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I am pondering a short break in the NL, probably around May. Amsterdam prices are a bit silly and in any case I’ve been a couple of times before so I’m considering Rotterdam or possibly The Hague or Utrecht. Likely to spend my time looking at art and just generally having a stroll around. Any recommendations?
Hotel-wise I’d be looking at Marriott first of all but happy to hear any alternatives if better.
Why not Liverpool or Rome? Does it have to be NL? I think Bruges and Ghent are prettier.
We stayed in Haarlem a few years back. Nice town centre, easy access by train to Amsterdam.
If you don’t want AMS then look at Den Haag, Leiden and Haarlem in addition to Utrecht.
Very much depends what you want to do when you’re there.
For strolling around, there’s the (in)famous statue by Paul McCarthy of Santa holding a Christmas tree (but usually referred to as the buttplug gnome), the Erasmus bridge, the markthal, the cube houses, and of course the Euromast.
There are plenty of places within a fairly short train ride from Rotterdam – Dordrecht and Delft being two places worth a visit.Personally I prefer the Hague to Rotterdam, there’s generally more to see and do plus it’s a prettier town. A trip by tram to the beach at Scheveningen is nice even if you’re not a sunbathing type – as you walk along the seafront there are loads of statues/sculptures that are nice to see. You’ve also got Madurodam – ok it’s more aimed at kids but I enjoy visiting there. The Escher exhibition in The Hague is well worth a visit
We had a great six days in Rotterdam last month (took advantage of the reduced-Avios price of flying out of LCY when sold around Black Friday 2023). We did a day in Amsterdam (got the train there), which was enough to see the major sites and a lot cheaper than staying in Amsterdam for the whole period. Found hotels to be a bit pricey in Rotterdam for what was available, so went with a very affordable Airbnb instead. Plenty to fill the time in Rotterdam with art and particularly architecture. A nice afternoon out was spent at the UNESCO windmill site which was easily accessed by waterbus.
Liverpool would genuinely appeal if the Maritime Museum was actually open.
Wherever it is will probably be only a couple of days, so the minimum requirement is that it should be walkable with possibly a decent museum/gallery or two. I will investigate Haarlem.
Don’t mind Rotterdam’s lack of prettiness, I have a bit of a thing for slightly grim western European cities 🙂
For museums I’d advocate for Leiden over Haarlem.
Thanks all
If you go to Rotterdam make sure you visit the windmills at Kinderkijk. We stayed in CP above station at Utrecht, which was like a mini Amsterdam with canals through centre – direct train to Amsterdam. Dordrecht was worth visiting as well as Leiden and Delft. The kids had a great time playing in the dunes at Wijk aan Zee which is up the coast but I’m sure there are lots of beaches further south.
As someone who lived in Rotterdam for 3 years I have to recommend it. It’s more of a local city than a tourist city so as someone who just wants to stroll around it might be enough but still plenty to do for a short trip. Markthal, witte de wit straat, cube houses, oude haven all on the list to see.
In terms of accommodation the marriott is next to the station so it’s convenient if arriving by train although probably better options out there. If wanting a chain hotel think either of the hiltons are better locations.
Why not Liverpool or Rome?
Grr…beat me to it by 12 hours, Anna!!!
+1 for Bruges – perhaps train one way? And after watching “In Bruges”, of course”
No recommendations I’m afraid but my brain also went straight to the Beautiful South as soon as I saw the title.
Isn’t it amazing the songs stored in our heads?It’s still stuck in my head 😂
I’ve been to all the destinations mentioned bar Haarlem, most recently Rotterdam and a quick look at Leiden, and you can’t really go wrong with any of them to be honest. All nice places to have a wander around, even Rotterdam which isn’t as ‘pretty’ as the others. Depending on which you pick, day trip(s) to the others are very do-able with fast and frequent trains.
I can recommend the Mainport hotel. Enjoyed a mooch round Rotterdam, nice enough little city.
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