The grande dame of Amsterdam's luxury hotels occupies a prime location overlooking the Binnenamstel and is the final word in ostentatious splendor. The rooms are sumptuous, spacious, and flooded with light, all with barn-sized marble bathrooms. A new innovation for 2014 was the introduction of the all-suite Dutch Masters Wing, with every extravagant apartment boasting a copy of a famous oil painting from the Rijksmuseum. On top of the double-Michelin-starred restaurant Bord'Eau, the spa, and the summer terrace with river views, l'Europe also boasts the award-wining Freddy's cocktail bar and what might well be Amsterdam’s last fumoir , where the smoking of (only) cigars is still very much permitted.