Dutch design: The best boutique hotels in Amsterdam, from cosy cabins to grand canal houses

Bridge-operators’ cabins, dating from 1673 to 2009, on bridges all over town, have been converted into independent hotel suites ingeniously designed to make maximum use of space and offer top comfort, while giving great views in enviable locations. The suites pick up on the materials, period and style of the original building (so you may be in a world of clean edges, Anglepoise lamps and glass, or a cosier realm of 1920s curves and burnished wood). You reserve and pay online, and use an electronic key, sent to your phone, to open the door. Inside, there’s a small fridge and espresso machine, plus enough cutlery and crockery for simple meals.

Not just a hotel, but a fashion fantasy that engages you in flights of imagination in 61 individually (often zanily) decorated rooms. Local fashion students, extreme couture studio Maison the Faux and design team INA MATT collaborate to create a space that is funky, fun, surprising and participative: tables and chairs dressed up in jute, a communal sewing machine, wall tiles turned back-to-front (to represent lining) and a gigantic necklace made from glass lamp fittings, draped from ceiling to floor and across the room. The hotel is located on a hectic street between Centraal Station and the Dam, just a skip from the Red Light District.

A touch of the quirkier side to Amsterdam. Misc, in a small 17th-century canal house, has pleasingly dotty individually decorated rooms, and friendly owners who can give great advice about what’s on around town. Six individually decorated rooms range from cool contemporary décor by Dutch designer Thijs Bakker, through to gloriously campy neo-Baroque, complete with chandelier and canopied bed – with a touch of Africa and Asian temple-kitsch along the way. The rooms are equipped to a degree not usually found in this price range, with a Nespresso machine, free Wi-Fi, complimentary non-alcoholic drinks and fresh flower arrangements.

Lush, at times gloriously over-the-top décor, in two 17th-century canal houses, convenient for shopping, dining and sightseeing. Some years back, Eric Toren took over his father’s two-star hotel, and transformed it into a nest of opulence. What remains of the old family-run hotel, in this new luxurious incarnation, is the charm of personal service. Luscious fabrics, deep purples, rich colours, soft chairs, dark carved wood, subtle lighting, banks of fresh flowers, and chandeliers sum up the interiors. Rooms are individually decorated and the décor from downstairs infiltrates here, too, as do the period touches: a four-poster bed or perhaps gilded ceilings.

For more than half a century The Ambassade has been the go-to hotel for Dutch publishers, and a great favourite with authors. The hotel stretches through 11 canal houses and inside is a network of interconnecting corridors, little flights of stairs between changing levels and a wide variety of rooms (many with canal views). All are individually done up in antique or antique-style furniture and given verve by bright, luscious fabrics (at times deliciously over the top). In addition to the first-floor Brasserie, there’s an elegantly cosy library-cum-bar at lobby level, as well as all manner of conversation nooks and a small salon, fitted with fine old furniture.

A 16th-century canal house, restored in a way that preserves its past but steps firmly into the 21st century. Apple Mac computers stand alongside mahogany wardrobes, among luscious colours. The champagne breakfast (fruit, yogurt, cheeses, cold cuts, eggs to order, breads, pastries and more) uses mostly organic, locally sourced ingredients. Even the sparkling wine is Dutch (it’s really good), though there’s the real stuff from France, too. Up under the rafters, the Blue Room, done up in alluring film-star-eyed blue, has an impressive canal view and a cheeky round bed. The Red Room, one floor below, is a womb of rich warm colours, with a super-comfy king-size bed. It also has a canal view.

Hotel Seven One Seven is a sumptuous canal-house mansion with the ambience of a grand private home. It’s the stuff dreams are made of, somewhere to go for that special occasion, or to give yourself a real treat. Service is discreet and domestic; the rooms are spacious, and individually decorated with period furniture, designer pieces, intriguing curiosa and original art. The two Executive suites at the front of the house have enormous windows, with prime views of the Prinsengracht canal. There is no restaurant or spa, though afternoon tea and evening drinks are included in the rate.

A house once occupied by one of the leading Dutch artists of the 19th century. In it, you’ll find rooms filled with museum-quality antique furniture, a mosaic of fine artwork, stuccoed ceilings dripping with crystal chandeliers, and forests of fresh flowers. At times you feel that you’re living in a rich period movie set: each suite is individually and sumptuously decorated, and is more spacious than you’ll find pretty much anywhere else in town. There are personal touches to the décor, too, such as a mural of irises painted by Camilla, and artwork brought as gifts by returning guests. The daily champagne breakfast – in the period dining room, overlooking the park – is unsurpassed anywhere in town.