Good points: Very central - about 15 mins walk to Anne Frank's house, 10 mins to Van Gogh museum, flower market practically next door, tram stop outside the hotel. Very clean and comfortable (apparently the hotel had been recently renovated), choice of pillows, loads of great free toiletries, good breakfast. Staff very efficient, obliging and friendly.

Bad points: Fairly noisy - right next door to a nightclub (bring earplugs if you cannot sleep unless it is deathly quiet). The small bottle of water in the room costs €3.50. The windows cannot be opened and mine looked out onto a concrete wall with big metal pipes (but I suppose my room was quieter than those at the front of the hotel). The shower panel in the bathroom didn't stop the water going all over the floor.

Tips: There is a shuttle bus which can pick you up from and drop you off at the airport (www.airporthotelshuttle.nl) - it's cheaper than a taxi. Szmulewicz restaurant around the corner at Bakkerstraat 12 is good (small and cosy). If you want to go to Anne Frank's house or the museums - get there early (before 10 am) otherwise the queue is very long.

My Fiance and I just got back from 3 nights in the Caransa. Everything was great, nothing was 'wow' like a Jacuzzi bath or balcony over the canal, but the rooms were very nice and spacious, lovely bathrooms, spotlessly clean, great location- and when you paid the price we did I would have been very happy with a lot less!
I booked the hotel with help from an online comparison site, we paid £185 for 3 nights including breakfast (and including Valentine's night) while without breakfast was £300! the company assured me this was right, and that this was a special rate the NH hotels sometimes put out (The Schiller and Doelen both had this same price).
Breakfast was great, so much choice- fruits, breads cheeses, meats, salad, the usual eggs and bacon, loads of cakes, yogurts, carton drinks and convenient things you can sneak into your bag for later in the day!
The toiletries and freebies were very generous, there was a pillow menu and a nice minibar. Ever staff member we met was very polite and friendly, and on arrival we were given a room with two beds pushed together as a double- we asked to see a double room and it was a lot smaller (just like the receptionist had advised us!) so we stuck with the twin.
We really couldn't have wanted anything else from a hotel which is so central in Amsterdam- the trams stop literally on the doorstep and although you can hear them at night it's not bad, and it means it's never a hassle to pop back and forth during the day. I couldn't believe how much some pubs and restaurants charge for food (€26 for a normal steak!) and booze (€5-6 a pint!) but there was a lovely restaurant round the back of the hotel called Szmulewicz which seemed popular with the locals. The guide book said how tacky the rembrandtplein was, ignore it- it just meant there was lots of choice for bars, shops, trams- ok it might be touristy but when you’re a tourist that can be convenient!
I’d definitely go back again, and recommend it to anyone- save your money on the hotel, you’ll need it for the restaurants!

A great hotel in a fantastic location. The staff were very friendly and helpful. The room (a single) was a good size - recently renovated. Very clean. I'd definitely go back again!

I stayed for the weekend and found that the staff were polite and helpful, the rooms were clean and modern and well stocked with toiletries and anything you might have forgotten. I had a room at the back which was really quiet, despite the hotel's location on busy Rembrantsplein. The central location was useful during my short stay. I go to Amsterdam every couple of years and would definately stay at NH Caransa again.