The Heineken beer family owns a historic hotel. It can never be sold

Beyond our breakfast table, couples stroll arm in arm along Amsterdam’s Amstel River, boatloads of tourists ply the famous canals and cyclists tear alongside. On the Muntplein, the city’s busiest square, window shoppers bustle and tourists sip coffee in cosy cafes.

It’s an overcast day with constant drizzle but that doesn’t detract one bit from the captivating views from a grand dame, the newly transformed De L’Europe Amsterdam, owned by the Heineken family and as much a symbol of the city as the canals it overlooks.

The billionaire brewers filled the hotel, built in 1896 on the site of Amsterdam’s first inn, with their priceless Dutch art collection, and acquired neighbouring historic buildings. In his will, the late Alfred “Freddy” Heineken stated his beloved hotel could never be sold and must remain in the family forever.

The beer mogul loved spending time in his namesake bar, doing business on one of the first satellite phones, which he carried in a large suitcase. It’s believed his wife so loved hosting parties at the hotel that he bought it in 1950 as a gift for her.

De L’Europe’s guests are greeted by top-hatted doormen in tails and welcomed with a glass of champagne, though a complete redesign of its rooms, suites and entire ground floor ushers in a whole new chapter.

Rich, natural materials, warm hues, unique objects, antiques and bespoke furniture convey the hotel’s historical grandeur. Several rooms have large balconies and terraces with show-stopping canal views. Most recently, an entirely new collection of suites has opened in the adjacent “’t Huys” wing – “’t Huys” being old Dutch for “house”.

Years in the making, the 14 landmark suites are designed by a roll-call of the city’s leading lights, from the Van Gogh Museum to couturier Ronald van der Kemp and jewellery designer Bibi van der Velden. “We gave creatives a blank canvas and told them to think outside the box for their individual suite collaborations,” says marketing director Mosanne Monod de Froideville over a drink in Freddy’s Bar with its polished timber and resident jazz pianist.

The ground floor of ’t Huys invites guests to lounge on mid-century armchairs amid striking works of floral art by Florian Seyd and Ueli Signer of Wunderkammer.