B&B Paula
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Description
B&B Paula is a new apartment in the attic of a typical Dutch home. It consists of one fully furnished apartment, ideal for 1 or 2 adults plus a small child or two. 
Out in front is the "spider tree" and inside you see half of the steeeeep steps up to the attic apartment, which looks out from that open window up on your left. Unfortunately, not all days in Holland are so bright and sunny. Details At B&B Paula you will meet some very typical very steep Dutch stairs on your way up the two floors. There you will find a bedroom, sitting room with TV, kitchen, and a shower room. There is a double bed in the sleeping room, with an additional single bed available. The couch in the sitting room opens to a third bed. The toilet is exclusive for guests and is back down one flight of stairs, all of 5 seconds. The kitchen includes a refrigerator, stove, and microwave with pans and complete table service. Included in the room price is a typical hearty Dutch breakfast, not one of those crumby continental breakfasts of toast and coffee. If you have dietary preferences let me know. Other meals are not included but you can go to the market and shop for something to bring home and prepare yourself. Virtually every variety of international cusine and beverage is available in Haarlem or Amsterdam. 
Sweet dreams, when the sun goes down. In the bedroom there is a double bed (picture on the left) and a single bed (picture on the right). Rate Single 36 euro per night Additional persons 19 euro per night each Children age 12 and under, cost per night equals age. Example, €4 per night for a 4 year old child. Sorry, no credit cards. 
If you have time to read or watch TV in Holland, here you go. Reservations Please send an email with 1.) your arrival date 2.) your departure date 3.) number in your party to: I will reply, normally within 24 hours, to let you know if the rooms are available for your dates. See you in Holland!!, Paula 
Washing up the body. Not pictured are the kitchen and the commode. These photographs are courtesy of Stephane Boury, a guest from France. Thank you Stephane. Note: I have moved some of the furniture since Stephane took these pictures. Transportation Nationale Strippenkaart For public transport, visitors are advised to buy a ticket called a Nationale Strippenkaart costing €6.90 for 15 strips. If you are 65 or older the price is only €4,60. You can also buy 2, 3, and 8 strip Strippenkaarten but the price per ride is dramatically higher and you can only buy these on the bus or tram. For each ride you use one strip plus one strip for each zone in which you travel. Therefore you use a minimum of 2 strips for each ride. It is valid on buses and trams throughout Holland, and on the Amsterdam Metro. The Strippenkaart is stamped by the bus driver or you fold it for the number of strips needed and insert it into a stamper machine as you enter a tram. Buy a Strippenkaart at the Schiphol VVV tourist office, at train station news stands, supermarkets, cigar shops, and at many other stores in Holland. Train tickets The national train company is trying to get people to use the ticket machines rather than buy rail tickets at staffed ticket windows. Thus, they have put a penalty on ticket window sales of €0.50 for every ticket. So it is cheaper, and usually faster, to use the ticket machines. The machines accept cash (euros only) and "chip cards." Unless you have a bank account in Europe you probably do not have a chip card. Credit cards and debit cards probably will not work in these machines. From Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport to the Haarlem train station: Connexxion bus number 300 from Schiphol (pronounced 'skip hole') Plaza to the Haarlem train station is a big red comfortable reticulated bus and departs every 10 minutes. The cost is 7 strips. Travel time is 41 minutes. When you get to the Haarlem station you need to take another bus to B&B Paula which will cost 2 strips. But you can save a strip if you tell the bus driver at Schiphol that you are continuing to Raamplaan (Overveen). He will then stamp you for 8 strips and you are good to go all the way without using any more strips, but you do need to change buses. To take the train from Schiphol Airport you buy a ticket in the airport lobby area, go down to the underground station, catch any train which stops in Amsterdam Sloterdijk (pronounced 'sloat er dike') station. There are 4 trains per hour with this stop. Get off, go down two levels to spoor (platform) 7, then catch the next train to Haarlem. You shouldn't have to wait more than 10 minutes for the connecting train. Total travel time is 40 to 45 minutes depending on how long you have to wait at Sloterdijk for the connecting train. The cost is €5.30 in 2nd class and €9.00 in 1st class from the airport to Haarlem. 2nd class is fine. You can also change at Amsterdam Centraal Station (after Sloterdijk) making the journey in about the same time and for the same price, BUT !! this station is more confusing for first time visitors and it is a rat's nest of professional beggars, pickpockets, baggage thieves, street druggists, and other lowlifes. As the signs in Amsterdam say, "Let op zakkenrollers!" "Watch out for pickpockets!" Also be careful on the train, especially just before it starts. Baggage thieves can grab your laptop and jump through the closing doors. This may sound alarming, but violent crimes like muggings and murder are rare in Amsterdam. A faster, and thus more expensive choice, is a taxi. For a solo traveler the best choice is probably the Schiphol Travel Taxi at €28.00 one way, €48 round trip, if you don't mind riding with another passenger. The price for two people is €37.80 OW and €64.80 RT. You can reserve at a minimum of 24 hours in advance on the website (English available; click the British flag after clicking Reserveren) http://www.schipholtraveltaxi.nl. Or you can phone 900-8876 (0.10€/min) in Holland or +31 38 339 4768 from outside Holland. From the Haarlem train station to B&B Paula: Bus service on the west side of Haarlem has declined in the last few years, and is still in a state of flux. The main bus depot is right outside the train station on the south side. Visit the small office on the west side to get particulars on service to Rollandslaan because the bus numbers change at irregular intervals. If you don't have a Nationale Strippenkaart yet buy one here. Click on Haarlem to see a map of the surroundings. Scroll up one click of the N arrow to the intersection of Ramplaan and Rollandslaan. That's where the bus stops, about 300 meters from my front door. The nearest train station is at Overveen. Zoom out three times on the map and you will see it about 1½km (one mile) away to the north. If you come to Overveen by train buy the complete ticket at Schiphol. There are two trains per hour (hh:01 and hh:31) to Overveen making the Sloterdijk connection. The cost is €5.60 in 2nd class and €9.50 in 1st class, on an intercity train. By train you might want to stop in the Albert Hein store next to the Overveen station to pick up some groceries. To visit Amsterdam from Haarlem: There are 6 trains per hour for an 18 minute trip from Haarlem station to Amsterdam Centraal Station. The cost is €6.40 from Haarlem for a round trip, 2nd class. From Overveen there are only two trains per hour (hh:24 and hh:54) and the cost is €7.00 RT. Strippenkaart is not valid on the train. Buy your ticket at one of the ticket windows in the east hallway of the train station or from one of the ticket machines you will see there. To view the schedules and other options throughout the Netherlands go to Nederlands Spoorwegen. For plenty of information about the Haarlem station click the link "Facilities per station" and put Haarlem in the field under "Enter another station" and click "Show information." For International Tickets and Holland Discount Tickets: Go to the NS (Nederland Spoorwegen, Netherlands Railways) International Tickets window in the Haarlem station. If you are scooting around Holland a lot you can buy a pass that will save you significantly for a week of travel. If you want to make a day trip to Brussels or Antwerp, buy a Super Dagretour (pronounced 'dahhg re tour') ticket and save a hefty percentage. Super tickets are valid for departures after 9:00 AM weekdays, but are not available on weekends or during July and August. Seniors, students, and children up to 12 years are eligible for discounts. Other Items - Cat in the house. - A small English language library. - Cable TV in your room. - Plenty of free street parking 5 steps from the front door. In Haarlem Haarlem is a beautiful and interesting city on the Spaarne River. Canals, of course, several famous museums and cathedrals, a medieval town square, plenty of restaurants in all categories, and a jovial nightlife make this city a jewel for visitors. Most of the people speak excellent English. Haarlem is very convenient to the popular North Sea beaches of Zandvoort and Bloemendaal, and the world famous Keukenhof Garden which comes alive for six dazzling weeks in April and May. If you are into this kind of stuff, it also has red lights and weed houses like Amsterdam, its big brother just down the road. Haarlem rates two stars, "worth a detour," in the Michelin Green Guide. In the surroundings of B&B Paula:
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Where is B&B Paula?
My home is located in a quiet pastoral neighborhood on the west side of Haarlem, circa 3 km (2 miles) from the city center. Click Haarlem for a Michelin map of the neighborhood. Use the zoom out negative sign to see a larger area and the compass points to move around in any direction. Print the map because even some of the taxi drivers have trouble finding my home! Mention the district Ramplaankwatier (rahmp lahn quar tee air) and it may help, but then again some of the taxi drivers live in other parts of the Netherlands and barely know the city. How's the weather? Current weather conditions in Holland can be found on several sites: Wunderground.com Michelin Additional weather information and sites. What is a euro worth? Euros for dollars The euro and current exchange rates in Europe. Type Ctrl d to bookmark this page. The original do-it-yourself travel guide to Europe. SM 
How To Europe The Complete Travelers Handbook by John Bermont enjoy-europe.com
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bbpaula@enjoy-europe.com Keywords for this page:
b&b bnb b and b holland haarlem
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