It’s been a few months now since the corona virus outbreak and the start of a pandemic. It’s something the world has never seen before and wasn’t prepared for.
People couldn’t travel anymore, go to restaurants, the gym or the hair dresser, were advised to stay inside and it became mandatory to keep 1.5-meter distance from others. Not only to keep our guests safe but our staff as well, we made the difficult decision to temporarily close.
Dutchies opened on the 1st of April 2016 and, and since then the doors had never closed. We were open 24/7. Throughout the years we met some of the most amazing people from every corner of the world, who became lifelong friends of the hostel. We, the staff, got to know each other very well and we became family. Dutchies was not just a job, but we genuinely loved coming in to work and we stayed after work to enjoy a drink or two (or thirteen) at the bar.
Coming in to work in an empty hostel was an unusual experience. Seeing the empty reception, the deserted lobby and being surrounded by nothing but silence, was something I didn’t expect to experience here. I was so used to always having people around, hearing loud conversations between the staff and the guests, a Spotify playlist on the background and hearing the vacuum being used.
Technically I could work from home, but after a week I felt working there wasn’t as productive as I hoped it would be. I couldn’t focus on my work and I realized I actually missed coming in to work. I missed being at Dutchies.
Finally, the day came that we would open again. Monday the 1st of June 2020, we opened our doors. For the first time in months there was music again in the hostel. Day by day the hostel became livelier. We’re not back in full swing just yet, but that can’t be helped. In the meantime, we will make sure Dutchies is still one of the nicest hostels in Amsterdam.
We recently welcomed our first guests since reopening the hostel, and we hope to see more and more. The Dutchies Family is prepared for whatever is to come! We will make sure that when people start to travel again, we will be their home away from home.
