The Netherlands is a small country with many inhabitants. In addition, millions of tourists come to the Netherlands every year. All these people travel across the country in different ways, but “what is the best way to travel in the Netherlands?”
The best ways to travel in the Netherlands are by car, train, bus, and bicycle. But this can depend on the distance, location, and destination of your travel. The Netherlands has a really good infrastructure and public transportation network. This makes the Netherlands an easy country to travel in.
Now you know a few ways to get around easily in the Netherlands, but there are a lot more options! So if you're planning to visit the Netherlands, be sure to read on to find out how best to travel around the Netherlands.
The Netherlands is a very safe country to travel around for tourists. They have a very low crime rate and multiple ways to get around in the country. With the high-quality infrastructure all over the country, they make it very easy for anybody to travel.
You are probably wondering what travel options there are to get people easily around the country. Well, the biggest and most popular one by the Dutch themselves is traveling by car. But this can really depend on the distance that one is traveling.
Down below you will find the six best ways to travel in the Netherlands.
Traveling by car in the Netherlands:
Traveling by car is very easy in the Netherlands, and is still the most popular way of traveling by the Dutch themselves.
The reason why traveling in the Netherlands by car is very suitable is because of the good infrastructure that the Netherlands has. There are many roads in the Netherlands, which makes it possible to get to almost anywhere in the country by car.
A big disadvantage of the popularity and the many cars on the road is, of course, the chance of traffic jams. During the morning and evening rush hour, there is a good chance that you will end up in a traffic jam.
What makes traveling by car so convenient for tourists is the freedom you have. You are not bothered by time schedules and can often get close to where you want to go.
If you as a tourist want to travel through the Netherlands by car, there are several options.
The first one is obvious, just rent a car at a car rental. That way you can drive around the small country and visit multiple cities during your vacation.
A different option is called BlaBlaCar. This is a very cheap way to get around in the Netherlands. You book a seat in a car of a local driver and then you can join them. This way you will get to interact with locals and get cheap to your destination at the same time. The only cost you will have is the cost of paying for the gas!
In the Netherlands, you can also make use of taxis and Uber, but they are a little more expensive than the option above. Plus, Uber isn't available in every city.
The downside of traveling by car are traffic jams:
Traveling by train in the Netherlands:
Traveling by train is a great way of traveling in the Netherlands. There is a huge rail network, so that way you can go everywhere you want. For example, you could travel from Amsterdam to Maastricht in only 2.5 hours, which is a distance of 212 kilometers (131 miles).
Traveling by train is very comfortable as well. There are lots of seats in which you can sit back and relax. The price is very reasonable for this comfortable way of traveling. In addition, traveling by train also has the advantage that you can look out the window and do not have to pay attention to the road, this allows you to see much more of the landscape.
Don't worry about not being able to reach the smaller villages by public transport. Most bus stations are close to the train stations, that way you get to travel to even the smallest villages in the Netherlands.
The costs of traveling by train and bus, are very low in the Netherlands. The quality of the interior is very high, so if you doubt between traveling by public transportations or renting a car. We would advise you to use public transportation, simply because it’s cheap and it’s very comfortable.
Would you like to plan your train journey online? Then go to www.ns.nl and enter your journey there. You can see all departure and arrival times and ticket prices.
Traveling by bus in the Netherlands:
There is also a lot of travel by bus in the Netherlands. However, this is often within a city, for example from the station to the university. But there are also many bus connections between cities and the villages around them, which do not have a train station.
As a tourist, you probably only use the bus as a means of transport within a city or to visit a nearby village. Like the train, the busses are very comfortable and have a reasonable price.
If you plan to travel by bus more often during your visit to the Netherlands. Then it is advisable to buy an OV chip card. This saves you money compared to buying a single ticket on the bus every time.
Traveling by metro in the Netherlands:
Some big cities give you access to the underground phenomenon, but the metro is not one of Holland’s biggest public transportation systems, but cities like Amsterdam, Rotterdam, and The Hague make the metro available for you to use.
In these large busy cities, the metro is the best mode of transport to get from one side of the city to the other quickly. With the metro, you will not be bothered by other traffic on the road. In addition, there are many subways, so you never have to wait long.
Traveling by bike in the Netherlands:
The Netherlands is the country of bikes. They literally have more bikes than human beings. The Dutch make excessive use of bicycles. They mostly use it to go to school or work, they even go on little bike trips and explore Dutch nature.
They also made it very accessible for tourist to get their hands on the two-wheeled wonder. Multiple bike rentals make sure you can have a bike for a day or more and get around the city, completely in Dutch style, and for a good price.
If you want to go to several cities you probably shouldn’t rent a bike because bikes are very handy once, you’re in a city, but to get from one city to another will be very hard and a long bike ride.
So if you stay in the same city, the bike may be the best option out there. There are many cycle paths in the Netherlands, so you can easily get anywhere in a city, even where cars cannot reach.
Be sure to check the weather forecast in advance, because cycling in the rain doesn't make anyone happy.
Exploring cities in Dutch style:
Traveling by foot in the Netherlands:
Just like in most countries, traveling on foot in the Netherlands is very popular. You could walk around the countryside and admire the beautiful nature of the Netherlands, or you can wander around the cities and admire the architecture of the unique buildings.
Like traveling by bike, traveling by foot is best when you stay in one city, but if you want to visit multiple cities, we recommend one of the other great options to travel around the Netherlands.
Walking is probably the best way to see the center of a big city. When the distances are relatively short, this is definitely our recommendation, because on foot you can also get to places where cyclists are not allowed.
Besides, it is of course completely free, and it is also good for your health!
Although the country is placed high on the list of most expensive countries, their traveling costs are very reasonable. With the comfortable and enjoyable ways of traveling the price you have to pay for public transport is very reasonable.
They also make use of day tickets for trains. For around 50 euro (60 dollars), you get unlimited travel by train. If you want to visit multiple cities in one day you should really consider buying one.
We would recommend traveling by public transportation. The price to quality ratio is great and when you would rent a car you would pay a lot more. It’s simply because you don’t only rent the car, but you also need to fill it up with gas. The gas prices in the Netherlands are very high and that way you would spend a lot more than just buying a ticket for the train.
The crime rates in the Netherlands are very low. If you are going to travel in the Netherlands, your biggest concern will probably be pickpocketing. So, think wisely and be aware not to leave your bags anywhere behind.
If you’re a female traveling alone, the Netherlands will be a very safe place for you. It’s a very friendly and safe place, but prevent walking alone in poorly lighted areas.
If you want to travel by foot or bike, you probably know that you will be more vulnerable than when you travel by car or train. There were 661 road traffic fatalities in the Netherlands in 2019, which is less than half of the road deaths in the UK.
The biggest reason would probably be that the Netherlands have separate cycle paths. That way a cyclist isn’t on the same road as a car, and therefore much safer.
Just like any other large city, Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands, has various options for exploring the city. You can take the tram, metro, train, bus, bike, or even a boat to get you where you want to go.
The cheapest way to travel around Amsterdam would obviously be by foot, but that way it can take a long time to see the big city.
So, renting a bike would be a nice solution. You can go anywhere you want and a little faster than by walking, but you would need to park it every time you visit something.
The tram is one of the best ways to get around in Amsterdam. You can go everywhere for a low price and you don’t need to think about parking it anywhere. The only thing you need to keep in mind is to be on time because they don’t wait for you, but luckily there are a lot of trams that ride the same route, so you don’t need to wait that long for the next one to come along.
Traveling by tram is the best way to get around in Amsterdam:
I hope this article has helped you to figure out what is the best way to travel in the Netherlands.
Overall, the best way of traveling in the Netherlands would be by train. You can go anywhere you want, in a very relaxing and enjoyable way and for a very good price. We would really recommend you to take the train for traveling around the country if you ever going to visit the Netherlands.