Pestana Amsterdam Riverside sits on the bank of the Amstel, on the edge of De Pijp, in a building that was once a town hall and then the city archive. It is a relaxed part of Amsterdam with markets, cafés and the river on the doorstep. Sarphatipark is fourteen minutes on foot and the Albert Cuyp Market nineteen, while the Rijksmuseum and the Dam are both an easy drive of under twenty minutes.
The building was completed in 1892 as the town hall of Nieuwer-Amstel, the municipality that then lay just south of Amsterdam. Only a few years later Amsterdam annexed this part of its neighbour, and the town hall lost its purpose almost as soon as it was finished.
From 1914 it housed the Amsterdam city archive, which kept records of births, marriages, deaths, buildings and businesses here for more than ninety years. The archive moved out in 2007. The Pestana group bought the building in 2014 and opened it as a five-star hotel in 2018, with its facade still looking out over the river.
A short walk from the hotel, on the Tolstraat, stands the brick factory of the Asscher diamond company, built in 1907. It was here, in 1908, that Joseph Asscher cleaved the Cullinan, the largest rough diamond ever found. The stones cut from it are now part of the British Crown Jewels.
The story goes that Asscher had waited weeks before making the first cut, and that the first blade broke on the stone. The building is not open to visitors, so we show you the facade and tell you the rest outside.
The Rijksmuseum is 28 minutes on foot or about seventeen by car, and the Dam 39 minutes on foot or sixteen by car.
Ask your guide to include any of these. They feature in the Private Dutch Food Tour, Eat Like a Local and in the Private Rijksmuseum Tour, with six more tours listed below.
These six draw on the best of the city from a quieter base. The Van Gogh Museum is a short drive away, and your guide can meet you there or at the hotel. The Anne Frank tour and City Highlights head into the canal ring, while Brews and T’Ales makes a relaxed evening out. Amsterdam in a Day brings it all together, and Zaanse Schans is for the windmills.
Private Van Gogh Museum TourFrom 325 euroView this tour
Private Anne Frank and Jewish History Walking TourFrom 515 euroView this tour
Amsterdam City Highlights Private TourFrom 400 euroView this tour
Brews and T’Ales, Private Craft Beer TourFrom 500 euroView this tour
The Ultimate Amsterdam in a Day TourFrom 990 euroView this tour
Private Zaanse Schans Windmill and Dutch Villages TourFrom 1,100 euroView this tourSee all our private tours from Amsterdam about Private Tours Amsterdam
The Amsteldijk has room for a car to pull up, so driving tours start at the hotel door. Following the Amstel south, you are quickly among the polders and villages, and Utrecht, Haarlem, Delft and Keukenhof are all within reach. See our private driving tours page for more.
Guests at the Pestana are often on a longer stay and looking to see the city beyond the obvious. We tailor the tours to that, choose the guide with care, send a written plan before arrival and remain the only contact for the whole visit. We contact the guests directly before their tours as well. Commission terms are on our travel advisor page.
The hotel’s concierge can book with us for guests too.
At the hotel entrance on the Amsteldijk. Cars can stop outside, so driving tours start at the door at a time we confirm with you the evening before.
Yes. Our Dutch food tour can take in the Albert Cuyp Market and the cafés of De Pijp, less than twenty minutes on foot.
About 28 minutes on foot, or seventeen by car. On the private Rijksmuseum tour your guide can collect you at the hotel.
The building is not open to visitors. Our guides tell the story of the Cullinan outside, and our photo tour makes a good stop there.
Yes. The concierge can arrange the tour, or you can contact us yourself. Either way we speak with you before the day.
Very often, yes. Booking ahead gives the most choice, but short notice is rarely a problem. Try our contact page or give us a call.
