Zwijndrechtse Waard

The Zwijndrechtse Waard is a former island in the Meuse river delta, consisting of the municipalities of Zwijndrecht and Hendrik-Ido-Ambacht. The region is bordered by rivers and former rivers on all sides, with the Waal in the north, the Old Meuse (Dutch: Oude Maas) to the south and east, and the Noord on the northeast.

Understand
The Waard houses some 72,000 people, of which 44,000 live in Zwijndrecht and 28,000 have their homes in Hendrik-Ido-Ambacht. The area is marked as a commuters region, with the east part being predominantly for housing as well as some industry in Zwijndrecht's case, and rural area to the west, where the Devel river is located, traversing the nature area of the same name.

The island, being located to the south-east of Rotterdam, sees a lot of traffic coming through the region, with the rail classification yard of Kijfhoek taking up a lot of space. The region is also cut in half by the infamous Betuweroute, a goods-only train line from the Rotterdam harbour (Europort) to Zevenaar. The HSL-Zuid, a high-speed railway from Schiphol to Antwerp also crosses through the Zwijndrechtse Waard, without having any stops in the Waard.

By car
The Zwijndrechtse Waard is the meeting point of the A15 and A16 highways. The A15 starts as the N15 national road on the Tweede Maasvlakte, a part of the Europort harbour of Rotterdam, becoming the A15 near Brielle. The highway passes Rotterdam on its south side, continuing all the way to Nijmegen. As of 2022, the A15 is panned to be connected to the A12 highway inbetween Zevenaar and Duiven. The A16 starts where it meets the A20, which runs through the north of Rotterdam, continuing south to Breda, becoming the Belgian A1 connecting to Antwerp and Brussels.

By public transit
The Waard is only serviced by a single train station, albeit one on the central and frequently used The Hague — Dordrecht line. is only serviced by the Sprinter stopping train. Intercity trains do not stop at Zwijndrecht, but instead use the outer tracks to speed through the station. The station is closed off by fare gates, which can be opened by holding an OV-Chipkaart, the transport pass of the Netherlands against the gate's scanner. These can also be opened using an E-ticket or disposable chipkaart, the latter of which can be purchased in the station, outside the gates.

From Station Zwijndrecht, busses run further into Zwijndrecht (line 12), to Rotterdam (lines 88 and 92), Barendrecht (line 717), Dordrecht's train station (lines 11, 12, 88 and 92). Line 88, as well as line 21 which connects to Dordrecht's train station, service Hendrik-Ido-Ambacht.

Public transit is also available in the form of ferries across the Rhine delta, which the rivers surrounding the island are a part of. Stops here are (lines  to Dordrecht Hooikade (near the Grote Kerk) and  to Dordrecht Merwekade (north side)) and  (line  to Dordrecht Merwekade and Rotterdam Erasmusbrug)

Sleep
Zwijndrecht and Hendrik-Ido-Ambacht house one hotel in total. More hotels can be found in Dordrecht.

Go next

 * Nearby locations include Dordrecht, which can be easily reached by ferry.
 * Somewhat further east of Dordrecht you will find the Biesbosch National Park.
 * Following the Nieuwe Maas river, you will find Rotterdam, Spijkenisse, Vlaardingen, Maassluis, Brielle and the Hook of Holland.