Heartwarm Hotel new projects make Amsterdam even hipper and happier helping homelessness

Floating hotel operation also runs full service hotel for homeless and now helps make the red light district hip happy and healthy

New heartwarming hospitality projects include wholesome Pieminister Amsterdam just open in Red Light District

As the Heartwarm Hotel – a full service hotel for Amsterdam’s homeless – is fully functioning the AmstelBotel team has set up even more projects to make Amsterdam happier.

The hotel – Reception Hotel Ruysdael, is a 50-room full service hotel collaboration between homeless foundation HVO-Querido  and the Amstel Botel . In the hotel, HVO-Querido provides guidance and a team from the Amstel Botel hotel takes care of reception, catering, cleaning, linen and the restaurant in the hotel which provides three good quality meals a day for each guest.

Not content with all this, AmstelBotel has launched an Amsterdam pie shop with UK ethical brand Pieminister  to get good healthy food and top quality surroundings for tourists and locals in Amsterdam’s red light district. – naturally Amstel Botel clients get a discount

The homeless hotel project was the brainchild of hospitality entrepreneur Sandra Chedi and Clemens Blaas of HVO-Querido.

"There are shared house rules that guests respect" says director of Amstelbotel Sandra Chedi. "Our experiences have been positive. There are no more problems than in a standard hotel."

Obviously, If you live in a warm bed, you are less inclined to fall back into old behavior. Guests can relax with a roof over their heads and really good food. They have energy for a job or to work on their problems there, this way they have the opportunity to take back control of their lives.

Sandra’s other hotel is a pretty unique enterprise too – the three star 175 room Amstel Botel http://www.amstelbotel.nl/ is exactly what it says on the label; a custom-designed hotel boat on the Amstel in one of Amsterdam’s latest artistic hotspots – the NDSM Quay.

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Just a 10 minute free ferry trip from Central Station, the area is gradually morphing from a massive shipbuilding works to a massively exuberant and colourful art centre. Media businesses , art houses, top cutting edge restaurants, night clubs and a year full of festivals from the high culture Over the Ij festival  to the outrageous Robodok   are making it a place to see and be seen.

The Botel and all its virtual manifestations are making quite a splash with a new-look website and on Facebook  on Twitter  and on YouTube

And with rooms from 65 Euros with free wifi, tv, – and WITH availability in the fabulous exciting and romantic winter Amsterdam months why no try it out? There are special deals for tour operators and travel agents – contact Flor Polanco [email protected]

And Sandra has not run out of ideas yet! On the cards are an Art Hotel (seems a natural for Amsterdam!) and a project provisionally called TeaVarna in the grounds of Amsterdam’s up market Hermitage.

Valere Tjolle

New offers on sustainable tourism information HERE