Why Amsterdam's Conservatorium hotel is pure fabulousness

Built as a bank in the late 19th century and later turned into a music school, the Conservatorium took a quantum leap in 2011, when it sprang back to life as a hotel. The northeast side was glassed in to create a penthouse, meeting rooms and an atrium brasserie and lounge (below) that is now widely hailed as "Amsterdam's living room". The melding of ancient and ultra-modern falls not far short of perfect, with hi-tech folded into a decades-old superstructure and garnished with an utterly Dutch brand of hospitality that balances efficiency with charm. No ifs, buts or any other conditionals - this is a fabulous hotel.

As a historic building, the Conservatorium's façade - including its elongated arched windows - could not be altered in any way, so about half its 129 rooms and suites are duplexes. There are more than a dozen room layouts, all with a natty contemporary design and bespoke furnishings. Wi-fi and multi-channel televisions are standard nowadays but what other hotel would consider adding a crushable city map that doubles as a bike-seat cover to its minibar stock?

You could spend all day in the lounge/brasserie - and a swathe of executives, high-net worth travellers, ladies who lunch until teatime and sundry others with a fondness for superlative food and drink in congenial surroundings do just that. The crowd segues out onto the terrace in warmer months. Afternoon tea is a highlight any time of the year, with the East India Company's finest brewing in the pot and northern European snacks such as herring on rye bread facing off with apple and raisin scones. Slightly more formal, Taiko has an open kitchen and décor with more than a passing nod to Japanese aesthetics. Chef Schilo van Coevorden specialises in Asian and world classics and the sommelier is as clued-up on sake as he is on sauvignon blanc.