BEURS VAN BERLAGE

Damrak 277; tel +31 20 530 4141; beursvanberlage.nl

Located on the main street linking the station to the Dam Square, this imposing red-brick building was the Merchant Stock Exchange until the last traders left in 1998. In addition, for the past two decades Beurs van Berlage has been a venue for exhibitions, conferences and royal weddings, as well as home to the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra.

The building was designed by Hendrik Berlage and inspired the Amsterdam School style of modern architecture, which emphasised the importance of function as opposed to form – in the corridors, for example, the walls have not been plastered, the only form of decoration being a blue or yellow glaze over the lower brickwork.

The Main Hall, with its high glass ceiling and tiered galleries, is one of the largest indoor spaces available to hire in Amsterdam, with a capacity for 1,000 cabaret-style or 1,275 people for a reception. In total, there are 20 meeting
rooms available for hire, including the Café, which is often used in conjunction with the Main Hall as a reception area, the Auction Room (with space for up to 175 delegates), and the Safe Deposit (accommodating 90 for dinner) in the basement.

Catering is either provided in-house or by the highly regarded Maison van den Boer, while sound, audio-visual presentations and lighting can be arranged by specialists.

PRINS VAN ORANJE

De Ruyterkade, pier 17A; tel +31 20 419 1516; prins-van-oranje.nl

Built in 1908, the 53-metre Prins van Oranje originally served as a
ferry transporting passengers and cargo along the canals between Amsterdam and
the northern cities of Zaandam and Alkmaar. It was taken out of service in 1950
and has since passed through several incarnations, including a spell as a
floating hotel.

Most
recently renovated in 1995, this historic saloon boat is now moored on the IJ river behind Amsterdam’s central station and can be hired for corporate
cruises. Pick-ups can be arranged at several locations, and organisers can also
choose the route, ports of call and the destination.

The wood-panelled art
deco interiors are light and airy, with large windows and comfortable
armchairs. In total, the boat’s upper two floors can accommodate 300 guests for
a sit-down dinner or 500 for a reception, and there is access to narrow decks
outside. Catering can all be done on board – there is a well-appointed galley,
and food options range from Indonesian buffets to freshly prepared five-course
meals.

AMSTERDAM
CONVENTION FACTORY

Czaar
Peterstraat 213; tel +31 20 535 6949; thefactory.nl

Located in the developing district of Amsterdam East, the Convention
Factory is a hyper-modern dark industrial space. Until 1999, the building was
part of a huge complex owned by the Dutch manufacturing giant Stork, which
produced ships’ engines and railway carriages on the site. It was subsequently
converted into an events venue for up to 5,000 people, and is very popular for
product launches, concerts and fashion shows.

Thanks to an
innovative approach to the facelift, much of the exposed pipe work, cranes and
machinery have been left, which allows for some space-age lighting effects.
Entering the venue (whether by boat from the back or car from the front) brings
you directly into the APD Hall, an 896-sqm area which holds 1,500 for a
reception or 800 cabaret-style, and can be subdivided into any number of
smaller areas.

Also on the
ground floor are the Food Court and two more connecting halls. The biggest, the
BAD Theatre, has a permanent stage and sloping theatre-style seating with a
capacity for over 1,000 people, while next door is SW38, which has enough floor
space to race cars on.

On the first floor, up a
flight of steel stairs, is an open-plan restaurant called the Void – it has its
own bar and provides guests with great views of the high-ceilinged structure
criss-crossed with metal beams.

ARTIS ZOO PARTY
AND CONGRESS CENTRE

Plantage
Middenlaan 41A-43; tel +31 20 624 5522; artis-horeca.nl; [email protected]

Home to hundreds of species of animals from camels and chimps, to
parrots and piranhas, Artis is the oldest zoo in the Netherlands. Its range of
original events venues includes the Flamingo Conservatory, a large glass
pavilion with space for 100 people standing and views of the long-legged pink
birds in the pools outside, as well as the Aquarium, which can seat up to 150
for dinner and boasts a grand marble entrance and a long hall lined with fish
tanks.

Other
options include the Planetarium, the Kings Hall (seating 250 theatre-style) and
the Butterfly House, which is probably better suited to a reception than a
sit-down event – this glass-walled room is a pretty warm and humid venue, so
guests are likely to be more comfortable if they can get outside into the
garden for some fresh air.

As well as providing
in-house catering for any event, Artis can also offer delegates reduced-rate
tickets to the zoo (E9 as opposed to E17), behind-the-scene tours
in English, access by boat, and even the chance to adopt an animal of your
choice. If you hire either the Aquarium or the Butterfly House, the fees for
renting the venue go directly to the zoo as donations, which means that they
will be put towards the care of the animals and the upkeep of the buildings.

ODEON

Singel
460; tel +31 20 521 8555; odeonamsterdam.nl

Due to an old tax on wide buildings, houses in Amsterdam tend to be
tall, narrow and deep. The eight-floor Odeon, positioned on a tree-lined canal,
was built as a brewery in 1662. It has since served as a theatre, a cinema and
a gay club, but you can still see a projecting beam at the top of its gable
which was used to winch barrels, goods and furniture, to avoid having to carry
them up the steep stairs.

On the first
floor is the Green Room, which juxtaposes wall-size prints of models with a
baroque-style mural on the ceiling (up to 20 boardroom-style), as well as the
Gold and Red Rooms. These two form a restaurant and cocktail bar (open
Thurs-Sun), but can hold up to 80 people for a sit-down meal when they’re
closed to the public.

Upstairs is the Concert
Hall, an oval room with a stage and stuccoed ceiling, and the Royal Balcony, an
area with low pink velvet seating (up to 60 people). The Concert Hall is used
as a club from 11pm, but can also be hired for private receptions (up to 450),
with catering provided by Odeon’s brasserie in the basement.

PATHE
TUSCHINSKI

Reguliersbreestraat
26-34; tel +31 20 625 8581; tuschinski.nl

Designed and built in 1921 by Polish immigrant Abraham Tuschinski, this
unique cinema is a stunning fusion of art deco and art nouveau architecture.
The building has tragic associations – during the Nazi occupation of Holland,
it was not allowed to bear the name of its Jewish patron, and Tuschinski and
his family were sent to their deaths in Auschwitz. After the war, however, the
cinema regained its full name and, thanks to Tuschinski’s determination to
ensure his vision lives on (he bought hundreds of spare fixtures and
furnishings), has been preserved in all its original glory.

The foyer is
decorated with a plush carpet (flown by KLM in one piece from Morocco), art
deco lamps, and ornate hand-painted walls and ceilings, and can accommodate 300
people for a reception. There are six screening rooms, three in the old
building and three in the new wing, but it is the main auditorium, with a
capacity for 786 delegates, which is the most impressive. The balconies offer
sweeping views of the theatre, with its Aztec-influenced murals and softly lit
central stage (Powerpoint presentations can be projected onto the screen). The
space can also host a sit-down banquet for 250 people, by having a false floor
built over the stalls.

All the areas in Pathé
Tuschinski are available for hire, including a VIP room with a capacity for 100
people for a buffet (catering can be outsourced to two companies) and the
wood-panelled hallways, lit by stained glass windows.

REMBRANDT TOWER
BOARDROOM

Amstelplein
1; tel +31 20 561 8080; rtboardroom.nl

High flyers should head for the 32nd floor of the Rembrandt
Tower in Amsterdam’s business district – it is the highest point in the city
and promises views as far as the coast on a clear day. The venue features four
areas for hire, each with floor-to-ceiling windows, electronic blinds,
cream-coloured furnishings, state-of-the-art communication facilities and
high-tech audio-visual equipment. The two Boardrooms can hold 20 to 26
delegates, while the Lounge and the Meeting room can each accommodate up to 50
theatre-style. Top-quality catering is supplied in-house, with all the food
prepared in a kitchen on the same floor, and drinks available at a small bar.

Getting
there

Flights to Schiphol airport
operate from Heathrow, Gatwick, City, Luton and Stansted. Airlines are: BA
(LHR, LGW, LCY), Bmi (LHR), Easyjet (LGW, LTN, STN), VLM (LCY) and KLM (LHR,
LCY).

For more information on MICE venues in Amsterdam visit holland.com.