14-07-2025
Rotterdam immensely rewarding
Regardless of whether it is winter or spring, exploration of the Netherlands has consistently proven to be immensely rewarding, Sandip Hor writes.
During my maiden visit to the Netherlands, almost two decades ago, like most first-timers I stayed in the capital city of Amsterdam, where all the alluring Dutch key characteristics come to reality.
This encompasses the cluster of vibrantly coloured gabbled houses that overlook a network of winding canals and numerous bridges, a greater number of bicycles on the roads than cars, and the odd windmills that stand as silent witnesses to history, along with coffee shops that offer something stronger than caffeine and delicatessens selling the best Edam and Gouda cheese.
However, when I returned to the Netherlands recently, I chose to stay in Rotterdam, the nation's second-largest city which has been rebuilt with a 21st century outlook after being harshly destroyed by the Germans during WW2.
A different look and feel than the capital greeted me the moment I stepped in there. While there are some canals and ornamented bridges spanning across them and more bicycles on road than cars, the urban scenery when compared to Amsterdam appeared much newer and modern with architecturally bold buildings dominating the landscape.
To get my bearings right about the city layout, the first thing I did was to ascend to the top of the 1960-built 185m-high Euromast tower from where an uninterrupted panorama of the entire city was available.
Spanning across Nieuwe Mass River, the 800m-long Erasmusbrug Bridge, which since 1996 links the city's north to the south, hit my eyes first by virtue of its size and the 'swan'- like shape. Rolling my eyes in other directions I spotted the colossal port area dominated by the presence of large container vessels and on another frame a series of architecturally innovative tall buildings reflecting a silhouette of an ultra-modern metropolis.
Back on the streets, I found a high-energy and avant-garde sentiment oozing from the cafes, bars and designer brand shops and echoing in many buildings and surrounding infrastructure flanking the busy thoroughfares.
"Rotterdam is an incubator for new architectural concepts", said a local businesswoman whom I met while dining at De Matroos en Het Meisje Restaurant that serves modern cuisine in a typical Dutch ambience. The essence of her statement became clearer when I later visited Markthal or the Market Hall and Kubuswoningen or the Cube Houses. Located in the heart of the city, both buildings stand as a beacon for architectural experimentation.
Though I have earlier visited several indoor market halls in various parts of the world, I had never come across anything like Markthal where luxury residential accommodation combines with a market with several stalls thriving inside an arch-shaped building. Browsing there through various kinds of fresh products, delicacies and eateries with all kinds of world dishes was a discovery route for me. Almost next to Markthal are the houses that looks like cubes. Those distinctive, tilted three-dimensional structures resting on hexagonal pylons explained to me why Rotterdam is becoming popular among savvy travellers as a destination to explore architectural innovation.
Newer age thoughts are also echoed in the design of the city's numerous museum buildings. While the Kunsthal, which provides a generous space for art exhibitions, resembles a modern version of a traditional Dutch dyke house, the round shaped Depot Boijmans Van Beuningen, which is the world's first art storage facility, has its façade covered by mirrored glass, reflecting its surroundings, from passers-by and clouded skies to the dynamic skyline of Rotterdam. As a fan of Dutch Master Rembrandt, I was fortunate to discover there one of his rare artworks concealed among the racks in the storeroom.
People visit Netherlands to see the windmills and a big benefit of staying in Rotterdam is its closeness to Kinderdijk, the paramount site in the country to dive into the world of windmills. Easily reachable in less than an hour by the waterbus from Rotterdam Harbour, this Unesco World Heritage site is home to 19, 18th century-built, windmills, all set in a rural environment. A trip there for me was an opportunity to stray off the beaten path and spend time with historic windmills in a tranquil and green environment. One of the windmills was functional so it was perhaps a lifetime opportunity to see and understand how these giant machines create energy and was used for water-management in Netherlands.
My earlier visit to Netherlands was in winter just prior to Christmas, so I explored the Christmas markets, admired the lights and decorations, and revelled the festive mood but didn't see any real tulips which are a symbol of the nation alongside their wooden shoes or clogs, cheese and windmills. So I timed this visit in springtime to match with the tulip blooming season and I was rewarded with an amazing floral experience.
During the season, tulips can be seen almost everywhere in Netherlands, however the Bollenstreek region is the most popular area to see the flower exotica in vast fields and gardens as depicted in tourism brochures and videos. Conveniently situated near Rotterdam, this region is home to the Keukenhof Garden, which is considered one of the world's most celebrated and largest spring gardens. This 79-acre estate is open for only six to eight weeks each spring, typically from late March to mid-May, and it annually attracts 1.4 million visitors from across the globe to experience a breathtaking display of nearly 7 million bulb flowers, predominantly tulips of various types and colours. The garden is also in proximity to several tulip fields, where the vibrant tapestry of blossoms lives up to its promise of captivating the eye. My visit to this garden was truly unforgettable, as the remarkable assortment of bulb flowers filled the air with a distinctive fragrance and showcased a stunning array of colours that may be unparalleled anywhere else in the world.
Regardless of whether it is winter or spring, exploration of the Netherlands has consistently proven to be immensely rewarding for me. Travel notebook
Getting There: Fly Air New Zealand ( to Amsterdam
Stay: The Usual Hotel ( which reflect the city's modern approach.
Eat — De Matroos en Het Meisje ( for a culinary delight in a Dutch ambience
More Info —
