Polderlodge

It was clean, quiet, and relaxing. It was well stocked.

Not a problem, but an awareness the shower leaked on the floor.

The Polderlodge is about 20 km from Amsterdam city centre. We chose this accommodation for price and for tranquility. The city hotels are very expensive and also probably noisy. Despite the distance, it is not so hard to get to Polderlodge by public transport. We got a 3-day travel pass at the airport, which cost about 40 euros per person for 3 days. The taxi to Polderlodge costs around 75 euros. The trip by public transport is via Centraal then by train to Haarlem (frequent trains, some express) then bus number 50 (we had to pay 9.95 euros for day return tickets as it's outside the main transport network). You get off at BethlehemLaan stop and then it's about 10 minutes walk along the lane, which is alongside a canal. It's a really lovely spot. The rooms are great and you can cook meals and prepare lunch to save money before you head into town. Haarlem also has plenty of restaurants and is quite an interesting spot in itself.

Not sure if breakfast was included, but there was none. That did not matter as we bought food from the supermarket in Haarlem. The biggest problems (there are two) are the following: the walls are thin and although the owner put us at the end of the row of rooms (thank you!) we could easily hear the neighbours when they were there. This obviously means that it is not easy to sleep until your neighbours are also sleeping. The second problem is ventilation. In summer it is necessary to open both the door and the upstairs and downstairs windows. Since there is no mosquito wire on the windows, the inevitable happened. We had mosquitoes in our room two nights out of three. This was a problem because there was no insecticide. It is not possible to bring insect spray on a plane, therefore I suggest that insect spray be included or offered as a room option.

Everything was quite well.

It was adequate

Weird location but such a cool place to stay and it’s in the heart of tulip fields!! The place was immaculate and so serene and beautifully landscaped. Rent bikes and bike into Haarlem — it’s such a charming area and picturesque as you bike there. Staff was great to communicate with before I got there — however after I arrived I emailed them twice and they never responded. Also it’s not possible for US citizens to rent the lodge’s bikes online so figure something out with them beforehand because it torture walking by the bikes everyday and not being able to ride them. Will stay here again when we return.

Polderlodge was a fantastic place to stay if visiting the tulip area and local towns south of Amsterdam by car. Easy access to Amsterdam on the train from Hoofddorp park and ride. Private parking was at the lodge. The lodge is very comfortable with lots of room for 2 people Outdoor area for lodge is great.

Small considerations were that you can hear your neighbours moving throughout their lodges and only cooking facility is a hot plate, no microwave.

The cabins were a good size and comfortable. The kitchenette was perfect for preparing simple meals. The kitchen included a countertop 2 burner stove which was a nice surprise as it was not included in the amenities list.

The check-in process was confusing, each cabin is named after a bird and it was difficult to discover which cabin was ours. There was no one on site to help, luckily for us someone saw us struggling and came to help us, but he was confused at first too. There was a €70 cleaning fee that was only disclosed after I had selected the hotel, and then the check-out procedures asked us to clean the kitchen area and strip the beds before leaving.

Value for money.

Nothing.

We were located in a very quiet area surrounded by rural houses and nature. It was great for walks with the dogs. The house itself was very clean and spacious.

Wooden houses make noises and sometimes you get outside visitors, in our case a little mouse. Being there with two dogs it would've been handier to have a closed off little area to let them to do their business.