• Understand
• Do
• Buy
• Eat
• Drink
• Smoke
• Get out
• Stay in touch

Erasmus bridge of Rotterdam

Rotterdam [1] is an industrial and commercial city in the Netherlands and part of the Randstad. There are approximately 600,000 people living in the city.

[edit] Understand

The city was known for having the world's largest harbour, but lost the title in 2004 to Shanghai. It is the second largest city in The Netherlands after Amsterdam, which lies approximately 50 miles (80 kilometres) to the north. The city's street scenery is characterized by the large presence of people from North Africa, Turkey and the former Dutch colonies of Suriname, The Netherlands Antilles and Indonesia. The people tend to live together harmoniously, despite recent tensions between the native Dutch and Muslim population in The Netherlands.

It may feel difficult to get in touch with the heart of Rotterdam; its natural centre was bombed away during WW2, forcing the city to renew itself completely. The result is a lot of modern architecture (for the architect freaks amongst us a must see!), but also a city that does not really have a heart or a centre. It might be a good idea to discover this city with a local guide. One may also find that visiting this city in spring or summer time is more enjoyable than in winter time, as Holland is a very rainy place and Rotterdam is a city that especially gains a lot of charm when the sun is shining.

When well prepared, Rotterdam is a place one can experience The Netherlands and Europe's mainland like one could never experience it any other place!

[edit] Get in

[edit] By plane

Rotterdam is served by a small airport (Template:IATA [2]) with direct flights from selected cities in Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom. It would possibly be a better deal if you fly to Amsterdam Schiphol Airport (Template:IATA [3]) and take the train to Rotterdam Centraal, which would take about 50 minutes.

• KLM Cityhopper [4] flies to Rotterdam from London (London Heathrow Airport).
• Transavia [5] flies to Rotterdam from London (London Stansted Airport), Paris Orly and Rome (Fiumicino Airport).
• VLM Airlines [6] flies to Rotterdam from Hamburg (Hamburg Airport), London (London City Airport) and Manchester (Manchester International Airport).

RET's city bus 33 runs regularly to the city center and takes you there in about 20 minutes for a fare of EUR 2.70.

[edit] By train

Rotterdam is served by an international rail link, operating out of Rotterdam Centraal, from Belgium and France. High-speed trains from Antwerp (Antwerpen-Berchem, 59 min), Brussels (Brussels Midi, 1 h 41 min) and Paris (Paris Nord, 3 h 11 min) are operated by Thalys [7]. Book well in advance to secure the best ticket deals. Beyond that, a (slightly) slower and cheaper intercity service, operated by Nederlandse Spoorwegen [8], links Rotterdam Centraal to Antwerp (Antwerpen Centraal, 1 h 3 min), Mechelen (Mechelen, 1 h 27 min) and Brussels (Brussels Midi, 1 h 57 min).

Rotterdam is also well served by trains from other parts of the Netherlands, with direct connections to Amsterdam, Delft, Eindhoven, Gouda, Leiden, The Hague, Utrecht and Vlissingen.

For onward travel Rotterdam Centraal is well served by buses, tramways, the underground and taxis.

[edit] By car

Rotterdam is easily reached by car. From Amsterdam take the A4 South to The Hague, change to the A13 to Rotterdam. From Utrecht take the A12 and change to the A20 just after Gouda.

• Parking

Unfortunately Rotterdam has a very unfriendly parking system. On the street it's only possible to pay with a chipping card (Chipknip), buy a parking card at City Store in the City Hall on the Coolsingel (but you also have to pay for parking overhere) and on some parking devices by credit card. There is no option to pay cash.

• Pay by credit card

Some street parking devices accept credit cards. These are recognisable by the credit card logo's (American Express, Visa or Mastercard) on top of the devices. Most are available close to tourist attractions, hotels and the shopping areas.

• Pay with prepaid chipping card

This chippingcard can be bought at various locations. The nearest location is mentioned on the parking device.

• Parking garage

Alternative is parking in a parking garage though they charge higher parking rates. Here you can pay in cash or with credit card.

• Free parking outside the center

The best is to park at a Park & Ride (P&R) parking outside the center of Rotterdam, but always nearby public transport. There are four secure Park & Ride sites on the edge of the city (Slinge A15, Hoogvliet A15, Kralingse Zoom A16/E19 and Alexander A20/E25). These parking territories are free. There is a metro station next to each site. The metro will get you into the city centre in a matter of minutes.

[edit] By bus

Eurolineslink Rotterdam with various cities of Europe. The Eurolines buses arrive in front of Rotterdam Central Station.

[edit] By boat

You can also get to Rotterdam by ferry from the United Kingdom.

• P&O Ferries [9] has a daily overnight sailing from Kingston Upon Hull to Rotterdam Europoort. From Rotterdam Europoort P&O Ferries operates a shuttle bus service that takes you to the city center of Rotterdam. Please book this shuttle service while you book your sailing.
• StenaLine [10] has a daily day as well as a daily overnight sailing from Harwich to Hoek van Holland. From Hoek van Holland Haven you have a connecting rail service to Rotterdam Centraal that takes you to the city center of Rotterdam in 30 minutes at a fare of EUR 4.80.

[edit] Get around

Rotterdam has a tramway and a metro system. However, getting around by bike is still the fastest way to get from A to B within the city. The public transport system in Rotterdam is very well organized. There is a subway, buses and an extensive system of short distance city trains: Trams.

If you are not sure about which kind of public transporation route that you should take, you may find an advice on OV9292. Unfortunately, this website is only in Dutch. But the website is quite easy to use.

Subway Metros (Dutch name for Subway) depart every 4 minutes at daytime. In the evening they depart every 15 or 30 minutes. The Subway only has two lines but can take you far into the suburbs of the city.

Buses depart less often than trams or metros and bus-stops are not to be found on every street corner. The good thing though: they go a long distance, even into other surrounding cities and towns. If you want to find your way within the city you are best of traveling by Tram. There are plenty of lines and stops all over the city. The Tram allows you to travel quick and easy.

Except for buses on Friday and Saturday night there is no public transportation after midnight. A ticket for this bus costs EUR 4.50, but is still cheaper than a cab. A one-way ticket costs EUR 4.50.

For using public transport you once needed to buy a 'Nationale Strippenkaart' and these may still be available until the end of 2007. Every time you take the bus, tram or subway you stamp 1 strip per zone plus 1 extra strip (The city is divided into zones). If you want to be sure just ask the conductor or the driver how much you have to stamp. You can buy your strippenkaart at any news stand, tobacco store, Train or subway station. If you don’t have a strippenkaart and you still want to travel by tram or bus, you can always buy a one way ticket in any tram or bus for EUR 1.60. Just ask the driver or the conductor.

As of June 2007 however, Rotterdam began phasing in "chipkaarts" are credit card-like passes which can be loaded with up to EUR 20.00 at machines in most metro stations. The chipkaarts can be purchased at the Rotterdam Centraal and Beurs metro stations, or online. These cards can be used on the metro, buses, and trams. Note that you must check in AND out in order for your fare to be recorded correctly. If you forget and the balance gets fouled up, eventually the card will stop working and in order to reactivte it, you will need to go the RET window in Beurs metro station.

The cards are available in anonymous versions and personal versions. The personal version can be canceled and replaced if lost, but also allows your movements to be tracked through the transport system.

It is not recommended to travel by tramway, bus, or metro without a valid ticket of some type. All of these have attendants which will conduct spot checks at random. If you cannot show a valid ticket you will be fined EUR 35 plus fare.

[edit] Bus

Three companies operate buses in Rotterdam, RET [11], ARRIVA [12] and Connexxion [13]. These three companies share the same bus stops, but the route numbers are not interchangeable. RET is the larger operator in the city itself, while ARRIVA and Connexxion service areas outside the city.

[edit] Tramway

[edit] Underground

The subway system is only partly under ground. It consists of two lines, which are branched at their extremes. The two line cross at the combined stations "Beurs" and "Churchill Plein" not far from the city centre (or as you like "at the edge of"). To get access, you either need to buy a "Nationale Strippenkaart" (a long piece of paper, divided into strips which you get validated by placing stamps; get someone to help you) or a Chip Card which is a debit card that you hold next to a terminal to check in. Don't forget to "check out" when you leave the station on arrival! The plan is to have the Chip Card the only means of access; this is expected to be effectuated by the end of 2007.

[edit] Water taxi

Rotterdam was built on a number of islands and if you want to travel from shore to shore, the nicest way to go is to take the Water Taxi. This speedboat will escort you over the Maas to the Northern Island and back to the Mainland. They have more than 250 landing stages. Call Watertaxi Rotterdam [14] at +31 (10) 403 03 03 or check their website.

[edit] Taxi

Of course, you can also travel by taxi. But Rotterdam is not very big for taxis. Even if you don’t have a car it is still very easy to get around by bike or public transport. But if you do need a taxi you will have to find yourself a taxi rank or call a taxi companies like the Rotterdamse Taxi Centrale RTC N.V. [15] at +31 (10) 462 60 60 or the Coöperatieve Taxi Onderneming St. Job u.a. [16] at +31 (10) 425 70 00. There is a minimum taxi fare of EUR 7.50. This includes the first two kilometers. Additionally, each subsequent kilometer is charged EUR 2.20.

[edit] See

City Hall

[edit] Museums

old harbour

[edit] Zoo and botanical garden

[edit] Do

older house in old harbour

• <see name="Euromast" address="Parkhaven 20" phone="+31 (10) 436 48 11" email="info@euromast.nl" fax="" hours="Mon-Sun: 10:00 am - 11.00 pm" price="Adult: EUR 8.30; child 4-11: EUR 5.40; child under 4: free entry" url="http://www.euromast.nl/english"></see>

• Ínternational Film Festival Rotterdam[17] (IFFR) is an annual film festival held in various cinemas at the end of January. It is one of the larger film festivals in Europe.

• The kuip, football stadium of the club Feyenoord( http://www.feyenoord.nl/ )

• The area around train station Blaak. The area was destroyed by a German bombardment during World War II, forcing the Netherlands to surrender. After the war, it has been reconstructed with all kinds of strange and fascinating buildings. Especially the Cube Houses are worth seeing. The marketplace is also here on each Tuesday, Saturday (all year around) and every Sunday (in the summer), it is definitely worth a visit to get acquainted with local food and customs. And the 'Old Harbour'(Oude Haven) is around the corner for a drink and a bite to eat.

• Chinatown. Just walk out the front of Rotterdam central station and to the first intersection. You can't miss it!

• Nightlife: Nightlife in Rotterdam is extremely various, every subculture has its own area in the city. The ‘Oude Haven' close to the 'Kubuswoningen' and the main market square 'Blaak' is the hang out spot for business, economic and law students. The cafés and restaurants in the Oude Haven (Old Harbour) are located around a picturesque little harbour. Scenery of water, city lights, boats and 'Het Witte Huis', the first skyscraper of Europe (1897). The atmosphere is really great and it is best to go when the sun sets, very romantic! Great place for a night out.

The most lively bar area in town is Eendrachtsplein/ Nieuwe Binnenweg. Alternative, easy going and full of friendly, open-minded people. The cafés you should be looking for are Stalles, Parket and Rotown. This is the place to be for the more creative orientated people, musicians, designers and artschool students. Walk down de Nieuwe Binnenweg and arrive at Café Ari (Nieuwe Binnenweg/ Mathenesserlaan) and Westerpaviljoen (grand café with the best terrace in the city). This is a good place to start the evening. Walk a little bit (3 minutes) down the Binnenweg again and go left at ‘s-Gravendijkwal (you'll see the flashy neon lights of sexclub OQ). Across the street you'll find Jazz Cafe Dizzy. A great place for a quality beer and some live jazz music. You can also eat at almost all places mentioned. Now walk back the Binnenweg up eastbound. Cross Eendrachtsplein and go to the right towards the Westersingel. Walk 3 minutes and on your left there is the Witte de Withstraat. Some nice café's like De Witte Aap, Mondriaan, Bar P, and De Schouw are located here, along with some good restaurants as well. This is also the most arty street of Rotterdam. Here you'll find Witte de With Center for Contemporary Art [18], MAMA, showroom for media and moving art [19] and many more. Drinking in style! If you're into loud music, your best option would be to go to "de Baroeg" (http://www.baroeg.nl) at the "Spinozaweg" in Rotterdam-Lombardijen. Loads of heavy metal acts play here each year. Should you not feel like making your way all the way into sub-urbia, you could also try your luck at the "Rhythem" on Oude Binnenweg. A popular hang out of alternative types.

• Discos: Rotterdam has some of the best discos and dancings in the Netherlands, but you might need help finding them! Most are situated in or around either the "Delftsestraat" or the "Stadhuisplein" (both at subway station "Stadhuis", Erasmus-line).

One notable exception is Now&Wow, an extremely trendy disco situated in the old grainsilos at subway station "Maashaven". Check out their website at http://www.now-wow.com

• There are two huge megacinemas. The one in the city centre is called Pathé Schouwburgplein (located at the Schouwburgplein), the other one is on the southside of the city. It's called Pathé De Kuip (located next to the Feyenoord stadium De Kuip). In these cinemas you can see Hollywood movies an occasionally an arthouse movie.

• The Snerttram runs on weekends and provides a guided tour of Rotterdam along the tram routes for around 90 minutes. Extensive commentary is given in Dutch, but you can get some English too if requested. [20]

If you're more into alternative cinema go to Lantaren/ Venster Cinema (Gouvernestraat 133). Here you'll get European, Asian and latin american cinema in a nice atmosphere.

The other option is Cinerama (Westblaak 18) which shows a combination of art/house films and commercial Hollywood flicks.

[edit] Buy

shoppin area at the Bourse

Dutch cheese is very famous, you can get some in Albert Heijn grocery stores or wider variety at the marketplace.

Stroopwafels.

All kinds of drop.

[edit] Eat

Try the following website for independent reviews an a Top Ten: http://www.iens.nl/english/restaurantsIn/Rotterdam/

The area around metrostation Blaak, called "Oude haven" (Old Harbour), is not only worth seeing but has also a lot of pubs and restaurants.

• Stalles

This café at the Nieuwe Binneweg offers pizza's for € 4,50 - 7,-- on Mondays and Tuesdays. The atmosphere in the restaurant is relaxed and friendly. The menu furthermore features salads, sandwiches, tapas and more... The owner also owns Club Vibes, around the corner. Nieuwe Binnenweg 9, tel: 010 4361655

• Rotown

This is 'the' place in town for creative people. Or it used to be, because lots of people now go to the next-door café's Stalles and Parket. Rotown has a restaurant with decent food for a decent price. The daily changing menu (meat, fish and vegeterian) costs around € 9,-- and usually you'll get something nice. After eating you can go watch a band or drink your drink in the café. Nieuwe Binnenweg 19, tel: 010 4362669

• Café Restaurant Sijf

Very nice old-looking bar. They also serve food for a reasonable price and most of the food is home made. Try the grilled beef with Spanish pepper and garlic! Or have one of their great sandwiches or salads. Wanna have a nice Belgium beer that gets u all fuzzy? They have a awesome Belgium beer called “la Chouffe”(the midget) on draft…Very tasty!!! In weekend open till 2:00. A good start for the evening. Oude Binnenweg 115

• Zinc Restaurant

Located in a very pleasant area called "Veerhaven"

[edit] Drink

• Stalles

A small bar next to Parket. They serve a large variety of single malt whiskys. It's pretty small, but very cosy. Nieuwe Binnenweg 11a

• Will’ns en Wetens

Forgot your name, can hardly walk, and had so much beer that you can’t see the difference between your socks and underpants? No worries! When all bars are closed you can always go to the Will’ns en Wetens. You don’t want to be around there when you're sober, you don’t want to be around there when you hate drunk people and maybe even under the influence of other products, but you DO wanna be around when you like burping, like whiskey (40 kinds), like weird conversations, and like Heineken! Open till the last person walks out. Nieuwe Binnenweg 111-A

• Grand café Westerpaviljoen

Rotterdammers like to read their newspaper here. For a solid breakfast (Dutch “wentelteefjes”), good lunch, or a fast meeting Westerpaviljoen is a perfect place. Hang out on their huge and fantastic terrace, drink a nice glass of Amstel or Hoegaarden White beer. Open till 2:00 in the weekend. Nieuwe Binnenweg 136

• Le Vagabond

Le Vagabond is the oldest, but best bar of the Binnenweg. It attracts a mixed crowd of musicians, journalists, students and travellers. The atmosphere is very laid back during the afternoon, but at night there are various activities being organised. Thursdays and saturdays there are DJ's who organise HipHop and Britpop parties which are definitely worth a visit if you want to party it up. Every sunday there is live music by a great variety of bands.

• Pol Bar

Nice looking bar with modern solid patio. Crowd can be sort of posh sometimes, but don’t let that scare you to much. Right next to the market (Thuesday and Thursday), and they won some prices with their sandwiches. In weekends open till 2:00. Meent 46-48

• Exit

A fairly recently opened bar. It's located on Mauritsstraat (not to be confused with Mauritsweg!). On Thursday through Saturday this place offers live music. Most of the bands you'll find here are new yet-to-be-discovered-soon type of bands. You may be charged a small cover charge, but most of the time it is worth it.

• O'Shea's Irish Pub

Located on Lijnbaan. This Irish pub is in many ways quite typical. On Friday and Saturday nights the place is quite often overflowing with a decent mixture of the average going-out-partying type of young men and ladies. Tuesday nights they host a pub quiz with prizes to be won. On most other nights it's a bit more quiet and you can meet some interesting characters in there. Thursday through Saturday this place hosts live music which can be anything between really good and sheer crap. If you're lucky there might be a jam session on Sunday nights which usually is enjoyable. Under the new management it has lost its original atmosphere and it's more of a Dutch pub now.

• Dynamo

Muzikantencentrum Dynamo is a place which rents out rehearsal rooms and a studio to musicians. It also has a bar that operates as late as the bar staff decide to make it. It is located a bit of the beaten track and is one of Rotterdam's secrets (over 95% of the locals don't even know about it!). It's location won't be disclosed here, but if you're lucky enough you might find someone who can take you there.

[edit] Smoke

As everywhere in Holland, the posession and use of cannabis (hash and weed) is tolerated (note that it is NOT technically legal!) in Rotterdam. In fact, since most tourists only visit Amsterdam and never come to Rotterdam you can get a lot better stuff for a lot less money in Rotterdam. Some prime places to go for good quality weed are:

• Coffeeshop "De lachende paus" (Nieuwe Binnenweg) A shop where you can buy over 40 kinds of pre-rolled joints ('voorgedraaide' in Dutch). The prices can be high, but it's worth a visit.

• Coffeeshop "Pluto" (Nieuwe Binnenweg 139a)

Actually a headshop. They also sell loads of paraphernalia like pipes, bongs etc. Great as a gift!

• Coffeeshop "Bambu" (Bergweg)

Located on two sides of the Bergweg/Noordsingel-cross, this coffeeshop is part of a really good franchise. Good quality at reasonable prices.

• Coffeeshop "Greenhouse" (Nieuwe Binnenweg)

Ditto

• Coffeeshop "The Reefer" (De Meent, City center)

• Coffeeshop "The Pool" (Westersingel, 5m from Central Station) A nice Coffeeshop located on the 1st floor where you can sit and relax by a table or bar. Or play some pool on the 2nd and 3rd floor.

• Coffeeshop the "Act" / Cafe "De Nieuwe Wet" (Westerwagenstraat)

Since the mid '90s the sale of alcohol and cannabis in the same place has been made illegal. The natural solution? Split your coffeeshop and pub into two separate entities, with only one door.

• Coffeeshop "Nimo" (Nieuwe Binnenweg)

Unlike many coffeeshops this place is bright, open and airy with large windows and comfortable seats; the walls are covered in a (Disney) Nimo-esque montage and the music is more relaxed than many coffeeshops. A good place for someone wanting something softer than many other coffeeshops.

One word of warning: since Rotterdam isn't such a tourist city as Amsterdam, the local police could give someone smoking in public a hard time. Never forget: smoking in public is forbidden, even in Holland!

[edit] Sleep

[edit] Budget

[edit] Hostel

[edit] Hotel

[edit] Mid-range

[edit] Splurge

[edit] Stay safe

[edit] Get out

• Take a day trip out to the Delta Works in Zeeland
• A nice day trip is the windmills of Kinderdijk, where 19 windmills still help to control the water level. Windmill number 2 is open to the public (EUR 3), allowing you to see the inner workings. Arriva bus 90 from bus station Zuidplein will get you there in 50 minutes. Kinderdijk is also accessible by boat from the city centre (near Erasmus bridge).
• Go to the other cities of the Randstad - eg The Hague is only half an hour by train.
• Most of the Netherlands is quite accessible from Rotterdam, it's not such a large country; eg Utrecht is around 45 mins by train, Amsterdam about an hour.
• There is a small hill at Carnisselande, near the final stop of Tram route 25. It's only 30 feet high but if you climb to the top it gives you breathtaking views of the entire city of Rotterdam, and the countryside to the South of it

[edit] Stay in touch

• <listing name="easyInternetcafé" address="Stadhuisplein 16-18" phone="" email="" fax="" hours="Mon-Sat: 9 am-11 pm;

Sun: 11 am - 11 pm" price="" url="http://www.easyeverything.com/map/rot.html"></listing>

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