Things to Do in Rotterdam

Transportation by Train in the Netherlands

I travelled to Rotterdam from Maastricht by train on Friday evening. Even though I had to change trains in Eindhoven, it was quite easy to do so due the fact that my train arrived on time. There is no specific time on the train tickets in the Netherlands, you only buy it for the relevant day. If you buy the ticket in advance, you have to download the NS app or print the ticket. Taking a photo from your phone or downloading it and showing it is not valid. In some stations, you have to scan your ticket to enter to the station in Maastricht, but I scanned it to exit the station in Rotterdam.

Rotterdam Airport

The Rotterdam airport is a fairly small one but the best part is that there is a terrace area on the upper floor. The duty free was not big either in the departure section. You can reach the airport or the city from the airport by bus number 33. You can pay with a contactless credit card, you have to scan your credit card when you get on and off the bus. It departs from Rotterdam Central station to go to the airport, and since it is a central point on your way back from the airport, you can get off here. My hotel was within walking distance to the station, but there are also metro and tram options from the station.

Where to Stay in Rotterdam?

I stayed at The James Hotel in Rotterdam, I think it was very advantageous in terms of location. Any place around the Forum would be central. The James was also more luxurious than I thought, I stayed on the 14th floor and had a full city view from my room. I was also lucky to get a free room upgrade and stay in a very large room.

Places to See in Rotterdam

Museum Park

All the museums in Rotterdam are gathered in one area. Even if you are not going to the museums, the park in front of it and the surrounding areas are quite nice, I recommend you pass through here. Since Kunsthal is a modern art museum, you can decide according to the temporary exhibitions held at the time.
Boijmans Van Beuningen Museum resembles a flower pot from the outside and is ideal for taking your own photos since its exterior is like a mirror. They said the rooftop was nice for the city view, but it could only be visited for free after 6pm from Thursday to Saturday. There are also different museums, you can plan according to your interests.

Het Park

Het Park was one of the spots I enjoyed the most in Rotterdam. It offers a pleasant walk with its tall trees, spreading grass, puddles in the middle and ducks. You are also allowed to have a barbecue in one part, if you wonder why the smoke is coming out, you are probably close to that part. There are also cafes inside.

Markthall

Although Markthall is a place where different food options are offered like in other cities, its attraction lies in its exterior and interior design rather than with its food options. Although its exterior looks different in terms of architecture, I can say that the wall art inside impressed me much more.
An open market is set up in front of Markthall on Tuesdays and Saturdays. My friends from Rotterdam said that they usually do their home shopping at this market, and that the cheeses are tastier than those sold in markets. There are also clothing, food, bag, fruit and vegetable stalls and most of them accept credit cards. There was a building with an interesting architecture right across from Markthall, I later learned that it was the central library.

Cube Houses

I can say that Cube Houses are the most well-known tourist spot in Rotterdam. The yellow cubic houses reminded me of my days at Toys’r’Us. While I was little, I’d go into all the miniature houses designed for children and play there for hours. Of course, although these houses look miniature, they are not very small, there are actually people living in them. You can even go inside one of them for a reasonable price, but my Turkish friend living in the Netherlands said that the interior design of the house was not unique and that it was the same as a standard house, so I did not. If you wish, you can visit the hostel.

Wittehuis

This was the tallest building in Europe in 1897, it is one of the rare buildings that remained after the bombing of Rotterdam. Since many buildings were redesigned after the bombing, they have a very modern and architecturally different appearance. Although it is not a must-see, it is a nice building and it is very close to the Cube Houses. You can even take a nice photo of it from the Cube Houses as well.

Delfshaven

Delfshaven was one of the places I enjoyed the most, because it is like a separate town with its small stone houses lined up by the canal like in the Dutch cities we know. I really enjoyed walking along both sides of the canal in the part marked on the map as Historishe Delfshaven, there are also many restaurants and cafes by the canal.

Historische Tuin Schoonoord

And now it is time for the Rotterdam’s Zen spot. I call it a Zen spot because it is very small park but extremely peaceful. It is located right next to Het Park, but there are certain opening and closing hours, be sure to check before going. You can sit and meditate for hours, write. You can get lost in the thousands of shades of green. The different bird sounds coming from the bird cage also contribute to the Zen effect. There weren’t many people when I went there on Sunday afternoon, it was quite enjoyable.

Stadhuis Rotterdam

I discovered the city hall while passing by at night and thinking “oh what a beautiful building, I wonder what kind of building it is”. I liked the decorations and the magnificence on it. People actually praised the interior and especially the garden, but I didn’t have the chance to go inside.

De Verwoeste Stad

When the Nazis bombed the city in 1940, they didn’t expect the Dutch to resist. They bombed and destroyed the entire historical center, and then the Dutch surrendered. In memory of that period, French/Belarusian artist Ossip Zadkine made this statue in the form of a heartless man. The lack of a heart symbolizes the destruction of the city center of Rotterdam, a heartless city.

Churches in Rotterdam

Citykerk Het Steiger Sint Dominicus was one of the most interesting when viewed from the outside, I looked at the map while passing by the building and surprised to find out it was indeed a monastery.

Very close to Markthall is the most magnificent church, Stichting Grote Kerk de Rotterdam, I especially liked its back door; I recommend you take a tour around it.

Apart from these, there are other churches, but these were the most interesting ones for me.

Wall Art in Rotterdam

Although Rotterdam is not very rich in terms of wall art, it might still surprise you occasionally, for example, there was one on Witte de Withstraat, next to the Biergarten… When you search for mural on the map, there seems to be more in the area around Rotterdam Central Station, you can visit the marked points there. Unfortunately, I could not go after the mural this time since I had little time.