Introduction
There are several suburbs in and around Rotterdam where expats and new arrivals to Rotterdam seem to cluster, namely Hillegersberg, Kralingen, Princeland. Outer suburbs such as Bergschenhoek, Berkel en Rodenrijs, Barendrecht and Rhoon tend to have more open space and offer a more village feel, although less short-term expats move to these areas. Each have their own attributes but is dependent on what your requirements are.
Barendrecht
Located south of the Rotterdam Ring road & north of the Oude Maas river, Barendrecht is divided by the A29 into two halves: Barendrecht centrum and Carnisselande. Barendrecht centrum is the “older” part of Barendrecht and many of the houses date from the 1930’s to present. Carnisselande has only recently been built out and by the time it is completely finished will bring the total population of Barendrecht to nearly 40,000. Houses in Carnisselande are of more recent construction.
There are shopping streets in both halves of Barendrecht and a weekly market at city hall every Friday. Soon there will be a second weekly market in Carnisselande every Wednesday. Barendrecht is a very Christian and somewhat conservative community. Stores (including IKEA) and cafes are closed on Sundays.
The town itself is very family friendly and the neighbourhoods are planned in such a way that there is little through traffic so you can let your children play in the neighbourhood in relative safety. There are lots of play areas tucked into each neighborhood.
The main shopping streets have everything from supermarkets to electronics, high end clothing and home decoration shops. Thermen Barendrecht is located on the banks of the Oude Maas and offers sauna and beauty treatments 7 days a week.
Public tranportation options include train service from Barendrecht’s NS station in the older part of the city and tram service to Rotterdam in Carnisselande with Line 25 running from Carnisselande to central station. With Barendrecht you can have a Dutch “dorp” or “small-town” feel while being only 20 minutes away from Rotterdam centrum. Fewer expatriates live on this side of Rotterdam which allows one to integrate more fully into Dutch society.
Images of Barendrecht to come...
Bergschenhoek
Bergschenhoek is a village 20 minutes from the centre of Rotterdam and 10 minutes from Rotterdam Airport. There is a large variety of modern family homes all with gardens. There are many small play parks built into the housing developments and also a small children's farm.
The centre of the village is walking distance from all the houses and very accessible with prams and buggies. The variety of shops in the village cater for everyday needs, including a large modern child friendly supermarket with a spacious underground carpark. A local family cafe come restaurant makes great milkshakes, but unfortunately Bergschenhoek hasn't a venue for a romantic meal.
Bergschenhoek has the only International English speaking nursery school in the Rotterdam area; Funtazia. Rotterdam international primary and secondary schools are 20 minutes away by car and the American School is 10 minutes. There are a number of full time nurseries in Bergschenhoek that provide day care for zero to four year olds.
During the hot summer months there is an open air swimming pool and recreation complex (Windas Speeltuin, Berkelseweg 21, 2661AK); with a toddlers pool, two large pools and a large grass area to picnic. Bergschenhoek is a great place to live with a young family.
Images of Bergschenhoek to come...
Berkel en Rodenrijs
Berkel en Rodenrijs is an ever growing village just north of Rotterdam (and Hillegersberg). When building is complete the estimated number of residents will be 35,000. Berkel en Rodenrijs is situated in the triangle of
Rotterdam, The Hague and Zoetermeer, so close to the big cities yet still retaining it's village feel.
Berkel en Rodenrijs train station is in the Rodenrijs, southern part of the village. The train currently runs from Rotterdam Hofplein through Berkel en Rodenrijs to Den Haag central. However, once the the new Ranstad rail network is completed the trains will stop at several stations in the village and will go directly to Rotterdam central station and connect up with the metro system. There are also frequent bus services which run from Rotterdam and Zoetermeer. Parking in the centre of Berkel en Rodenrijs uses the blue time card system.
Berkel en Rodenrijs have a newly improved shopping centre where you can comfortably do all of your shopping. Some of the larger shops include, Albert Hein, C1000, Hema, Kruidvat, Intertoys and Marskramer. There is also a large weekly market on a Wednesday.
Future plans for the village include a large sports park development, new schools and a new health centre.
Images of Berkel en Rodenrijs to come...
Capelle a/d Ijssel
Capelle a/d Ijssel is a very quiet and picturesque suburb again with a mixure of traditional and modern housing, and surrounded by canals, trees and parks.
Located about 15 minutes from Rotterdam city it is situated close to the ring road motorway network and metro to the city (Schenkel stop). It is close to two major shopping centres; Alexandrium and the De Koperwiek. De Koperwiek (2903AE, Capelle a/d Ijssel) is a large shopping centre with a variety of stores; clothing, food, general household and whiteware, gadgets, shoes, family and more.
There is a golf course (on the outskirts of the suburb) a tennis club and David Lloyd Gym with excellent facilities including tennis club, swimming, judo for the kids, childcare, pilates, weights and training and more.
Images of Capelle a/d Ijssel to come...
Hillegersberg
Hillegersberg is friendly neighbourhood with lots of trees and pretty streets which are usually quiet enough for strolling with buggies and energetic toddlers. It has an old fashioned feel and is a nice retreat from the city.
It is situated on the edge of the Bergse Bos, an area of woodlands and waterways, which comes alive at weekends with walkers, cyclists, horse-riders and joggers. There's also lots of different types of sailing on the lakes in Hillegersberg and on the River Rotte, which meanders through the Bergse Bos. There's a golf course, artificial ski-slope and a climbing wall. These provide the only recognisable 'hills' in Hillegersberg!
The houses in the area mainly date from the 1930's onwards and are typically terraced and arranged on three floors with small gardens. There are other housing options depending on budget and location requirements.
The local shopping precinct, which centers around the Bergse Dorpstraat (the village High Street) are nice to browse in and many sell designer goods. However, you can also find some good butchers, bakers, grocers, newsagents, pharmacists, gift shops and ironmongers. Dutch supermarkets are much smaller than seen in other countries, but Hillegersberg does have a couple of reasonable size options for family shopping.
There are a few restaurants and cafes - for enjoying Dutch coffee and appletart - and some have a view over the lake towards the windmill!
The No. 4 tram begins and ends in Hillegersberg and runs to the city centre from 6am until midnight, taking
around 20 minutes to get the Central Station. Rotterdam airport is a 10 minute drive away. Hillegersberg is not far from Bergschenhoek, Berkel and Schiebroek which also provide good shopping facilities.
The American and Japanese International Schools (one complex) are situated in Hillegersberg and there many excellent Dutch schools locally also.
There are few ' swing parks' but Plaswijkpark - a small adventure park with swings, slides, pedalos, carousel
and animals - is nearby, as is a swimming pool with small pools for toddlers. There are outdoor pools in nearby towns for the summer months. There are numerous children's farms within driving and cycling distance.
Images of Hillegersberg to come...
Kralingen
Kralingen is located about 10 minutes from the city centre of Rotterdam and is a popular location for expats. It is a mixture of modern and historic buildings (Oud Kralingen) and new developments as part of the suburb was built post war. The suburb is home to a large park; area Kralingse Bos with a very picturesque lake and recreation area close by. The tram and metro network is well located and organised (Tram 7) takes you to the city centre. The shopping centre is fairly unremarkable although now has a new Albert Hein. You could also try the Lufthofstraat behind Oudedijk for cheese, fish, fruit and veges, meat, household and pharmacy requirements.
The local fitness centre, Healthfit, provides aerobics, weight training and "spinning" classes, Dylan's Brasserie, swimming pool, turkish bath facilities and Cosmo Beauty and Hair. There is a small onsite creche for newborn age upwards. A large tennis club (Tennispark Ijsclub Kralingen) is adjacent to the fitness centre. A golf course is not far from the Kralingse Bos.
Erasmus University is located on the outskirts of Kralingen offering a full spectrum of undergraduate and post graduate study.
Images of Kralingen to come...
Prinsenland
Prinsenland is a smallish suburb located between Kralingen and Capelle a/d Ijssel/Schenkel. There is a mixture of housing available from traditional standalone, thatch-roofed properties with a large garden to modern terraced housing, townhouses and apartment buildings. It is a leafy suburb with a pleasant if not small lake with a fountain that operates most of the time.
The Prinsenland shopping centre is small but contains much of what you will need for the weekly shop; Albert Hein, an award winning butcher (famous for their ribs), baker, drug store, florist and a Blokker. Also a hairdresser (Aarts Hairystyling), which is a family salon in modern environment. They have two hydraulic car chairs for those children not exactly sold on getting their hair cut. They can sit and play in the cars and watch a movie while the stylist chops away.
Also in the neighbourhood you will find a bike store, Japanese/Chinese restaurant, car yard, garden centre and DIY store. Along this street is a school and closeby a peuterspeelzaal. At the centre of the village is the Activiteitencentrum Zjaak (in Dutch); a community centre running courses for all age groups from cookery to caligraphy, junior singing and dancing classes. As it is a community centre the prices are reasonable for all courses.
Images of Prinsenland to come...
Rhoon
information to come...
Schiebroek
Schiebroek is a quiet family area adjacent to Hillegersberg. It has good public transport links into the city centre (via Tram 5) and a bus route connecting the area to Hillegersberg and beyond to Alexandrium Shopping Centre. It is also very close to Rotterdam Airport, which also means you need to choose your location carefully to avoid too much noise.
The area has three supermarkets; Albert Hein, Edah and Liddle as well as numerous shops lining the local main street, Peppelweg. There are clothing shops, butchers, greengrocers, opticians, pet stores, hairdressers and just about anything else you might need. One thing to note, from 2006 this will be changing. Everything lining Peppelweg is going to be demolished to make way for new houses. If and where the local shops will move to from there is unknown at the time of writing.
It is a great family area, with the local market square hosting events for the children every holiday. The local animal farm and Plaswijk Park are just a short walk, along with large parklands to walk and cycle through. There a number of peuterspeelzaal (playschools), primary schools and a couple of high schools.
Images of Schiebroek to come..
