Hotel de Kroon

Great location very close to the efteling, 15 minute drive from tilburg. The room was quite large but a bit dated, not all maintenance has been done properly. A communal area with coffee machine would be great as not to go to the hotel across the street for that. Note that check in is also at the other hotel across the street. Room was a little cold as it just had a tiny heater.

POSITIVES: * Great location. You can walk out the door of the hotel and be walking into Efteling 11 minutes later. * Comfortable bed. * Spotlessly clean. * You can get a free breakfast if you don't need your room made up. NEGATIVES: * No restaurant or reception staff in this building; you had to walk down the block to another hotel for any services. Not a big deal, but kind of a pain on a rainy Dutch day when you've been walking around a theme park all day. * No fridges in the room. The website says that reception can put things in their fridge for you -- but as mentioned above, that means walking down the block to get your stuff. * No kettle in the room, forcing you to walk down the block and then pay 2 euros for coffee or tea in the other building's lobby if you want it. * Charmless, dorm-like building. * Hotel restaurant was fine but a little overpriced for the quality * No fruits or vegetables at the breakfast. * The pillows had been through the laundry too many times and were falling apart. I appreciate that they keep the pillows clean but it's time to replace them. THINGS THAT ARE PROBABLY FINE FOR A DUTCH PERSON BUT BOTHERED ME * The bed is the tallest I've seen in a hotel and had an awkwardly placed wooden rim. I still have a bruise on my calf from all the times I banged my leg trying to climb in. That said, although I am above average height for an Englishman, I am below average height for a Dutchman. Perhaps this was a good bed height for their tall Dutch clientele. * The hotel restaurant refused to give me tap water, forcing me to buy bottled water if I wanted something to drink. I gather this is not uncommon in Dutch restaurants but I was gobsmacked; I've never been refused a glass of water in a restaurant anywhere else in the world. * The hotel restaurant takes various Dutch bankcards but not Visa or Mastercard. Even paying in cash was a bit of a process because they don't have a cash register on hand. OVERALL Given the price and proximity to Efteling, I'd still consider it for a future stay, but if I can find a hotel with better amenities, I'd be willing to pay a little more per night.