Nova

A reliable presence among the city's hotels, the rooms here - arranged across five town houses - are comfortable, plainly furnished yet good looking in an Ikea kind of way, and smell fresh as daisies since the place went totally non-smoking in February 2007. Bathrooms, though, can be a bit of a tight squeeze. Nova is also handily located for the Nieuwezijds nightlife, as well as all of the cultural sights. For longer stays, they rent apartments on Nicolaas Maesstraat 72, near Museumplein.