Rotterdam

This western Dutch city is located in the province of South Holland. With a population of over 617,000 people in the municipality and roughly 1.3 million people in its metropolitan region, it is the country’s second biggest city. Erasmus University, cutting edge architecture, bustling cultural life, magnificent riverbank backdrop, maritime history, and colorful summer festivities make Rotterdam one of Europe’s most dynamic and diversified towns.

On May 14, 1940, Nazi Germany bombed Rotterdam, forcing the Dutch troops to surrender. The Luftwaffe bombed the center of Rotterdam, resulting in the deaths of 900 civilians and the displacement of 80,000 people. From the 1950s until the 1990s, Rotterdam had a slow but steady reconstruction process. Modern architecture in Rotterdam has emerged from daring and novel designs for residences, office buildings, and leisure facilities.

Rotterdam has a unique vibe compared to other Dutch cities. ‘Can-do’ is the greatest way to characterize the mindset. Everybody you encounter, from the waiters to the merchants to the individuals who have just come as refugees, has an infectious optimism about the future. The city’s hustle, contemporary appearance, and development binge all contribute to this image. However, you may sometimes come across folks who are a little too honest with you. And, yeah, the city isn’t the most pleasant place to be on a dreary winter’s day, either. However, if you get to know this little city, which is easier to do during days of a festival with great weather, you will fall in love with it.

SHOPPING

The Lijnbaan retail complex (the country’s first collection of pedestrian streets, completed in 1953), the Hoogstraat, the Coolsingel with the city hall, and the Weena, which runs from the Central Station to the Hofplein are all well-known streets in Rotterdam (square). The Beurstraverse (“Stock Exchange Traverse”), often known as the ‘Koopgoot’ (‘Buying/Retail Gutter’, due to its underground location), which spans the Coolsingel below street level, is a contemporary shopping center. The Kruiskade is a more affluent shopping strip, including stores such as Michael Kors, 7 For All Mankind, Calvin Klein, Hugo Boss, Tommy Hilfiger, and the well-known Dutch men’s clothing company Oger. De Bijenkorf’s main store is another upmarket shopping destination. The Market Hall, a bit farther east, has a variety of small merchants within. This hall is also a well-known architectural landmark in Rotterdam.

The primary commercial area in Rotterdam’s south is Zuidplein, which is next to Ahoy’ Rotterdam, an accommodation center for shows, exhibits, athletic events, concerts, and conventions. Another well-known retail area, Alexandrium (often still referred to by its old name Oosterhof), is located to the east of Rotterdam. It has a huge kitchen as well as a furnishing store.

TOURIST INFORMATION

• Rotterdam Info (VVV) (Tourist office), Coolsingel 114 (Metro: Beurs, at the garden of the Schielandshuis), +31 10 790 01 85, e-mail:info@rotterdam.info. 09:30-18:00. This freshly remodeled tourist information center provides a wealth of resources, including city maps, mini guidebooks, and other mementos, as well as advice on what to see and do while in Rotterdam. Visitors may also purchase concert tickets, souvenirs, public transportation and parking passes at Rotterdam.info. Check the webpage to see if there are any planned activities.
• Rotterdam Info Central Station, Stationsplein 20 (main entrance to the Rotterdam Centraal Station). 09:00-17:30. You may find out what section of the city you want to see with the aid of the service desk, a variety of tourist information packets, and the personnel. City map, several informative booklets and brochures, and the Rotterdam Welcome Card are all available.

Rotterdam is a city that thrives when the sun is shining, and it may be more fun to visit in the spring or summer than in the winter, since the Netherlands can be a wet region.

To get from one end of Rotterdam to the other, one must travel through the Beneluxtunnel, the Maastunnel, the Erasmusbrug, a subway tunnel, the Willemspoortunnel, the Willems railway tunnel, the Willemsbrug, the Koninginnebrug, and the Van Brienenoordbrug. The river Nieuwe Maas divides Rotterdam in two. The old lift bridge De Hef (‘the Lift’) is maintained as a monument between the North Island (‘Northern Island’) and the south of Rotterdam in its raised position.

In recent years, urban growth has stretched the city center to the northern section of southern Rotterdam, known as De Kop van Zuid (‘the Head of South’, i.e. the northern half of southern Rotterdam). Rotterdam’s interior center is connected to the North Sea by a wide expanse of mostly harbor land.

Much of the city of Rotterdam is situated under the surface of the water. Rotterdam Ordnance Datum (NAP) or the “Normal Amsterdam Peil” (NAP) is a reference datum that extends six meters (20 feet) under sea level. The Netherlands’ lowest point is located just east of Rotterdam, in the municipality of Nieuwerkerk aan den IJssel, at a depth of 6.76 meters (22.2 feet).

The Nieuwe Maas is no longer directly linked to the Rotte river. This is how Rotte waters have been diverted into the Nieuwe Maas ever since Rotterdam built a second subway line that interfered with its flow.

The Boompjeskade along the Nieuwe Maas, between the Erasmus Bridge and the Willems Bridge, was transformed into an artificial beach between 2003 and 2008. Digging trenches was restricted to the depth of the sand layer, which was around 50 centimeters (20 in). Hoek van Holland (a Rotterdam area) or one of the beaches in Zeeland: Renesse or the Zuid Hollandse Eilanden (Ouddorp,Oostvoorne) are other options for those looking to relax.

Rijnmond conurbation, which includes Rotterdam and the area around The Hague to the north and west, is located in the center of the Netherlands. They are near enough together to be considered one conurbation. RandstadRail, a light rail system, and the Rotterdam The Hague Airport are all in the same city. With a combined population of more than 2.5 million, Rotterdam and The Hague might become an official metropolitan area (Metropoolregio Rotterdam Den Haag).

Randstad’s Zuidvleugel (southern wing) includes the Rijnmond conurbation, one of the most significant economic and heavily inhabited districts in the north-west of Europe. The Randstad is Europe’s sixth-largest metropolitan region, home to a population of 7.1 million people (after Moscow, London, Paris, Istanbul, and the Rhein-Ruhr Area). South Holland’s Zuidvleugel has a population of around 3 million people.

One of the Netherlands’ most important ports, Rotterdam, has long been the center of the maritime sector. For more than a century, Royal Nedlloyd, the world’s leading merchant shipper and a founding member of the VOC, has been headquartered at the Willemswerf, a landmark structure in Rotterdam. Nedlloyd and P&O joined in 1997, becoming the third-largest commercial shipping firm in the world. Willemswerf, the Dutch headquarters of P&O Nedlloyd, which was purchased by the Danish major firm, AP Moller Maersk, in 2005.

Many well-known corporations have their headquarters in Rotterdam, including Unilever, Robeco, Eneco, dredging company Van Oord, Shell Downstream, Vopak, and the Office for Metropolitan Architecture. LyondellBasell, commodities trading firm Glencore, pharmaceutical business Pfizer, logistics company Stolt-Nielsen, electrical equipment manufacturer ABB Group, and consumer goods giant Procter & Gamble all have regional headquarters in the city. Allianz, Maersk, Petrobras, Samskip and Louis Dreyfus Group are all headquartered in Rotterdam.

Roteb and the Port of Rotterdam Authority provide services to the City of Rotterdam, including sanitation, trash management, and other services (to maintain the Port of Rotterdam). Both of these firms were originally held by the City, but today they are separate, independent businesses.

Rotterdam, the Netherlands’ main port and one of the country’s most populous cities, draws a considerable number of individuals looking for work, particularly in the low-wage sector. It is 8.5 percent in the city, which is double the national average.

Aside from Eindhoven and Amsterdam, Rotterdam (Seaport) serves as the Dutch economy’s backbone.

PORTS

As Europe’s biggest port, Rotterdam has great access to the hinterland through the Meuse and Rhine rivers. This enables it to connect with Basel, Switzerland, and France. Shanghai became the world’s busiest port in 2004, overtaking New York City. 2006 saw Rotterdam take seventh place in the global rankings of twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) processed by its container terminals.

Petrochemical industry and general cargo handling and transshipment are the port’s primary businesses. The port serves as a vital link between the European continent and the rest of the world. Ships, river barges, trains, and automobiles all convey cargo from Rotterdam. Fast freight train service from Rotterdam to Germany was completed in 2007.

The Netherlands’ country code is 31, while Rotterdam’s city code is 010. Local calls to book hotel rooms or restaurants, as well as calls to other cities in the Netherlands, will need a phone card (€5 minimum), since many green KPN telephone booths do not take coins. Telfort booths in blue/orange take both money and cards. The KPN booths are being replaced with modern units that will take coins again. Dial 1-1-2 from any public phone for free in an emergency. However, due to the increased usage of mobile phones, many public phones have been removed and might be difficult to find. When staying for an extended period of time, get a prepaid sim card for your mobile phone.