Rotterdam/Port of Rotterdam

The Port of Rotterdam is a district in Rotterdam, making up a large part of the southern banks of the River Meuse. These harbours are all post-war additions to the city, mostly replacing this historical harbours on the northern banks. These harbours are the Botlek, Europoort, Eerste- and Tweede Maasvlakte (literally: First and Second Meuse flat), as well as the harbours surrounding the town of Pernis.

Understand
The Port of Rotterdam is the largest harbour in all of Europe, seeing some 470 million tonnes of freight and 30,000 container ships on an annual basis. It is made up of six harbours (Waalhaven, Eemhaven, Pernis, Botlek, Europoort and Maasvlakte) that over time formed the massive industrial complex that is the modern-day harbour.

Historically, the harbours started much closer to the city, and parts of the old harbour remain in the modern-day layout of the city centre. From 1872 onwards, these harbours started expanding into the modern-day district of Feijenoord. Both regions have lost most of their function as a harbour nowadays, which became possible through the annexation of Delfshaven, which opened up the northern banks of the Meuse for harbour expansion. Delfshaven too is increasingly being repurposed for housing in modern times. Post-war, the harbours moved into the Botlek. This was then further expanded with the development of the Europoort in 1958, following a massive scale-increase in oiltankers caused by the blocking of the Suez-canal two years prior. The Europoort as a result has many refineries and oil-storage facilities from companies the like of Shell, BP and Exxon. The most recent developments were the (Eerste) Maasvlakte and Tweede Maasvlakte. This was a compromise that prevented the Hoeksche Waard, the island between Spijkenisse and Dordrecht, from being turned into a harbour site as well. Both Maasvlaktes were built into the North Sea, having been taken into usage in 1973 and 2013 respectively.

The harbours offer few amenities to visitors, and are more oriented to truckers. That doesn't, however, make the district completely useless for tourism or sightseeing.

By car
The Rotterdam harbours can best be reached by car. Running the length of the southern bank of the Meuse is the A15/N15, which connects as far east as Nijmegen. This highway meets the N57 connecting to Zeeland from Rozenburg, and the A4 connecting to The Hague, Leiden and Amsterdam near Pernis. Pernis itself has a dedicated exit on the A4/A15 (17a, Pernis). Rozenburg's dedicated exits are numbers 13 and 14 (Rozenburg, Rozenburg Centrum). Near these exits, a tunnel is under construction (as of 2022) connecting the south bank with Maassluis and Vlaardingen on the north bank of the river. Once constructed, this connection will be quicker when coming from the north.

By public transit
Though the harbours are covered in railways, these are for goods only. For passengers, there is only one connection to the Rotterdam Metro at. An indirect connection to the metro for Rozenburg exists in Maassluis:. From here, head to the ferry connection south of the station. This ferry connects directly to Rozenburg. The nearest bus stop to the ferry is. The connecting bus service, 105, connects the town with Spijkenisse in the east and Brielle and Hellevoetsluis in the southwest.

Tweede Maasvlakte can be reached with the Hoeksveer Ferry which takes you from Hoek van Holland Haven to FutureLand in about 45 minutes. The ferry is suitable for pedestrians and bicycles only. No other vehicles including mopeds and scooters are allowed. Sails from April to September, 9-18h. Tickets sold on board, debit cards accepted.

A large part of the harbours are not accessible by public transit since this part of the city is not tailored to tourists, so it is advisable to either rent a car for your visit or, should you feel adventurous, to rent a bike.

See

 * For those that enjoy boat-spotting, the Rotterdam harbours are like a heaven on earth. Some of the better places to watch the boats go by are:
 * For those that enjoy boat-spotting, the Rotterdam harbours are like a heaven on earth. Some of the better places to watch the boats go by are:
 * For those that enjoy boat-spotting, the Rotterdam harbours are like a heaven on earth. Some of the better places to watch the boats go by are:
 * For those that enjoy boat-spotting, the Rotterdam harbours are like a heaven on earth. Some of the better places to watch the boats go by are:
 * For those that enjoy boat-spotting, the Rotterdam harbours are like a heaven on earth. Some of the better places to watch the boats go by are:
 * For those that enjoy boat-spotting, the Rotterdam harbours are like a heaven on earth. Some of the better places to watch the boats go by are:
 * For those that enjoy boat-spotting, the Rotterdam harbours are like a heaven on earth. Some of the better places to watch the boats go by are:

Do

 * The World Port Days, a weekend full of activities centred around the large harbour of Rotterdam taking place yearly in early September.

Buy

 * In Rozenburg, you will find most shops along the Emmastraat/Molenweg and Raadhuisplein.
 * Pernis has its shops centred around the G.A. Soetemanweg, though the amount of shops in Pernis is relatively small.

Drink
Unsurprisingly, there isn't much nightlife to experience in the port. You will find some trucker cafés dotted throughout, but actual pubs and cafés are located south of the Hartelkanaal en Brielse meer in Brielle and the surrounding villages. For the proper nightlife experience, consider visiting the city centre, Delfshaven or Feijenoord.

Sleep



 * With the harbours being a predominantly industrial region with a focus on transport and logistics, there is plenty of truck parking. You will find most of these along the central thoroughfares (A15, Europaweg and Maasvlakteweg).
 * More hotels, holiday parks and campings can be found in nearby Brielle, Oostvoorne and Rockanje.

Go next

 * IJmuiden is another industry-oriented city of the Netherlands, located in North Holland.
 * While this article describes the current harbours of Rotterdam, their predecessors are the city centre, Feijenoord and Delfshaven.
 * Brielle, historically Den Briel, as well as Hellevoetsluis are historic fortified cities near the Port of Rotterdam.
 * Schiedam, Delft, The Hague, Dordrecht and Gouda are not far either, being located just beyond Rotterdam and are easily reached using the public transport links as well as the road network.