Dokstroom - our hidden gem

Dearest Joanne, you were a very kind hostess, an attentive guide and an ever-present woman, even when the lock on my suitcase had decided not to open anymore :-). Thanks again and if I am in Amsterdam I will surely know where to go. A hug from me and my wife.

Despite being near the station, this is actually a peaceful location; the loudest sounds are made by the local coots whose sole purpose in life appears to be making sure everyone gets up early! The apartment is small but thoughtfully furnished and I spent a very happy time there. Houseboat life does not suit everyone but for those it does, this is about as good as it gets. Everything you need is in walking distance and the people are very friendly. As if this were not enough, my host Joanne went out of her way repeatedly to ensure that everything was to my liking. Joanne speaks good English (much better than my Dutch!) and is very knowledgeable about the area. A truly excellent host (and a good conversationalist), so overall I would definitely recommend this place.

If you are looking for comfortable accommodation where you can quickly walk to the center and the train station, this is the place for you. Joanne gave us a very warm welcome and gave us tips for our stay. Apart from the train, it is very quiet and very, very comfortable, even when it rains a lot, for example. We felt very comfortable.

We had a great stay on Joanne and Ramiro's houseboat. It was an ideal base for exploring Amsterdam, close to the city centre but quiet, cosy and warm after a long day out and about sightseeing. An easy walk from central station. Joanne was welcoming, friendly and helpful, a great host. Would highly recommend!

My partner and I stayed on Joanne and Ramiro's houseboat for 4 days in July and we had a wonderful time. It was our first visit to Amsterdam and the position of the boat could not have been better, being close to several excellent bars and restaurants and easily accessible to the tourist attractions we wanted to visit.

Joanne greeted us on our first day and was able to advise us on how to travel around the city. She was friendly and helpful and always contactable if we had any questions. Although it is basically one room with a shower room attached, it was light and spacious and spotlessly clean and the bed was very comfortable! If you are a light sleeper you might find the light coming through the boat portholes disturbing in the early morning and you can hear the trains on the nearby railway lines very slightly but it did not bother us.

We are open water swimmers. On Joanne's recommendation we enjoyed swimming off the pontoon attached to the boat as that part of the canal is very quiet. We also swam at a nearby public area where locals were swimming and sunbathing. We suffered no ill effects from the water and it was an amazing experience 😊 We also enjoyed sitting outside the boat in the sun. Although the view is not of the canal, only the boats moored close by it was interesting to watch the family of swans roosting on a nearby pontoon We had a fantastic trip and will definitely be back to stay in the houseboat again!