SWEETS Hotel is a network of 28 individual, tiny hotel rooms that were recently recognized as having the most outstanding interior design in hospitality this year.
Dezeen magazine recently awarded SWEETS hotel top place in the hotel and short-stay interior category of its second annual Dezeen Awards. The competition recognizes the best architecture, interior and design concepts around the world.
The Dezeen Awards international judging panel, which consists of more than 75 leading architecture and design professionals, evaluated SWEETS hotel based on 3 criteria: beauty, innovation and benefit to people and the planet.
The hotel and short-stay interior category was one of five interior design categories introduced to the Dezeen Awards this year.
The Dezeen Awards opened up the category to hotel, guesthouse and guest room projects where business and leisure travelers stay in the short-term.
The SWEETS hotel rooms are located in bridge houses throughout Amsterdam and overlook everything from a swan-filled lake in Amsterdam North to the lively restaurants, bars and shops of West Amsterdam.
Source: SWEETS hotel
The bridge houses range in age from 350 years to a decade old and offer sweeping views of the canals and surrounding streets.
Built between 1673 and 2009, Amsterdam's bridge houses served as working spaces for bridge operators who opened and closed bridges to let boat traffic through, but have fallen out of use in the past few years due to the introduction of a centralized operating system.
The SWEETS hotel team set out to transform the spaces in 2012 and made their first 11 hotel rooms available for booking in early 2018.
Rooms come stocked with coffee and tea supplies, so you can sip your coffee and watch the world go by just as bridge operators once did.
Source: SWEETS hotel
While the rooms share the same basic amenities, each has a distinct look and feel.
Source: SWEETS hotel
For one, the interiors reflect the time period in which the bridge house was built.
Source: SWEETS hotel
Sluis Haveneiland bridge house, built in 2009, features a contemporary interior design.
Source: SWEETS hotel
Amstelschutsluis bridge house, on the other hand, dates back to 1673 and has more of a vintage feel with linen-lined walls and cabinets that emulate 17th-century style.
Source: SWEETS hotel
Starting rates for the hotels fall between $133 and $1,050 per night. Amstelschutsluis, located on the Amstel River and accessible only by boat, is at the top of the range. Guests have access to a private captain, who is available around the clock to sail them to shore.
Source: SWEETS hotel
Amstelschutsluis guests also have the option to enjoy dinner and breakfast prepared in-room by a private chef.
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On the SWEETS hotel team's transformation of these spaces, the Dezeen Awards interiors jury added: "The use of these existing, derelict buildings that were never meant to be habitable truly shows the power of design."
Source: SWEETS hotel
