amsterdam hostel booking

argh, why didn't anybody tell me that amsterdam will be expensive? hostels in amsterdam are at least twice as much as in london, and that's just during the week. weekend rates are near hotel prices for any other city. also, the availability is difficult to come by for seven nights at the same place. so, i guess i should have planned earlier, but i didn't expect hostels to fill up so fast. the hostels that are still available for the seven days do not have the best reviews and prices. so to get the best rate and best place, i'm splitting my time in amsterdam between two hostels. the first three nights will be spent at the Durty Nelly's Inn. the remaining four nights will be at the Aivengo Youth Hostel. in all, it came to about 275 USD. which comes to an average of 40 bucks a night, not too bad i suppose.