Rotterdam-South excursion UrbanGuides

Excursions Rotterdam South

On the south bank of the Meuse lays an interesting and inherent part of Rotterdam. About the size of a regular Dutch provincial city, this area is full of examples of urban and social-cultural renewal in The Netherlands from the nineteenth century until now. There’s a lot to explore at Zuid, both for Rotterdammers and for (inter)national visitors.

Nineteenth-century harbours and neighbourhoods
Halfway through the nineteenth century, the inhabitants of Rotterdam move southwards. At the island of Feijenoord and around Katendrecht they develop harbours and accompanying neighbourhoods for the dock workers. The city districts like Feijenoord, Afrikaanderwijk, de Kaap, Hillesluis and Bloemhof each have their particular history which is embedded with contemporary themes like gentrification, energy transition and social cohesion.

Garden cities and ‘concrete villages’
Rotterdam-South is the nursery for experimental public housing in The Netherlands. A lot of the neighbourhoods were built in the nineteenth century with new and modern ideas and principles to provide good and affordable housing for the working class. Famous are the garden cities and ‘concrete villages’ like Vreewijk and Heijplaat; Kiefhoek, Stuhlemeijer and the Kossel. About a century later, these neighbourhoods provide a fascinating image of time.

Large-scale projects
To increase the quality of life in South Rotterdam, a number of mega projects stand out. The area developments around Stadionpark (better known as Feyenoord City) regularly make it to the press. In the meantime, Hart van Zuid is taking shape with the brand new Theater Zuidplein and Rotterdam’s first Olympic swimming pool. In the oldest port area of ​​South Rotterdam, the Kop van Feijenoord, a major area development has already started on fascinating sites such as De Kaai, former Unilever, Nassauhaven with the waterfront homes and new residential and work projects in the Piekstraat.

The optimism of the garden cities after WWII in Rotterdam-South
After World War II, innovative city districts were developed along the outskirts of the city to cover the enormous housing shortage. Modern architects worked under the direction of municipal urban developer Lotte Stam-Beese to design the ideal garden city. Together they developed the ‘wijkgedachte’, in which every neighbourhood within a district has its own facilities to improve social cohesion within the city. Neighbourhoords like Pendrecht, Zuidwijk, Lombardijen and Groot-IJsselmonde are primary examples. While these areas are still open and modern in design, their optimistic character has faded to the background. Nowadays, there are new social and cultural initiatives to reinvent these garden cities in the twenty-first century.

Tip! If you have little time, but still get a taste of Rotterdam South, book a tour Around de Rijnhaven.

Type

  • Walking Tour

Prijs/Duur

  • On request
  • 1 till 3 hours
  • Max 15 persons per guide

Start Locatie

  • In consultation

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Type

Prijs/Duur

Start Locatie

excursion sustainability Leonidas Erasmus

Sustainable Housing Leonidas and Campus Erasmus University

Rotterdam has initiated a project on the former site of the Leonidas hockey club in the Esch, where private individuals can design and build their own sustainable home. As long as the homes meet the sustainability requiremens of the municipality, plenty of experimentation can be done. This has created a unique part of Rotterdam, with an enormous divisersity of stylers and eco friendly solutions; a real showcase of sustainable architecture.

excursion sustainability Leonidas Erasmus

Erasmus Campus; Within walking distance of this sustainable housing experiment, Erasmus University is also busy ambitiously making its own campus more sustainable and revitalizing. In the past 10 years, an almost completely new, vibrant campus has been created, where the famous “Brutalist blocks” have been overhauld, new buildings have been added and, above all, a completely campus area has been constructed with new paving, level differences, planting and other facilities (supermarket, student housing, catering, sports facilities). It’s now really what a campus should be: everything in one place!

Tip! Combine this toour with our tour program Wijk op Menskracht in Bospolder Tussendijk about the energy transition of Rotterdam.

Type

  • Walking Tour

Prijs/Duur

  • €210 ex btw – per guide
  • 2 hours
  • Max 15 persons per guide

Start Locatie

  • in consultation
RDM Tour Rotterdam innovation

RDM Campus

One of Rotterdam’s most spectacular examples of repurposing can be found at Heijplaat. There, the hundred-year-old shipyard of the Rotterdam Dry Dock Company (RDM) has been transformed into a dynamic Makers District. The vast complex is now used to provide education and stimulate innovation. It can be admired in all its glory during an UrbanGuides tour.

With the establishment of the RDM in 1902, a complete factory village was also built on Heijplaat, based on the English garden villages. Together with the Quarantine site, this area forms a special enclave in the middle of modern Rotterdam.

A visit can be organized from two different perspectives: with an interest in technology & education or based on the cultural-historical value of the former shipyard and the adjacent garden village.

RDM Innovation: Nowadays you can experience the former construction site of the SS Rotterdam as an educational campus in a tour from UrbanGuides. Together with a guide you will visit the former RDM Innovation Dock machine hall, a monumental industrial hall with an area of ​​approximately 23,000 m2 and heights of up to 20 meters. Today, technical education (Albeda and Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences) and companies work together here under the motto Research, Design & Manufacturing (RDM) on sustainable and innovative solutions in the field of construction, mobility and energy. The Campus is part of the Rotterdam Makers District, a collaboration with the M4H area across the river.

History and garden village Heijplaat: It is one of the port areas with an important cultural-historical value in the city. The old head office has been completely renovated. The main part of this dates from the years 1913–1916 and has a monumental marble floor and a boardroom and commissioner’s room in Art Deco style. This characteristic building, the former RDM Submarine Wharf and the

During a walk through the RDM grounds and Heijplaat, you and an architectural guide will explore the monumental main building, the former Submarine Wharf and the garden village and see how new life is being given while preserving history.

Tip! Also visit the Garden village Vreewijk with UrbanGuides.

Type

  • Walking Tour

Prijs/Duur

  • On request
  • Max 15 persons per guide

Start Locatie

  • Klinknagelstraat 2
Museumpark excursion Depot Rotterdam

Museumpark: the creative hub of Rotterdam

For a long time, the Kunsthal formed the final point of the various cultural institutions at the Museum Park, but a new addition has now been added: its brand new neighbor the Depot. With this new collection building of Museum Boijmans van Beuningen, the city not only has a special eye-catcher, it also adds an interesting layer to the way in which art and culture in Rotterdam are made available to the public.

The Museum Park has always been an interesting case in terms of art and cultural institutions. Such as Natural History in the old Villa Dijkzigt and Museum Boijmans van Beuningen, an internationally renowned art collection in a pre-war museum building that is now closed for the construction of a renovated museum building. From Het Nieuwe Instituut, which manages the state archives for architecture and urban planning, to the Kunsthal, a 3,300 m² exhibition space in an icon by Rem Koolhaas. You will also find a modernist villa park including the ultra-modern museum house Huis Sonneveld and the Chabot Museum, a museum for International Expressionism.

Curious? Learn more about how these diverse private collections slowly transferred to well-known Rotterdam museums, and how they ensure the presentation and preservation of art and culture in their own way. During this walk you will discover how this former private property of the Hoboken shipping family grew into the most beautiful park, completely redesigned, planted and connected to new routes in 2024 by the award-winning landscape office Gustafson Porter + Bowman, with the most beautiful museum buildings in the city.

Museumpark excursion Depot Rotterdam

Extra detour: In the vicinity of the Museum Park, two very interesting developments, namely the renovated complex of Erasmus MC with a new Campus (2050) and the beautiful new residential area Little C on the Coolhaven, can be visited to complete the tour in this area.

Tip: If you are strongly interested in the architecture of Dutch modernism, then the walking tour from the Chabot Museum through the gardens of the modernist villa park from the 1930s is highly recommended!

Photo credit: Ossip Duivenbode

Type

  • Walking Tour

Prijs/Duur

  • € 160,- ex. vat per guide
  • 1.5 hour
  • Max 15 persons per guide

Start Locatie

  • Museumpark

The Inner City of Rotterdam: from the Markthal to the Laurenskerk

Unfortunately, this program is only available in Dutch.

Type

  • Walking Tour

Prijs/Duur

  • On request

Start Locatie