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Offered languages
- German
- German
- Portuguese
- Portuguese
- English
- English
- Italian
- Italian
- French
- French
- Spanish
- Spanish
Rotterdam is the one Dutch city with no old town, and fifteen minutes on the afternoon of 14 May 1940 explain why. This self-guided walking tour traces what the city built in its place, running from Rotterdam Centraal to the Erasmus Bridge past the last medieval church, the tilted Cube Houses, the Markthal and Zadkine's Destroyed City.
Everything runs from your smartphone, with no app to download. Each of the 9 stops comes with a map, walking directions and a short audio story, plus an interactive quiz to test what you have just heard. Audio and text are available in 7 languages.
Start whenever you like, pause for a coffee, and take as long as you want. No group, no schedule and no guide waiting on you: just the city and the story, at your own pace.
What's Included
Meeting and pickup
Start your self-guided tour at the entrance of Rotterdam Centraal station, on Stationsplein. Open your Ciceru experience nearby and follow the route on your smartphone.
The tour ends near the Erasmus Bridge, on the Willemskade side of the river. Take a moment to enjoy the area before finishing your walk.
Itinerary
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Rotterdam Centraal Station (Pass by)
Your walk starts on Stationsplein, the car-free square outside Rotterdam Centraal, where the station's steel canopy points straight into a skyline of glass towers and there is no medieval centre in sight.
Admission ticket free -
(Pass by)
On Stadhuisplein, in front of the 1920 City Hall, stand Mari Andriessen's four bronze figures commemorating the people of Rotterdam killed between 1940 and 1945. The plinth carries the city motto Stronger through struggle.
Admission ticket free -
Beurs - World Trade Center (Pass by)
On Coolsingel stands the low modernist Beurs, which opened for trading in May 1940 and survived the bombardment that flattened everything around it. A sea-green glass tower was later built straight on top of it.
Admission ticket free -
Grote of Sint-Laurenskerk (Pass by)
The late Gothic Grote of Sint-Laurenskerk is the only medieval building left in the city centre. Gutted by fire in 1940, it was rebuilt over sixteen years rather than left as a ruin, and Erasmus stands in bronze outside.
Admission ticket free -
Market Binnenrotte (Pass by)
This long open square is the filled-in bed of the river Rotte, the waterway the city is named after. Rail tracks and a metro station now run beneath it, and market stalls fill it on Tuesdays and Saturdays.
Admission ticket free -
Cube Houses Rotterdam (Pass by)
Piet Blom's Blaakse Bos: thirty-eight yellow cubes tilted at forty-five degrees on hexagonal pillars, built in the early 1980s as a way to carry housing over a busy road. One cube is open to visitors as a show home.
Admission ticket free -
Markthal (Pass by)
A horseshoe-shaped market hall with 228 apartments folded over it. Inside, the vaulted ceiling carries the vast Horn of Plenty artwork, and glass end walls flex in the wind. Food stalls fill the floor below.
Admission ticket free -
The Destroyed City (Pass by)
Ossip Zadkine's six-metre bronze at the head of the Leuvehaven, made after the war with a hole torn through its chest. It is Rotterdam's principal memorial to the bombing of 14 May 1940 and to the civilians killed.
Admission ticket free -
Erasmus Bridge (Pass by)
The walk ends at the Erasmusbrug, the 800-metre cable-stayed bridge nicknamed the Swan for its angled white pylon. Opened in 1996, it links the old centre to the redeveloped south bank and now appears in the city's logo.
Admission ticket free
Additional info
- Service animals allowed
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Not recommended for travelers with spinal injuries
- Not recommended for pregnant travelers
- Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Tags
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Cancellation Policy
- For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
- If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
- Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
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