to serve, were very friendly and extremely obliging - I was very impressed.

The room itself is a good size, quite well equipped (though not perfect) and the big plus is wi-fi access in the room. The hotel have really hit the mark with the way they've implemented it. Firstly it was very reliable and "just works" from the moment you connected to it. Secondly, unlike most hotels, it was reasonably priced at €5 for an hour or €19 for a full day. I've paid up to €15 for an hour of internet access in a business hotel before so this was great.

Breakfast is superb - a great spread and once again very friendly staff.

All things considered I think this is my new favourite hotel in Amsterdam. Well done to the staff. Whilst I don't plan to go back to Amsterdam anytime soon, if I did then I'd certainly consider staying here again.

What a shame, having stayed at the Pulitzer for 9 years, I have to admit that the standards and service has lost its pizzazz.

We stayed over the first weekend of March and I regret that this will be our last stay at this once 5 star hotel. We have had many a happy stay, but I have seen a gradual deterioration in the standards over the past 9 years. I understand that over a period of 9 years I can not expect the accommodation to not show wear and tear, however that would be acceptable if the efforts on general house keeping where maintained.

Our first room was a lovely room with a canal view, unfortunately the only opening window opened onto a blank wall, due to a storm we then changed room as water was coming through the window. During our first night we never received our turndown service and started the following day with damp towels.

Our second room was larger but did not look like it had been used for a little while, the surfaces were dusty, and the toilet had a mould stain from lack of cleaning. There was only 1 dressing gown which was old and torn.

Its such a shame that this once 5star hotel is now really only of a standard of a 3star. I hope that the Luxury Collection will be addressing this hotel as a matter of urgency, and polish their service to when we first visited. Beware this hotel is now overpriced dirty and not giving a 5star service. There are many 4 star hotels in central Amsterdam that would offer you better value for money and we will be trying new hotels on our next visit. 9 years and at least 3 visits per year will cost this hotel and I am sure others will be doing the same. Come on Pulitzer MAKE THE EFFORT!