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Hotel Patou

COST: $$

<p>If proximity to Gucci and Chanel is crucial, this stately corner townhouse on Amsterdam's version of Rodeo Drive in Oud Zuid (Old South) is your place. Though the reception area is a small simple room on the second floor, make no mistake, the accommodations are luxe. The 12 rooms are sleek and elegant in the Dutch-Flemish way, with blonde oak floors, a somberly sexy palette of putty-grey, black and brown, and cleverly laid-out bathrooms with inviting Bisazza-tiled walk-in showers and bathtub-sized marble sinks. The fashion theme is carried in from the street, with original sketches by the hotel's namesake designer, Jean Patou, in every room. </p> <p><strong>Rooms to book:</strong> Numbers 40 through 44 all have charming, steeply-pitched mansard ceilings (and are quieter than rooms on the second and third floors). </p> <p><strong>Insider Tip: </strong>The art-deco style brasserie downstairs—also called Patou—is <em>the</em> prime lunchtime seat for watching the cafe-society goings-on on a Saturday afternoon. Take advantage of the fact that, as a guest, you have booking priority.</p>