'With the Boom Bar, we are bringing the outside in'

An imposing interior tower in the shape of a tree, golden leaves adorning the interior and exterior facades and rooms that breathe the atmosphere of the Golden Age. The extensive renovation of the Renaissance Amsterdam Hotel can be called impressive, to say the least. Ahead of the hotel's reopening, scheduled for October 2025, Hotelvak spoke to new General Manager Markus Fritz and Commercial Director Mike de Boer.

Renaissance Hotel Amsterdam has been a trusted address for travellers from all over the world since 1975. The extensive renovation includes expanding the number of rooms from 402 to 500. During this major metamorphosis, the hotel will remain largely operational. Meanwhile, by the way, the hotel only rents out the rooms that have been redesigned. According to Markus Fritz, in each of these new rooms - designed by the multi-award-winning Swedish design and branding agency Stylt - the hotel guest is immersed in an authentic Dutch atmosphere: "Indeed, the interior and design are inspired by the discoveries of the Golden Age and the magical light of Rembrandt's mind. It also strongly reflects the character of the Netherlands as a nation of explorers and pioneers."

At the revamped hotel, guests can choose from three different room designs: Outlook, Reflective or Hide & Seek. "As the name suggests, the Outlook rooms offer stunning views of the historic city centre," Fritz continues. "Besides the life-size wall decorations that reference Rembrandt, the furnishings above all exude elegance, tranquillity and lifestyle. The Reflective rooms are located in the new wooden inner tower - more on this later - making them the hidden gems of the hotel, so to speak. These rooms have a similar look and feel to the Outlook rooms, but are more inspired by the world of explorers and maritime navigation; a world at sea where the night sky was mapped through the telescope and the microcosm through the microscope. In the room interior, you can see this reflected in details incorporating stars and the microcosm. Finally, the Hide & Seek rooms are rooms with a very intimate character and are ideally suited for guests who like to retreat into their own private domain, which also makes them the perfect workspace. These spacious hotel rooms are also decorated with all kinds of references to Rembrandt and The Night Watch."

A hotel with Dutch wanderlust in its DNA; daring, innovative, artistic, surprising and locally connected. This is how Fritz expresses the philosophy he wants to use to lead the Renaissance Amsterdam Hotel into a new era. This philosophy is strongly expressed not only in the hotel rooms, but in the entire renewed interior. For instance, the top floor will be converted into a rooftop bar where guests will soon be able to enjoy a wide range of South American cocktails and finger food, among other things. "Moreover, there will be a 'speakeasy': a very exclusive space, ideal for holding private meetings, parties, product launches etcetera. The other conference rooms and meeting spaces will also be completely revamped," the general manager said. 

The ground floor is also being expanded with some spectacular eye-catchers. Besides a large wooden inner tower with thirty-four hotel rooms - called The Tree - a striking bar with pillars in the shape of trees - the Boom Bar - a design by London-based interior design firm Bowler James Brindley - is currently taking shape here. 

"These trees symbolise the many imposing trees that Amsterdam is so rich in," Fritz clarifies. "Everything focuses on embracing the connection with nature through organic themes, raw materials and abundant daylight in the entire interior. We also want to bring the outside world inside in this way, so to speak. This is also reflected in the lavish decoration with the large golden leaves, both in the interior and on the hotel's exterior facade."

Sustainability was also a key focus of the hotel's major rebranding. Ambitions are high and no effort is being spared to open its doors in 2025 as one of the most sustainable hotels in Europe. For instance, the products used to furnish the hotel rooms consist largely of recycled and upcycled materials. Building materials from the old hotel are also reused for this purpose. Most notable when it comes to sustainability, however, are the exterior walls of the hotel, which will be transformed into vertical gardens with lots of greenery. The green exterior captures rainwater, improves air quality and creates a habitat for wildlife in the city. Green roofs will also be installed, including a communal vegetable garden for local residents. 

According to commercial director Mike de Boer, this emphasis on the local community is a very important pillar in the repositioning of the hotel. "Besides hotel guests from home and abroad, we also want to involve local residents much more in the hotel," he says. "So that it becomes a place where local Amsterdammers can also meet. If local residents want to have a beer together, they can do so in our brown pub. You can also celebrate a birthday party, for instance in our new rooftop bar. At lunchtime, just visit our bar or restaurant for a cup of coffee or lunch, a business meeting, an hour of digital work or reading a newspaper? It's all possible. For that kind of spontaneous visit from local audiences, we want to open up much more."

In short, the two hotel managers want the revamped high-quality catering facilities to become a draw for hotel guests and locals alike. Markus Fritz adds that he expects the completely revamped food and beverage concept in particular to appeal to the local community: "The 'star of the show', so to speak, will be our artisanal dough products, including bread, focaccia and wood-fired pizzas. The choice of high-quality ingredients is very important to us in this respect, in order to offer honest and authentic dishes to the local community."  

To lead Renaissance Amsterdam Hotel into a new era, Archer Hotel Capital B.V., the owner of this hotel chain, has hired two experienced managers.

The 51-year-old Markus Fritz can look back on a 25-year career at Hilton, for which he worked in hotels around the world. With his extensive international experience as General Manager, he will focus on positioning the hotel as the leading hotel in Amsterdam in the coming years. In doing so, he intends to focus on promoting a sustainable future, establishing high-quality hospitality and opening up the hotel to the local community.

As the new Commercial Director, 38-year-old Mike de Boer will mainly focus on building and leading the commercial team, with responsibility for operational matters such as sales, marketing, revenue management, group sales and reservations. With a view to the reopening of the hotel in 2025, his priorities will be to successfully promote the new rooms, restaurant and bar. Ultimately, his goal is also to ensure that the Renaissance Amsterdam Hotel becomes the leading hotel in its segment, where Amsterdammers feel completely at home.