Heerlen



Heerlen is a city in South Limburg in the southeast of the Netherlands. In Roman times, it was a settlement named Coriovallum, which hosted a bathhouse, now the Thermenmuseum. Heerlen has become a part of a new larger project city, called Parkstad Limburg, composed of Brunssum, Kerkrade, Landgraaf, Onderbanken, Nuth, Simpelveld en Voerendaal.

Understand
Heerlen is uncommonly hilly compared to the rest of the country. It is in the southern part of the Netherlands, between Maastricht and Liège to the west, and Aachen to the east. It's also very close to nature reserve Brunssummerheide. Most travelers will mainly go here to visit the beautiful and plentiful limburgish landscapes, either by bike or on foot. However, the city has also plenty of worthwhile attractions to visit.

The city has been building on becoming a more green urban park city, from the old industrial city it was before. The old paved streets have been turned into lush green borders with trees, and the smaller suburbs have also gotten this overhaul, with smaller parks all around to discover between the houses. The city park Aambos houses a small free zoo with deer, goats and other animals. The Aambos is also next to Huize De Berg, an old cloister from 1897 with beautiful architecture, now a nursing home.

History
Even though there have been traces of earlier civilization, the real history of this town starts in the Roman era. The Roman military settlement, known as Coriovallum, sat at the crossroads of the Boulogne-Cologne and Xanten-Aachen-Trier routes.

In the late 19th century, the town's importance for the coal mining industry grew. A railway was built in 1896 and strongly improved the accessibility of the town, which was then only a village. The first major mine, the Oranje-Nassau mine, was opened in 1899, and three more mines followed by 1927. The town rapidly grew in size, changing it into one of the largest in the area.

In 1965, the decision to close all Dutch coal mines left many workers without jobs. In an attempt to create jobs, the Dutch government moved the Dutch Bureau for Statistics and the ABP, the pension fund for government and education employees in the Netherlands to Heerlen.

Tourist information
There is a tourist information office in Heerlen Centrum at Bongerd|d 6411 where they can provide maps for different types of interest related paths such as a path to follow to see the murals throughout the city. Many murals are a reflection of the mining history of the city. One mural is of a gas mask with the filter being a bird as the miners would know to leave the cave if the bird died while underground.

They can assist with maps, region guides, travel information, regional products, theater and concert information.

By train
The main is in the centre of the city. Three other railway stations in Heerlen are, and. The main train station of Heerlen is serviced by NS with an intercity connection to Eindhoven via Sittard-Geleen, Roermond and Weert, as well as by Arriva, which stops at the other stations too, servicing a stopping train between them and Maastricht, Kerkrade and Sittard. DB Regio NRW also stops at Heerlen, connecting the city with Herzogenrath across the border with two trains per hour.

By bus
is close to the back exit of the train station. The bus operator in Heerlen and surrounding cities is Ariva. There is one international busline from Aachen to Heerlen which is faster towards Aachen if you want to visit the city, otherwise use the train for connecting trains from Aachen.

By car
Heerlen is along the A76 highway but get on the N281 if traveling south or north because there is no exit to Heerlen on the A76. You can find taxies waiting on the upper level when exiting at front of the train station. From Aachen by car you will have to take the N281. From Maastricht take the A79 to Heerlen. At the end of the A79 is Heerlen. You can also use the inner ring of parkstad to get to Heerlen. The city center of Heerlen is completely car-free. There are few parking facilities in and around the streets around the center. However there are good parking garages to reach the city center very convienently. It is not hard to find a parking garage as they are indicated all around town and even display the number of parking spots available.

By plane
Maastricht-Aachen airport is 16 km (10 miles) away from the city centre of Heerlen. Albeit it is more convenient to fly to Eindhoven airport and take a bus and train to Heerlen, because of there are few flights arriving and departing from Maastricht-Aachen airport. For international flights it is better to arrive and depart from Brussels (BE), Amsterdam (Schiphol, NL) or Dusseldorf (DE). Each of these airports are about 2–3 hours away from Heerlen by car.

Get around
If you are in Heerlen center, everything could be done on foot. A car is convenient to explore the outskirts of town and attractions in the broader area, but take into account that the city center is car-free and parking there is expensive. Another possibility is to discover Heerlen by bike. There are some interesting parks and locations to reach by bike. Using the extensive bus routes can take you to everything in the city that is bit further away from the center.



On foot
Heerlen is a great city to explore on foot. This is mainly due to the city center being car free. Walking to most things can be done within an hour. The train station is situated in the city center and it's only a short walk to the bongerd. While most streets are free of cars there are a number of streets where cyclists are allowed, therefore be careful when straying off the main streets as it can be busy with cyclists.

By bike
This is a great method of exploring the surrounding areas, but Heerlen is in the southern part of the Netherlands, so it is not flat. Stray even a small distance out of the city center and it will be obvious that there are hills. This becomes even more apparent if you bike to other towns or areas.

By car
Navigating Heerlen by car can be tricky as a lot of the street are one way and some are totally closed of for traffic. The districts outside can even be more of a nightmare if you are unfamiliar with the surroundings, though most tourist should not have a reason to go there. The main road network is however exceptional and getting to other towns is very easy and convienent. Exploring South Limburg is very well doable with Heerlen as the starting base and/or ending point.

Free parking is very difficult to find due to the long distance you would have to walk to get to the center. Note that around the city center most parking spots require a permit to park or you can only park there for 2 hours maximum (don't forget to use the blue parking timer). Parking garages in Heerlen: There are a few options when it comes in regards to car rental.

Parks
The city has a number of parks, usually with a pond, these are great for walking with a baby stroller, as most paths are very smooth and well maintained and virtually no stairs.

Forests, heathlands
Heerlen has only few forest and heathlands in its own borders. However, there is a lot of these directly surrounding the city in neiboring cities and villages such as Voerendaal, Kerkrade, Landgraaf, Simpelveld and Nuth.



Buy
There are two known shopping locations in Heerlen. The center of the city and the Woonboulevard. The Woonboulvard is famous for its living and lifestyle shops. It is the biggest furniture strip of Europe.

On Tuesdays and Saturdays there is a weekly market in the city center, running the entire length of the bongerd. Usually this market lasts till 15:00.

There are three large shopping malls in Heerlen namely, t' Loon (one of the oldest covered shopping malls of the Netherlands), Coriocenter, Maankwartier (above and around the main train station).

Heerlen in general does not have any tourist shops, however for clothing shopping, there are a lot of stores. There is also a boutique street with some more exclusive shops, on the Dautzenbergstraat.



Drink
Entering bars is legally allowed from the age of 16. However, many bars and nightclubs in Heerlen have their own policies and do not allow people under 18, 21 or even 23 to enter. Keep in mind that those under 18 are not allowed to drink any alcoholic drinks.

Most bars in Heerlen are centered at the Pancratiusplein, people can find the many cafes and terrasses who are usually filled with people troughout the year. There is also a few terrasses on the bongerd. Most bars are open till 02:00 during the week and usually longer in the weekends.

Some bars and nightclubs will require you to identify yourself by means of official identification papers. Note that smoking is not allowed anywhere within the establishments, sometimes there are specific dedicated areas for smoking.

Connect
The entire city center of Heerlen offers free-wifi connection.

Go next
Connections to Aachen are via train or bus. Other options by train are to Belgium (via Maastricht) and the remainder of the Netherlands.