Comfort & luxury for short stay expats in Almere
Businessmen and women visiting the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area to hold extensive meetings, scout out property or establish a more permanent base now have a luxurious alternative to a long hotel stay: a short stay furnished apartment.
Asked for and received
Common in Asia, Amsterdam has had short stay serviced apartments for some time, but Almere had no such housing system, whereby all facilities (from floors to cutlery) and services (cleaning, spas) are provided.
The city asked Vesteda, the biggest privately owned real estate company in the Netherlands with 28,000 units nationwide and 275 serviced apartments, if they could sort something out.
“We had the perfect building - or rather two buildings joined by the shared sports club,” said Vesteda’s Corporate Relations Manager Michael Berendsen. The Side by Side building is on the Weerwater lakeside, right in the middle of Almere’s newest, smartest district, with a ground floor swimming pool level with the lake water.
Great opportunity for expats
“This opens a great opportunity for expats coming to the area,” said Patty Zitman-Huang, Taiwanese specialist for the Amsterdam Area. “In Side by Side, they are conveniently situated for shopping, with social and cultural amenities on the doorstep offering a chance to interact with the locals.”
The building itself is convenient, accessible “and the facilities inside are really impressive,” she added. “Expats have their privacy, but they can also mingle with others of an international mindset, of all nationalities.”
Feel at home right away
“International travellers will feel at home straight away,” said Berendsen. “As an alternative to a hotel for a month or more, especially if you’re with kids, it’s not only cheaper but just more relaxing all round.”
Berendsen pointed out that since Vesteda owns the building, there are no in-betweens or fees, and total transparency. He said Vesteda would initially offer one or two furnished apartments from July and see what the demand is “We can add more at a week’s notice, if needed, and the concept works.”
New Amsterdam model
A more extended model, service wise, is the successful New Amsterdam building in Amsterdam’s Zuidas business district, which opened last September with 101 short stay suits, 45 regular suits and 28 office-apartments, all available in a range of size, price and formats. The building is on track to be completely full within a year – and it’s just seven minutes from Amsterdam Airport Schiphol.
Related topics
Mitsubishi confidant in Almere
Enter dragon boat race
- Tell a friend
