When we stepped out of Rotterdam Centraal, it immediately felt like we were on a different planet.
Gone were the short buildings and quaint canals of Amsterdam and Utrecht; they were replaced by skyscrapers and modern buildings.
The history of how this came to be is woven tightly into the fabric of Rotterdam. On the fourteenth of May, 1940, the German Luftwaffe dropped over 1,300 bombs completely destroying most of the city. There were only four buildings left in the historic city centre.
It was a warning of things to come to other Dutch cities if they did not surrender. They surrendered immediately.
The evening was spent sightseeing downtown.
Rotterdam was a one-night stop for us after a full day at the Tulip Festival. We had decided to stay in Rotterdam rather than head back to Utrecht because the journey to Belgium would have us connect in Rotterdam anyway.
Our arrival was later in the evening, about 7 p.m., so we wanted to make the most of the time we had there. The accommodations were close to the places we wanted to visit, so we had plenty of time to see what we wanted to do during our short stop.
After a quick check-in, we dropped our bags and freshened up.
There were still a couple of hours of daylight left to explore the few things we wanted to see. The few landmarks that were on our list were located just a short walk from where we were staying.
Although it was too late to actually enter any of them, we still had enough time to see them and take some photos.
We spent our evening in the area of the Maritime District. It was quiet and there weren’t many people about. Our sight-seeing list was short, but they were all situated near Blaak Station. Here you can find Markthal, a massive multi-purpose building with food, retail space and apartments.
It is also architecturally unique, with its horseshoe shape and glass facade allowing you to see through the building.
Across the square from Markthal, are the famous Cube Houses. These peculiar-shaped homes were built in the early 1980s by architect Piet Blom. One of the 38 cubes has been turned into a “show home” by an owner and is available to tour.
Stayokay has also opened a hostel in the complex and you can stay in a dorm bed (starting at €26/night), or you can rent a four-bed private room for €117/night. There are also Airbnbs available. If we return to Rotterdam in the future, we will definitely try to stay in the Cube Houses.
A tower we passed that we did not climb (only because it was closed).
The Grote of Saint-Laurenskerk (St. Lawerence Church) is also in the immediate area of Blaak Station. This church was left in ruins after the bombings in 1940, with only the tower and walls remaining. After years of deliberation, restoration was started as a symbol of the resilience of Rotterdam and completed in 1968.
There is no question, that taking a tour and climbing the tower will be on our list during our next visit. It still was incredible to be able to take in the exterior of this historic, gothic church that dates back to the 15th century.
The rest of our evening was spent walking down the Stadsdriehoek pier.
We walked along the Nieuwe Maas which we also had almost entirely to ourselves. From this pier, we were treated to an amazing view of the two bridges straddling the river. The Willemsbrug and the iconic Erasmusbrug (known locally as “The Swan”).
Just passed the Internationale Vlaggenparade (International Flag Parade) where you’ll find the flags of 174 nationalities represented in Rotterdam, was de Boeg, a World War II monument dedicated to the 3,500 sailors that lost their lives.
Late night food.
The accommodations we booked were located in a very busy section Witte de Wistraat. On this street, you can find pretty much any kind of food to satisfy your hunger. But beware, not every restaurant serves food late into the evening.
We enjoyed a very tasty meal (burgers of course) at Nieuw Rotterdam Cafe, which turns from a funky and fun restaurant to very loud nightclub as the night goes on. It may not have been our first choice of restaurant, but due to the late hour, most had stopped serving food.
This is definitely something to consider when visiting Rotterdam.
Our first night in a hostel.
I know that I haven’t mentioned the hotels that we stayed at during our travels – we are building an entire section of this website for reviews. But it is worth mentioning that we stayed in a hostel that night.
I had an idea of what that would be like based on almost no information. But, let me tell you – I was dead wrong. The interior of the hostel was modern and very clean and although the washrooms and showers were shared, they were private and spotless. We booked a private room to avoid sharing sleeping accommodations with strangers.
These were referred to as pods. It was a very accurate description, they were most definitely pods. There was enough room to stand up when entering the pod, but the bed was underneath the bed in the pod next door. They were strange, but modern and had some neat tech in them (including RFID wristbands to open the doors).
It was a good enough space to rest up and get ready for the next leg of our tour; we were about to experience Belgium.
If you’re looking for our suggestions on where to eat and drink in Rotterdam, click here!
If you’re looking for how to see Rotterdam in one day, click here!