Location! Location! Location! This gorgeous (and giant) apartment is located in the trendy De Pijp section of Amsterdam and only a 5 minute walk to the famed Van Gogh and Rijksmuseums. We ate almost all of our meals at restaurants located within 5 minutes of the apartment. So many options (Ethiopian, Thai, Indian, Vegetarian, Irish, Seafood, Italian, Vegan, prix fixe, etc.)! There is an adorable coffee shop (Locals) right across the street and it's about 5 minutes to the Albert Cuyp Market - blocks and blocks of items for sale from stroopwaffels to boutique clothing. At the end of the block is Heineken Plaza and the Heineken brewery, which you can tour. There is a bike rental place near there where you can rent bikes for a reasonable rate and then ride around Vondel Park - only a 7 minute bike ride away!
The trams come very frequently and there are a few different lines that come within 5 minutes of the apartment. You can get to Centraal Station in about 15 minutes. We spent some time in that area, but the apartment area is where we preferred. So beautiful and so much to do!
Now, about the apartment: Sharon was away so her mother met us at check-in and couldn't have been nicer. She shared tips of where to go and a list of suggestions that Sharon left for us. Sharon checked in through email and responded immediately if we had a question. The apartment itself is open, clean, well-designed with a french-country feel, and full of light. We also did a load of laundry there because I had been traveling the weeks leading up to my stay and was out of clean clothes. The washer worked perfectly.
Sharon even left us a Dutch apple pie and whipped cream as a welcome gift, which was a lovely touch!
The bathroom is small, but I don't imagine anyone is coming to Amsterdam for the bathroom. The shower was hot and the water pressure was perfect. What more could you need?
As noted by others, there are steep and narrow stairs leading up to the apartment that might be an issue if you normally have trouble with stairs. These seem typical of the apartments in Amsterdam, though, as the Anne Frank house had similar stairs to climb. Overall, this apartment was perfect and I would definitely stay there again! Highly recommend Sharon's apartment! Thank you, Sharon!