The Toren
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Two seventeenth-century canal houses on the Keizersgracht, stitched into one small, deliberately theatrical hotel.
Two seventeenth-century canal houses on the Keizersgracht were joined to make this hotel, and the seams still show in the best way. Ceilings drop and rise between rooms. Staircases turn where the original builders decided they should turn, not where a modern plan would put them.
The decorating leans theatrical rather than minimal — gilt frames, dark lacquer, mirrored alcoves, chandeliers hung low enough to read as sculpture. It is a small property, so the effect accumulates fast.
Some rooms open onto a walled garden at the rear, which is a genuine rarity on this stretch of canal. Breakfast is served in a low-ceilinged room near the front, and the water begins a few steps past the door.