With kids · Rotterdam · Netherlands
Rotterdam with kids
Family-tested sights, a calm base and the practical details that make travelling with children easier.
Updated By the AMZBooking editorial team
Photo: The original uploader was Sherpa at Dutch Wikipedia ., CC BY-SA 3.0
Quick answer
Rotterdam is easy with children: the zoo, the Maritime Museum's play zone, harbour boat trips, the Euromast and the Cube Houses all appeal, and flat streets, lifts and step-free trams make strollers manageable. Top picks: Diergaarde Blijdorp, Maritime Museum Rotterdam and Harbour boat tour. Families usually base themselves in Centrum.
Key facts
- Family picks
- 6
- Best area for families
- Centrum
- Rainy-day options
- 2
Best things to do with kids
Zoo · Blijdorp
1.Diergaarde Blijdorp
Rotterdam's zoo, in the Blijdorp district north of Centraal station, is arranged by continent, with the Oceanium aquarium of sharks and rays, Asian elephants and an Amazonica rainforest hall, on a site laid out around 1940 to designs by architect Sybold van Ravesteyn.
The zoo has two entrances; the one by the Oceanium is handy if you want to start with the aquarium.
- Time needed
- Half a day
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Kids
- Nature
- Outdoors
Museum · Centrum
2.Maritime Museum Rotterdam
Near the Leuvehaven, the Maritime Museum covers shipping and the port, with interactive galleries, ship models and an outdoor harbour of historic vessels and cranes, plus a large hands-on play area for children.
The indoor play zone is a good rainy-day option with children.
- Time needed
- 2 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Kids
- History
- Rainy day
Experience · Centrum
3.Harbour boat tour
Spido boats leave from the Leuvehoofd at the foot of the Erasmus Bridge for tours of about 75 minutes through the inner harbours, past container terminals, shipyards and dry docks, with commentary on the port's history.
Sit on the open upper deck in good weather, with a windproof layer.
- Time needed
- 1.5 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Kids
- Views
- Iconic
Viewpoint · Cool and Witte de Withstraat
4.Euromast
Built in 1960 next to Het Park, the Euromast observation tower has a deck at about 100 metres and a rotating glass lift, the Euroscoop, that rises to about 185 metres, with views over the port, the river and, on clear days, towards the coast.
Combine it with a walk in Het Park below and a harbour tour from the nearby quays.
- Time needed
- 1–1.5 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Views
- Kids
- Iconic
- Photo spot
Architecture · Centrum
5.Cube Houses and Oude Haven
Piet Blom's tilted yellow Cube Houses, completed in 1984, sit on hexagonal pylons above a pedestrian bridge next to Blaak station. One, the Kijk-Kubus, is a show home you can visit. Below, the Oude Haven, the city's oldest harbour, has historic barges moored by café terraces.
Visit the Kijk-Kubus to see how residents furnish rooms with sloping walls, then have a drink by the Oude Haven.
- Time needed
- 1 hour
- Cost
- Low cost
- Iconic
- Architecture
- Photo spot
- Kids
Park · Kralingen
6.Kralingse Bos and Plas
A large wooded park around a lake on the city's eastern edge, with cycle paths, beaches on the lakeshore, boat rental and two historic windmills, De Ster and De Lelie, on the shore.
Rent a bike and cycle the loop around the lake on a sunny afternoon.
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours
- Cost
- Free
- Free
- Outdoors
- Nature
- Kids
- Active
Rainy-day ideas
- SS Rotterdam — Have a drink in one of the ship's original lounges even if you don't take a tour.
- Maritime Museum Rotterdam — The indoor play zone is a good rainy-day option with children.
Where families should stay
$$$ · Best for first-timers, shopping and families
Centrum
The rebuilt city centre runs from Rotterdam Centraal down the Coolsingel past the early-20th-century City Hall to Blaak, with the Lijnbaan and Beurstraverse shopping streets, the Laurenskerk, the Markthal and the Cube Houses. It is the most convenient base, with metro, tram and train links and a wide choice of hotels, though some streets feel quiet after shops close.
- Good
- Best transport links; Walk to most sights; Wide range of hotels
- Watch out
- Busy, commercial streets; Less neighbourhood character
- Nearby
- Markthal, Cube Houses, Laurenskerk, Rotterdam Centraal
Family travel tips
- Children under 4 travel free on RET public transport.
- The Maritime Museum's indoor play zone and the zoo's Oceanium work well on rainy days.
- Hire a cargo bike or child seat to explore the parks like local families do.
- Combine the Euromast with Het Park's playgrounds and lawns.
- Kinderdijk by waterbus makes a fun half-day with the boat ride included.
Day trips for families
- Kinderdijk (About 30–40 minutes by waterbus) — The UNESCO-listed Kinderdijk has 19 windmills built in the 18th century to drain the polders, set along canals and reed beds.
- The Hague (About 25 minutes by train) — The seat of the Dutch government has the Binnenhof, the Mauritshuis with Vermeer's Girl with a Pearl Earring, and the beach at Scheveningen.
- Gouda (About 20 minutes by train) — Gouda has a Gothic town hall in its market square, the Sint-Janskerk with 16th-century stained glass and a cheese market held on Thursday mornings in summer.
When to go with children
The best months overall are May–September. Weather by month.
Questions travellers ask
+Is Rotterdam good for kids?
Rotterdam is easy with children: the zoo, the Maritime Museum's play zone, harbour boat trips, the Euromast and the Cube Houses all appeal, and flat streets, lifts and step-free trams make strollers manageable.
+What can kids do in Rotterdam?
Diergaarde Blijdorp, Maritime Museum Rotterdam, Harbour boat tour, Euromast and Cube Houses and Oude Haven.
+Where should families stay in Rotterdam?
Centrum: Shopping streets, Rotterdam Centraal and the Markthal around Coolsingel and Blaak.