Amsterdam travels???

Question

I live in Florida and am hoping to take a trip to Amsterdam within the next year. I am afraid of getting ripped off by making my travel preparations on the internet because I have no idea who much it costs there for accomidations. Are hostels and hotels the same? What are the typical costs for necessities like boarding, travel, food.. and also for going out to drink and such? Any advise would be great!

Answer 1

The basic difference is that: A hotel means you get a private room.  A hostel puts lots of strangers in a room together, typically on bunk beds. In hotels you usually have a private bathroom.  A hostel room will typically have from four to ten people, with lockers for your bags, and there will be a men's and women's bathroom on each floor.  The hostel may have a common area in the lobby, and some of them have a small bar.

Hostels are often much cheaper than hotels for a single traveler, and they are good for meeting other travelers if you don't want to be alone.  But if you are traveling with friends, getting one room together in a hotel may be cheaper than a hostel and you get privacy.  Most hotels will put a cot in a double room for a small charge.

I stayed at the Globe Hostel, which was 25 euros per person per night (about $40 US).

Amsterdam is a fairly compact city, and you can walk almost everywhere of interest.  They also have a tram system that is inexpensive, so it's not hard to get around.

As for food - there is a whole range of restaurants from kebab shops and cafes and fast food to international restaurants (Amsterdam is known for its Indonesian food, and it's easy to find Middle Eastern, Chinese, Indian, etc.) to traditional Dutch food.  It's possible to spend less than $10 per meal, but you may want to budget more than that to sample more of what the city has to offer.  Drinks are usually 4-6 euros (US $6-10).