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The Eye Hotel in Utrecht in the Netherlands, was our choice for a wonderful weekend in Utrecht. With its canals, cozy cafes and lovely little boutiques, this city is a wonderful travel destination. We were delighted with both this beautiful city in the heart of the Netherlands and our wonderful hotel. This time, however, I wasn’t traveling with my family, but with my friends and we all really enjoyed the weekend here.
The Eye Hotel
We stayed at the wonderful Eye Hotel. The boutique hotel is located in a historic building from the 17th century and housed an eye clinic from 1858 to 1894.
The history of the building has been beautifully implemented in the entire interior of the hotel – everything is appropriately styled with the theme of eyes. Starting with the reception, where you can buy unusual sunglasses and reading glasses, to the design of the stairwell, the equipment of the breakfast room and the cool rooms.
Eye Hotel – the location
The hotel is located on the edge of the old town of Utrecht. From here you can reach the Ganzenmarkt with the old town hall, as well as beautiful cafes and restaurants on foot after approx. 0.3 miles and the Oudegracht after approx. 0.4 miles.
If you arrive by train, it is approx. 0.6 miles from the Central Station to the Eye Hotel.
Eye Hotel – the rooms
The hotel has a total of 33 double rooms, as well as a suite and two family rooms (one with an additional bunk bed and the other with a separate single bed and a cot). The rooms are very chic, cozy and, as usual for a boutique hotel, all of them are divided up and furnished a little differently.
The ‘bathrooms’ are out of the ordinary. They are not in a separate room like in other hotels, but are partly open from the sleeping area. It takes a bit of getting used to, but since the toilet is separated by a door and the shower area cannot be seen from the room, I think it’s an original idea.
The rooms also have a small wardrobe with a safe, as well as a desk with a coffee maker and kettle.
We had two double rooms next to each other on the second floor, in which it was very quiet and we felt very comfortable.
Room 206:
Room 207:
Eye Hotel – the breakfast
The Eye Hotel offers two different breakfast menus for 12.50 euros each. On the one hand, a ‘Dutch Breakfast’ with bread, eggs, cheese, sausage, jam, butter, donut and croissant, on the other hand a ‘Fitness Breakfast’ with bread, cheese and muesli with yogurt. There was also coffee, tea and freshly squeezed orange juice on both menus.
Since the breakfast room is quite small, you have to decide (preferably when you arrive) for one of the two breakfast times, 8:00 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. or 10:00 a.m. to 11.30 a.m. We opted for early breakfast on Saturday and late breakfast on Sunday.
I would definitely recommend you to have breakfast between 7.30 a.m. and 9 a.m., as everything is more relaxed then. At the second breakfast time, the staff must clear the tables from the ‘first shift’, fill everything up and serve the first guests simultaneously. This can all take a little more time, especially if the guests are not ready on time from their early breakfast.
If you don’t want to stick to breakfast times or if you generally prefer to have breakfast in a café, the much-vaunted ‘GYS’ is right around the corner.
Eye Hotel – the parking lot
There are hardly any parking spaces in the center of Utrecht, as the city administration tries to keep the city center car-free. The few parking spaces in the narrow streets are reserved for residents. Tourists can therefore park their vehicles almost exclusively in the parking garages.
I therefore recommend that you reserve a parking space directly when booking a room in the Eye Hotel. The parking lot was not exactly cheap during our stay at 25.00 euros per day, but other parking spaces don’t necessarily cost less either and thus you have at least a guaranteed parking space.
The Eye-Hotel shares a small, locked car park on Jansdam 1 street with two other hotels. If you are lucky, there is still a covered parking space available when you arrive, otherwise your car is ‘under the open sky’. From the parking lot to the Eye Hotel it is about 0.3 miles on foot. We parked first (the release was via an intercom at the parking lot entrance) and then walked to the hotel.
Eye Hotel – my conclusion
The Eye Hotel is a chic, very stylish accommodation that has been furnished with attention to detail. The Eye concept runs wonderfully through all rooms without the cosiness suffering.
The hotel staff is very friendly and accommodating. Extra requests were met immediately during our stay.
The fitness breakfast was delicious and perfectly adequate for me. With a longer stay, the two breakfast menus on offer can also get rather monotonous. It would also be nice if the jam were not packed in plastic packets but served in small bowls – that would be a good contribution to the environment!
The location of the hotel is very central and still quiet.
You can and should book a parking space directly through the hotel.
Utrecht is really worth a visit and I can wholeheartedly recommend the Eye Hotel for your stay!
All the best and have a great time in Utrecht – maybe at the Eye Hotel,
your Diana
As always, this was an unsponsored post about a wonderful hotel. If you like the Eye Hotel so much that you would like to book a room directly, you can do so here (affilate link).