Accor

Our history

Once upon a time, back in the early 1900’s, the Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal was the news street of Amsterdam. Newspaper offices and printing houses dotted the map around here. It was a vibrant and bustling area where stories were being chased, written and printed. In fact, INK Hotel Amsterdam’s own building used to be the home of the roman-catholic newspaper De Tijd (The Times) right up until 1974. Both the offices and the printing house were located right here in this spot. With a history like that, it’s no surprise that we’re all about time and telling stories. It’s in our DNA.

Traces of our history can be found all over the hotel. The personalized suites contain original and antique objects, like typewriters and photo cameras. On the walls of the Library Lounge you can find the original blueprints of De Tijd originating from 1904. A special feature is our ‘soft atlas’ of Amsterdam which is featured on the walls of our rooms. These chalk-like drawings are designed by Jan Rothuizen and tell the story of Amsterdam in a funny and recognizable way. In addition, a great deal of attention is paid to applicable details, such as an hourglass which refers back to the themes ‘Stories, Ink & time´. Many more details can be found throughout our building. We are happy to tell you all about them.