Rotterdam is the center of progressive European architecture, the second largest city in the Netherlands. It is very different from other Dutch settlements. If in Amsterdam, Leiden and The Hague all the attention is occupied by numerous canals, palaces and castles, then a walk around Rotterdam sends you into the future. The symbols of the city – from fantasy cubic houses to the monumental Erasmus Bridge and ironic monuments – seem to call for a new look at Europe.
In 1940, the center of Rotterdam was almost completely destroyed by German fighters, and after World War II, the Dutch immediately began rebuilding. The opportunity to rebuild the city gave rise to architectural experiments – houses and streets became the embodiment of functionalism, so popular in the middle of the 20th century.
This guide will help you get to know Rotterdam in just one day, without missing out on the main attractions, cozy corners and places popular among locals.
HOW TO GET THERE
Rotterdam can be reached by train, car or bus from European cities. The train is an ideal option: parking a car will be difficult and expensive, and the bus ride is quite long, and it does not arrive in the city center.
All railways in the Netherlands are centralized; you can find out train schedules from any city and purchase tickets on the website ns.nl. From Amsterdam the journey will take 40 minutes, trains run every 20-30 minutes during the day, once an hour at night. You can get from The Hague to Rotterdam either by train or by metro on a dedicated line; the cost of the trip will not differ. You will arrive at Rotterdam Central Station.
09:00 — ARRIVAL, WEINA AND STADHUIS
The train arrives at the Central Station in Rotterdam. Walk along the Weina street to the Hofplein square – you will pass between orderly rows of business centers. The largest port in Europe is located here, so many companies choose this city to locate their offices. When restoring Rotterdam, the architects were inspired by New York, so the entire business district is a kind of nod to the great city of skyscrapers.
From the square, your route will go along Coolsingel street – on the left you will see the Stadhuis, the town hall, and on the right – the shopping district. Stadhuis is one of the few places that survived the bombing in the center of Rotterdam. It is noteworthy that it was built only at the beginning of the 20th century – before that, the city government met for a long time in a mansion on Hoogstraat street. But the narrow alleys and the size of the building at some point became too unsuitable for the expanding city government.
10:00 — FLEA MARKET AND MARKTHALL
After going around the Stadhuis, turn left onto Meent and reach the Binnenrotte, which is more like a huge square. If you come on Tuesday or Saturday, you will find the city’s most famous flea market. Vintage dishes, antique furniture and decorative items are sold here for pennies.
On the right side of the street is a large horseshoe-shaped building – a complex of apartments and offices with a large city market, Markthall, where you can buy delicacies or have a snack in the food court. The interior of the building, the market’s ceiling, features the largest printed graphics in the world. The work “Cornucopia” is the size of two football fields. Interestingly, processing such an image required huge servers, which are usually used by the Pixar animation studio.
At the end of the square on the left you will see an unusual building decorated with multi-colored pipes – this is the city library, on the ground floor of which you can play giant chess, and right behind it is the famous complex of cubic houses.
Flea market: Binnenrotte, Tuesday, Saturday, 07:00-14:00
11:00 — CUBIC HOUSES
Cube houses are one of the most striking symbols of Rotterdam. Surely, you have already seen these unusual houses on the Internet more than once. Designed by Piet Blom in 1984, the buildings form the impossible Rutersvärd triangle. Each house has three floors – with the same sloping walls that you see from the outside of the building. You can evaluate the convenience of living in cubic houses in several ways: by visiting a museum, going on an excursion organized by the residents of the houses, or staying in an inexpensive hostel operating in one of them.
Cubic houses: Overblaak 70, 10:00-18:00
12:00 — OUDE HAVEN, COFFEE AND BUNS
After the cube houses, head to Oude Haven, a preserved piece of the old port tucked across the road. There are several good cafes and restaurants there, and in the summer there are terraces where you can admire the view of the port and the Willemsbrug bridge. It also offers views of the White House, a 10-story Art Nouveau building that is one of the Netherlands’ national treasures. This building is primarily notable for its height – it was believed that the soft soil, eroded by sea water, would not support a 10-story structure, so for additional stability, 1,000 beams were fixed into the ground, which support the building to this day.
13:00 — BRIDGE OF ERASMUS
After refreshing yourself, walk along the row of restaurants on the Oude Haven – you will come out on the embankment of the Meuse River. From here you can see the south of the city and the famous Erasmus Bridge, named after Erasmus of Rotterdam, one of the main thinkers of the Renaissance. Thanks to its unusual asymmetrical shape, it was nicknamed the “swan bridge”, and the architectural object itself became a modern symbol of Rotterdam.
Go along the embankment towards the bridge, and when you reach it, turn right – you will come out to the Kunsthall art museum, which is located in the museum park.
13:40 — MUSEUM PARK
Photo: Leonid Andronov/Shutterstock.com
Museumpark is a museum cluster and park where several of the city’s main exhibition venues are concentrated. The Kunsthall (museum of fine arts) is located here. Museum of Architecture, Design and Digital Culture, Art Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen and Sonnenveld House.
The Kunsthall hosts exhibitions of cutting-edge artists, and you can also attend a free workshop or open lecture. If you are in Rotterdam for one day, there will not be enough time to see all the attractions, so we advise you to find out the museum’s program in advance. Not interested in the exhibition? Just admire the Kunsthall from the outside: its building is one of the icons of modernism.
Boijmans Van Beuningen has a rich collection of paintings by European artists. Although the museum is currently closed for renovation, its exhibits are on display in various iconic buildings in Rotterdam, where they can be viewed for free.
The museum of architecture, design and digital culture will appeal to those who care about how the modern world and new technologies influence other areas of our lives.
The most remarkable museum in the park is the house of Sonnenveld, the famous functionalist architect. This four-story building was designed in the 30s of the last century, but thanks to its stunning stylization, its furnishings are still relevant today. All furniture has been specially color coordinated and designed to highlight other furnishings in the rooms, and the space itself is divided as functionally as possible.
The designers of the park thought about different visitors and types of leisure activities – in the summer in Museumpark you can relax on the grass in the shade, admiring the water and unusual sculptures. For lovers, there is a romantic “forest” area with a charming pedestrian bridge, and events are often held on the paved part of the park.
KUNSTHALL: Museumpark, Westzeedijk 341, Tue-Sat: 10:00-17:00, Sun: 11:00-17:00, closed Monday
Sonnenveld House: Jongkindstraat 12, 11:00-17:00, Tue-Sun
Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, Museumpark 18: under renovation
Museum of Architecture, Design and Digital Culture, Museumpark 25: Tue-Wed, Fri-Sun: 11:00-17:00, Thu: 11:00-21:00
17:30 CREATIVE CLUSTER WITTE DE WITH
Photo: trabantos/Shutterstock.com
From Museumpark, head to Eendrachtsweg with its picturesque canal. Here, at the turn onto Witte de Withstraat, you will see the popular coffee shop The 4 FLOORS, and if you turn right, don’t miss the DEARHUNTER store with rare vintage items – it is owned by a charming red-haired owner who herself finds unique items all over the world.
All the creative youth flock to Witte de With street in the evenings. The contemporary art center of the same name is located here, which regularly hosts thematic exhibitions and events. Thanks to this center, Witte de With street has become a concentration of the city’s creative class: there are many galleries, trendy cafes and interesting shops.
Don’t miss the opportunity to see the work of contemporary photographers, painters and sculptors – at Witte de With you can easily discover a new artist and turn your worldview upside down. On Fridays, the center hosts “art evenings,” and admission to the exhibitions is free. They are open until 9 pm.
You can grab a bite to eat in this area, for example, at the vegan concept restaurant Vegan Junk Food Bar. Drink a couple of cocktails at Spikizi bar, and dine at Warung Mini with a traditional Surinamese dish – roti flatbreads with meat and vegetables.
Center Witte de With, Witte de Withstraat 50, 11:00-18:00 Tue-Sun, until 21:00 on Fridays
22:00 WAY BACK
Go back to the central station along Eendrachtsweg. With the light of the evening lights reflected in the calm surface of the canal, your journey will be especially pleasant and will take no more than 10 minutes.
Note:
You can leave Rotterdam for another city at any time, so if you want to stay longer, go see the city skyline at night from the Euromast observation deck. If not, go straight to Witte de With to have time to have a good time.
Euromast, Parkhaven 20, 10:00-22:00 Mon-Sun.
Text author: Elizaveta Shulyndina
Find suitable hotels and inns easily on OneTwoTrip.
