Hot Drop Spots

The place to pee

It’s just a wee room, though very important. We’re used to our own but it can be a little nerve-wracking to go to a public loo. Author Ellen Grift lifts the lid on the best bathrooms in Amsterdam and put rest to your restroom worries in her new book Hot Drop Spots: the place to pee deserved of pride of place booth on the coffee table and in the washroom.

The top 25

From a long list of 170 locations, Grift narrowed the selection down to a top 25, from Hotel Arena and Jimmy Woo’s chic black sheen to the colourful tiles of Escape, the retro-clad collage of Pacific Parc, there is a place for all to park themselves.

A holy experience

If you’re desperate in the Leidseplein, Grift suggests the Vondelkerk (pictured above). ‘The toilets are situated in vaults where you can spot the arches of the neo Gothic church. The toilets are placed like altar pieces which makes it quite a holy experience.’

For a room fit for Queen Beastrix, Grift recommends The College Hotel (pictured right). ‘It is very chic with large chandeliers, infinite mirrors and a nice spot to rest and do your make up. For really feeling like a diva!​

Playing favourites

‘They can be funny, mysterious, colourful, futuristic with giant toys or voyeuristic,' says Grift of the wide range of restrooms in Amsterdam. ‘Some of my favourites are; Bazar, as it is so colourful and oriental with large mirrors; Hotel V with the golden floor, mysterious pin ups on the wall and black toilet paper; and Tuschinski, for all the beautifully restored (authentic) art deco details.’

Alternative guide book

What the book proves is that the toilet of a venue is a good reference point to what the rest of the venue will be like – Hot Drop Spots is not only a unique, and beautifully designed book but an alternative guide book. Stuck for what to do tonight? Open up a random page and that’s the place to be, and pee.​

For more information, visit Hot Drop Spots, €19.95 (isbn 978-90-814940-1-4).

Photos by Arie de Leeuw