A day in Rotterdam: everything you need to visit

Rotterdam is am amazing city in the Netherlands. I recently took a day trip there from Amsterdam, so I wanted to share how you can spend a day in Rotterdam. This blog post contains affiliate links. When you make a purchase I may get a small commission at no extra cost to you. Find out more here.

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Why should I take a day trip to Rotterdam?

Rotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands after Amsterdam. And it is very different compared to Amsterdam because it was bombed during World War II and it’s now completely reconstructed. So it’s a modern city. You’ll find skyscrapers here and a lot of other modern architecture, like the famous cube houses. A day in Rotterdam will be enough time to explore the major attractions.

me in front of the yellow cube houses in rotterdam

Instead of sharing a Rotterdam itinerary, I’ll just share what you should visit in the second largest city in The Netherlands instead. This way, you can customize it to match your preferences.

You can do a day trip to Rotterdam on your own by buying train tickets from Amsterdam and creating your own itinerary once you’re in Rotterdam. If it’s too much hassle to do this and you prefer to join a group, you can combine Rotterdam with Delft and The Hague and join a day trip tour. This way you don’t have to plan anything in advance (other than buying your ticket for the group tour) and you’ll also be able to see three cities in one day, not just Rotterdam. I haven’t found any option for a day trip tour to just Rotterdam. Maybe there isn’t enough demand to create a tour like this.

I went with the do-it-yourself option, and I visited just Rotterdam and planned the entire day myself.

What should I visit in Rotterdam as a solo traveler?

Rotterdam Centraal Station

You’ll get exposed to Rotterdam’s unique architecture as soon as you hop off the train at Rotterdam Central Station. The train station is very modern and has a unique shape.

You’ll also find a 4-meter-high bronze statue of a Black girl in the plaza in front of the station. The statue is called Moments Contained and it was unveiled in 2023 in Rotterdam. It was created by British Artist Thomas J Price. The artist is known for his sculptures of “everymen” or “everywomen”, which basically portray a regular person, an imaginary character, as opposed to someone famous.

Euromast Tower

The Euromast Tower is one of the top attractions in Rotterdam. It offers an amazing panoramic view of the city. The tower has one observation deck that’s 112 meters high. If that’s not high enough for you, you can take another elevator up to a second observation deck that’s 185 meters high. The tower offers 360-degree views of the entire city.

While the views are amazing, I found the experience to not be very well organized. It took a few minutes for their systems to start working so I could buy a ticket. Then, once I got the ticket, they just told me to take the elevator up. There is no guide or employee to point you to the right place and you have to take the elevator yourself. Usually when you go to an observation deck there is always an employee riding the elevator with visitors. Not here. You literally press a button and go into a pretty tiny elevator to go up. A bit weird.

Then once you get to the 112 meters observation deck, some of the cobblestones on the floor are wobbly, so you have to be careful not to trip and fall. There are no guardrails, so nothing prevents you from jumping off the building, which I thought was quite dangerous.

The are no directions to point you to how to get to the 185 meters high observation deck. I had to climb a set of stairs to get to a second elevator that was even tinier than the first one. This second observation deck is smaller than the lower one, but it does have a very nice view since you’re higher.

Overall, I would rate the views 10/10 and the experience 3/10. It was quite disorganized and a bit scary at times.

Cube houses

These iconic cube houses are a symbol of Rotterdam. They were designed by Dutch architect Piet Blom. He went for the concept of living as an urban roof. These yellow houses are the most unique and funky modern buildings I have ever seen. They are a series of cubes tilted at a 45-degree angle.

What’s wild is that they are not made just for decor, people actually live in them. One or two of them are Airbnbs, so if you want to spend a night in Rotterdam you can book a cube house. If I stayed the night I would have 100% done this. How cool would that be?

I have no idea what they look like on the inside and how they are partitioned, but since people live there, I assume it somehow works. They are worth a spot on your itinerary. It’s not every day that you see something this futuristic.

De Markthal (Market Hall)

Markthal or Market Hall is a food court in the city center. It’s a short walk from the cube houses. It has a lot of food stalls, so you’ll definitely find something you like and won’t be hungry during your day trip to Rotterdam. It’s the perfect place to get lunch. There are tables and chairs throughout the food court, or you can opt to eat outside in the plaza if it’s a clear day.

Even Markthal is a very modern-looking building. It basically looks like a horseshoe. It’s made of grey stone and glass and inside the food court, there is a major artwork with enlarged fruits, vegetables, flowers, fish, and insects.

Besides the food court, this building also houses offices and residential apartments.

The other fun fact about Markthal is that it was built on top of a fourteenth-century buried village. During construction they also found a tenth-century farm. Pretty cool!

St Lawrence Church

St Lawrence Church is one of the old buildings in Rotterdam. It was built between 1449 and 1525 and it is the only remnant of the medieval city of Rotterdam.

The walls and tower of the church remained standing after the 1940 bombing, and then it was reconstructed. It’s a symbol of the resilience of the people of Rotterdam.

The church tower is open to visitors from Tuesday to Saturday from March until October. I visited in February, so I couldn’t do this. You can also climb the tower on Wednesdays at 2pm and Saturdays at 12 or 1:30pm with a tour guide. The ticket to visit the tower costs 7.5 euros. It’s free if you have the Rotterdam pass.

Just visiting the church costs 3 euros and children up to 12 years old can enter for free.

Delfshaven

Delfshaven is a historic borough located on the right bank of the river Nieuwe Maas. It is a cool district full of antique shops and gin bars. The picturesque old port and yacht marina is one of the few parts of the old city that survived the WWII bombings. This is also where the Pilgrim Fathers left to sail to America.

Erasmusbrug (Erasmus Bridge)

The Erasmusbrug or Erasmus Bridge is Rotterdam’s most important landmark. It is even part of the city’s official logo. Its construction was completed in 1996 and it links the North and South side of Rotterdam.

It was named after Desiderius Erasmus, a Renaissance humanist from Rotterdam. The Erasmus Program, a European Union student exchange program established in 1987, is also named after him.

Fenix Food Factory

Fenix Food Factory is a waterfront market and food court. It also has special beers from local breweries, ciders, lemonade, and coffee. It’s the perfect location to grab a bite and something to drink on a sunny day since it’s close to the water. The views and the vibe are amazing. Plus, they focus on fresh, seasonal products and have a zero-waste policy, which is awesome.

SS Rotterdam

SS Rotterdam, or The Grand Dame, is a former transatlantic liner and cruise ship that was turned into a hotel ship since 2010. It was launched in 1958 and on its maiden voyage it took the Crown Princess from Holland to New York. Once air travel became more popular between The Netherlands and the United States, this ship was repurposed and became a cruise ship.

Nowadays it is a hotel, a museum offering daily tours for visitors, and it even has an escape room. This boat has a long and rich history and even if you don’t spend the night there it still deserves a visit when you’re in Rotterdam.

Is Rotterdam safe for solo female travelers?

Yes, I felt safe in Rotterdam. Of course, as always when you travel solo, do your research ahead of your visit and be on high alert, especially if you visit during peak season. But based on my experience, Rotterdam is a safe city.

How to get cell phone data when visiting from abroad?

The cheapest and most convenient way to get data while visiting from abroad is to buy an eSIM. An eSIM is a digital SIM that lets you activate a data plan from a provider without having to use a physical SIM card. They are super easy to use.

I use Nomad eSIM (use code IOAN43TM for 25% off your first purchase). You can go to their website, select the country you’re traveling to, select how many GB of data you want, and how many days you want the eSIM to be active for. After you pay you will receive a confirmation email with instructions on how to activate the eSIM.

You can activate it on your phone and the process takes under 1 minute. Once the eSIM is activated you don’t have to do anything else. When you’re at your destination you will automatically get data.

Do I need to book tickets for attractions in advance?

I think Rotterdam is a less popular destination than Amsterdam, so it’s less critical to book tickets in advance. I visited in February and I didn’t book tickets in advance. However, if you visit during the summer months I still recommend you book all tickets online in advance of your trip.

Do people speak English in Rotterdam?

Yes, they speak English everywhere in Rotterdam. Very similar in this regard to Amsterdam. It’s basically their second language. They don’t expect you to speak any Dutch and they are very friendly towards tourists.

Is one day enough in Rotterdam?

Yes, one day is enough to see the main attractions since Rotterdam is a smaller city than Amsterdam. If you want to spend more time here and not rush to do everything in a day you can always extend your trip to 2-3 days.

How can I get to Rotterdam from Amsterdam?

You can take the NS intercity direct train from Amsterdam Centraal Station and you’ll be at Rotterdam Centraal Station in about 40 minutes. Make sure you buy the intercity direct supplement so you can take the train that stops only at Schiphol Airport before you get to Rotterdam. Otherwise, it will take you 1 hour and 15 minutes to get to Rotterdam.

A one-way ticket between Amsterdam and Rotterdam costs about 20 euros, including the intercity direct supplement. If you book your train ticket 1-2 days in advance of your trip you will get a 10-15% discount.

You can buy the tickets online on the NS website, but you’ll also have to download the NS app to scan the tickets at the train station. You won’t get the QR code via email, you have to use the app.

The train stations in The Netherlands are very well set up and modern. You scan your QR code to enter the station and then when you get to your destination you scan your QR code to exit the train station. There are no employees checking your tickets on the train since you wouldn’t be able to enter the train station if you didn’t have a ticket. I loved this system. It’s effective and super easy to use, even for tourists.

How can I get around Rotterdam?

You can walk everywhere. However, the Euromast Tower is about a 30-minute walk from the train station. And then to get to the central area with the cube houses it takes another 30 minutes. If you don’t want to waste time in between attractions, then you can take public transportation. Their trams are similar to the ones in Amsterdam, and very reliable. If you are not a fan of public transportation, then you can get an Uber.