The OMA / Reinier de Graaf-designed nhow Amsterdam RAI Hotel has reached its highest point of construction at a height of 91 meters. With 25 floors and 650 hotel rooms, it will be the largest hotel in the Benelux. Located next to the RAI Amsterdam Convention Center, and connected via an underground concourse, nhow Amsterdam RAI will be a high-quality headquarter hotel for visitors, exhibitors, speakers and organizing teams onsite.
The hotel, operated under NH Hotel Group’s nhow brand family (NH Hotel Group), will also serve as a new hub for business travellers, tourists and Amsterdam locals alike, with high-end gastronomy, spa facilities, meeting and conference rooms and lounges.
Photo © Walter Herfst
Lead designer Reinier de Graaf: “Amsterdam taxi drivers are the kind of people who tell you their honest opinion. Whenever we pass the RAI Nhow Hotel, their unsolicited comments are positive without exception. As the architect, I take this as a big compliment.”
With its three characteristic triangular volumes, stacked in such a way that the floor plan of the building rotates 60 degrees with each ascending volume, the design takes inspiration from the once-famous triangular advertisement post called ‘Het Signaal’ (The Signal) on Europaplein, the square in front of the RAI.
Image © OMA 
Image © OMA
Gert-Wim Bos from COD: “The building looks astonishing and already makes welcome addition to the Amsterdam skyline. This has been an immensely complicated project, but we are delighted with the progress made. We are on track for an early 2020 opening.”
Bas van Dam, CEO at Being Development: “The topping out ceremony is a culmination of a lot of hard work by the team, there were a lot of challenges with this project, which required everyone involved to pull together to make it happen, it is great to see that the end is finally in sight.” Source by OMA.
Image © OMA
- Location: Amsterdam, Netherlands
- Architect: OMA
- Partner-in-Charge: Reinier de Graaf, Rem Koolhaas (competition)
- Associate in charge: Michel van de Kar
- Competition Team Phase 1: Anton Anikeev, Marc -Achille Filhol, Alain Fouraux, Mark Veldman, Peter Rieff Phase 2: Eugenia Bevz, Geraldine van Dijk, Alain Fouraux, Aris Gkitzias, Hans Larsson, Stavros Gargaretas, Yushang Zhang
- Schematic Team: Marc-Achille Filhol, Alain Fouraux, Michel van de Kar, Roza Matveeva, Jonathan Telkamp
- Design Development Team: Ido den Boer, Paloma Bule, Katrien van Dijk, Alain Fouraux, Michel van de Kar, Edward Nicholson, Lukasz Skalec, Magdalena Stanescu
- Contractor: Pleijsierbouw, G&S Bouw BV
- Structure: Van Rossum Raadgevende Ingenieurs
- MEP & Vertical circulation: Techniplan Adviseurs BV
- BREEAM consultant: Techniplan Adviseurs BV
- Fire consultant: Royal HaskoningDHV
- Acoustic consultant: Royal HaskoningDHV
- Client: COD (Cradle of Development)
- Status: Construction
- Photographs: Walter Herfst, Courtesy of OMA
Photo © Walter Herfst 
Image © OMA Image © OMA Image © OMA 
Image © OMA 
Image © OMA Image © OMA 
Image © OMA 
Image © OMA
