John Lennon and Yoko Ono's Amsterdam "Bed-In" suite to open doors
Amsterdam - Until now only well-off Beatles fans could afford to spend a night in the hotel suite used by John Lennon and Yoko Ono during their honeymoon.
But management at the Amsterdam Hilton are to allow members of the public to catch a glimpse of the famous suite where the newly-wed couple spent a week 40 years ago.
Beatles fans can visit the suite from March 21 to 29 when a number of events will be taking place including a photo exhibition about the "Bed-In for Peace."
"During the opening, we have decided to waiver any income from the suite," says the hotel's director, Roberto Payer. "We believe we owe that to the memory of John and Yoko's peace action."
Together with The Netherlands Beatles Fan Club, the hotel is supporting a number of events associated with the bed-in. Lennon and Ono began the so-called "bed-in" in Amsterdam on March 25, 1969 shortly after their wedding.
The suite bore the number 902 at the time, but after renovation, it became the 702 and the hotel markets it as the "John and Yoko Honeymoon Suite."
Couples can also wed there in a civil ceremony. The suite has been decorated by designers in the style typical of the 1960s. The room has its own logo which is based on a drawing by Lennon showing him embracing Ono.
The walls and windows are decorated with slogans the pair used during the bed-in as well as black and white photos taken by the press at the time. The suite's sound system is packed full of Lennon's songs from Imagine to Give Peace a Chance.
However, the bed is not the original. It has been replaced with a replica that conforms to "modern comfort demands", as the hotel's director puts it.
The John and Yoko Honeymoon Suite has been occupied over 4,000 times since the bed-in and costs 1,600 dollars a night. (dpa)