We spent a long weekend in Amsterdam and selected this Hotel mostly based on reviews I read here. It was everything the website says it was. I really can't fault this hotel at all.

We arrived around 8am and couldnt check-in til after lunch, which was expected and we were fine with that. Simply left luggage there and went exploring Amsterdam.

When we returned at 2pm to check-in the room was ready and we headed up. We stayed on the 3rd floor in a corner room with canal views. It was awesome! It felt more like a suite than a standard room. The bathroom with rain shower and separate bath was impeccably clean. The bed was comfy and we had 4 massive double windows/doors and a mini balcony looking out over the canal.

And the best bit, *everything* is included in the room rate. So i nailed at least a dozen Hoegaardens and a few glasses of wine in the lobby over the 3 days, all complimentary. Even when you return at 1am from a night out you can chill by the fire with a drink in the lobby unhassled.

Love this place.

This place is really different - and a mixed bag. No stupid rip-offs with the mini-bar, lots of terrific extras - all 'free' and a really great location. BUT, the breakfast was about as poor a standard as could be imagined, eg scrambled eggs made by reheating already-made stuff resembling yellow rubber, poor selection etc. This is not what hotel dining rooms should offer. The safe was broken, the phone didn't work, and they would only move us to a different room at OUR expense. The "free WiFii" turned out to last 50 minutes and in one room didn't work at all. Hmmm.

The worst part was that our foursome booked for 2 days and were forced to leave after one due to genuine and serious circumstances beyond our control. We asked (at breakfast time) if they would let us off the second night's charge. The (young) guy at the desk was very tough and said he would 'ask his manager', later saying he did so and was told 'no'. I said I expected a more lenient attitude under the circumstances and wanted to speak to the manager myself and he immediately said 'OK, we will let you off one room but not both. We can't lose money because of your problems.' I later discovered that they managed to fill the entire hotel that night but still pocketed the room charge they demanded from us.

I know we had booked for 2 nights and technically, they may be said to be in the right, but I doubt the manager was even consulted and whereas the small things are what could make this hotel so attractive, knowing they employ transparently poor actors like him and are happy to 'fine' us a (not inexpensive) room rate they ANYWAY sold to somebody else, makes me reluctant to set foot there again or recommend them. You need to feel comfortable in a hotel, but they run it so poorly it spoiled the whole experience.

My husband and I stayed at the Banks Hotel for seven nights (April 30 - May 8), and we were very satisfied with the hotel. I booked directly with the hotel, and I was contacted by the desk staff to welcome us and enquire about any requests. And we did have a couple of requests: 1) we were arriving in the morning and asked to check earlier than the usual time 2) we asked for a room that had a bath tub (most rooms have showers). The staff replied promptly, saying that they will try to accommodate our requests - and they did. We were checked in by Nina, who is very efficient, knowledgeable, and friendly, and so are the rest of the desk staff - Pamela, Laura, Kevin and Ali. Our corner room commanded a view of the canal (Herengracht) and the street (Vijzelstraat). The room and the bathroom were spacious and comfortable. We travel in Europe once a year, so we are used to smaller (than North American) rooms.

Breakfast in the "kitchen" was also very good; omelettes, pancakes and French toast can be ordered in addition to the buffet-style standards (cheese, cold cuts, smoked salmon, etc.); however, the selection wasn't changed when we were there. The 24-hour lounge snacks and drinks were also good, keeping in mind that these are snacks and not mini-meals, along the lines of nuts, olives, Dutch waffles (cookies), and the occasional dips and cheese.

I would have rated the hotel excellent, but the housekeeping service leaves much to be desired. In our 7-day stay, we had to ask 4 times for bathroom items that were lacking: soap, shower gels, bath salts. In addition, the cleaning was cursory: empty gel bottles and soiled face cloths were left uncollected. But again, the desk staff was very quick in sending whatever we needed. As a matter of fact, one of them came to our room with the items that were missing, and she saw the condition of the bathroom.

The location was also ideal for us. It was central enough, but not too busy like the Dam, Rembrandtplein or Leidseplein. We like walking, so we walked to many of the the attractions, occasionally taking the tram to the Central Station or the Museum area.

Aside from the problem with housekeeping, we were happy with the level of service, specifically of the desk staff ,and would recommend Banks Mansion Hotel.

Banks Mansion was the first hotel my wife and I stayed at when we started to go to Amsterdam for a city break about three years ago. We thought that it was lovely then; the free snacks, drinks and tv were all excellent, as was the location and all this made our stay wonderful.
We have been back to Amsterdam several times since but stayed in different hotels and this last time, we returned to Banks Mansion again. Having now had the experience of staying in other amsterdam hotels, I can honestly say that the best is definitely Banks. The quality of the decor, size of the room, location and the hospitality cannot be faulted. The breakfast was great, meaning we only had to have a snack for lunch and the air con was effective and not too noisy in the room.
Only slight minor side is that the lift is very slow and if you are on the top floor, it's often quicker to walk!
Other than that, lovely hotel, sure its a bit pricey but I certainly didn't feel ripped off with what we paid. Definitely recommended.