Delft and The Hague: Easy Day Trips from Rotterdam

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Rotterdam is a wonderful city, and you can easily spend one or two days exploring everything it has to offer. But Mr Fletche and I decided to take advantage of Rotterdam’s proximity to a number of other destinations in Southern Holland, and take ourselves on a little tour. Here are two easy day trips from Rotterdam (that aren’t Amsterdam!)

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The Hague (aka Den Haag)

I didn’t know much about The Hague before I started researching this trip. I knew it was where important things went down. But I didn’t know that a) its a beautiful city with a great mix of traditional and modern architecture, and b) its by the seaside. So it’s definitely a city with lots more to explore than we did in just half a day.

Getting to the Hague from Rotterdam

We took the metro all the way from Beurs in Rotterdam to Den Haag Centraal. We cheekily decided to try and use our transit ticket on the tram, only for Mr Fletche and I to be almost separated as I’m still outside and the tram spits out Mr Fletche’s ticket in disgust. So it’s back into the station to purchase a Tourist Day Ticket. Despite the website saying “Now Available at Ticket Machines” we don’t find a machine that will dispense this particular ticket. We’re getting a little frustrated with the public transport system. Not Malta disappointed, but disappointed none the less.

Eventually we ask at the Information kiosk, and we’re pointed in the direction of the Tourist Day Ticket kiosk which we’ve already walked past twice. Finally we’re clutching our tickets and we can use metro, bus and tram to our hearts content.

It’s back outside to the tram stop, where it’s only a minute wait until the next tram towards Scheveningen arrives. This time we successfully manage to board and validate our tickets. It’s a pleasant 20 minute ride. We’re not entirely sure where we’re getting off (what with there being no stop specifically called “The Seaside”) but we get off when everyone else does at a stop which looks vaguely seaside-ish. Mr Fletche uses his handy online map to find out where the sea is. Or we could have just turned around and looked behind us.

Scheveningen: Seaside at The Hague

Scheveningen is almost like a typical English seaside resort. Except without the drunken stag and hen parties. Although it is only 11am so I can’t attest for the nighttime clientele. There’s a wide golden beach with a few hardy souls dotted around (it may be a European beach but it’s not exactly Costa del Sol warm), a bustling promenade with market stalls and cafe bars lining the pavements, and a wonderful pier which wouldn’t look out of place in the U.K. There is even an entertainment complex at the end of it which looks like it could host The Krankies. Or the Dutch version (the Von Krankies?).

The pier has two decks, and the lower deck is full of cute shops, artwork and instagrammable bars and cafes. I insist on moving all the menus off the table so I can have a better backdrop for my midday Aperol Spritz.

Hofvijver: The Hague’s “Court Pond”

From Scheveningen, we take the tram back into the city proper. We intend to head straight back to the station but instead we jump off early. Partly to explore the picturesque waterside area around Hofvijver, and partly because I need the loo. McDonalds provide us with both coffee and toilet facilities. There is an amazing mix of architecture, with towering glass skyscrapers looming over beautiful historic buildings, housing museums, galleries and government offices.

Having already made plans to visit Delft we didn’t spend as much time in The Hague as we would have liked. There are beautiful shopping arcades, iconic artwork, a thriving independent food and drink scene, and of course, it is home to the International Court of Justice and International Criminal Court. The Hague is definitely worth a second visit, and like Rotterdam, would make an excellent base for day trips further afield.

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Delft

Located between Rotterdam and The Hague, Delft is another easy day trip. It’s less than 15 minutes by train from Centraal Station to Delft Centrum, and just a short walk to the pretty centre. With it’s tranquil canals and leafy streets, it’s like Amsterdam in miniature. Home of the iconic Delftware blue pottery, and the birthplace of Vermeer, it’s easy to be charmed by this quintessentially Dutch town

I always find that the trick to navigating a town such as this is to look for tall church spires. Law of averages says that one of these will lead you to the main square. In a compact town like Delft, we kept getting glimpses of the leaning tower of the 13th century Old Church. Of course, where there is an Old Church, there is also likely to be a New Church. Our path to this leads us to Markt and it’s fancy renaissance-style City Hall. But not before we pay a visit to House of Frites for a ketchup-slathered late lunch.

We wind our way through the centre, peering into shop windows, strolling along cobbled pathways, avoiding cyclists as we go. Eventually we come across a busy square, tables and chairs under a canopy of trees, sunlight casting dappled shadows over the afternoon revellers. It’s definitely beer o’clock. The thickness of the beer menu is immediately familiar to us, this must be a Belgian beer establishment. Indeed it is. This is the Belgian Beer Cafe Belvedere on Beestenmarkt. The perfect place to reflect on the day’s adventures over a beer or two.

Delft is a compact city, and it’s easy to explore in an afternoon. However with so many cosy cafes, inviting looking restaurants and quirky independent shops it would be very easy to lose track of time. It’s a town made for meandering with no particular place to go.

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Getting around in the Netherlands

Trains in the Netherlands are cheap, frequent and a very convenient way to travel. We found getting to and from Schiphol, Amsterdam and Rotterdam extremely easy, and trains are well-connected to smaller towns too. We bought most of our tickets using self-service machines; there were also manned ticket booths at most major stations. You can also use the Trainline app to book tickets in advance or on-the-day.

Other easy day trips from Rotterdam include Gouda, Leiden, Utrecht & Gouda, as well as the windmills of Kinderdijk.

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