Hotel Mercier

The first boutique hotels in Amsterdam were avant-garde affairs, parlaying the success of modern Dutch design into a hotel scene straight out of the future. Hotel Mercier, however, belongs to a later generation, one that integrates Amsterdam’s historical charms with eclectic contemporary decoration and the kind of personality-driven boutique hospitality

Here contemporary most definitely doesn’t mean modern. The Mercier’s style is retro, in keeping with its Art Deco heritage, though it takes certain postmodern liberties — it’s brighter, livelier, and more colorful than a strictly correct period piece would be. Nevertheless, it’s almost ornate in its elegance, miles from the minimalism of the city’s first wave of boutique hotels.

The rooms are a heady mix of antique references and contemporary design and art, and they range from the refreshingly honest Small Double to the positively capacious Junior Suite and the extra-tall Bridal Suite, up under the eaves. At all levels they’re full of modern comforts, with walk-in showers and convenient bedside electronics. Add to this an all-day café called Ons Huis and you’ve got a delightfully modest and impressively well-executed little boutique hotel.