Private Tour of Delft & Rotterdam with Private Boat Ride

Your guide will be waiting for you at Rotterdam Centraal Station. The tour starts here, the city's new train station. 170,000 people walk in and out every day!

As soon as we leave the station, we see a the Groothandelsgebouw, a building that was the largest building of Europe when it opened in 1949. It is an icon of the reconstruction of Rotterdam.

We walk over a seemingly normal roundabout, but for the people of Rotterdam this place almost has a spiritual meaning. Of course it has to do with football.

You will see one of the few buildings that survived the war in Rotterdam: the town hall. Who are those statues? Let's find out.

The Timmerhuis housed the institution that managed the city's reconstruction after the war. The building itself also somehow symbolises the mix between old and new that Rotterdam is all about.

Close to the modern Market Hall stands a 14th century church. Its tower miraculously survived the bombing of Rotterdam too. Today, it is mostly used as an event location. You will learn of the church's history, as well as that of a famous man who was born here: Erasmus.

This building has become an icon for the city. We will enter the impressive Market Hall (Markthal). The two sides of the building contain many apartments and inside you can enjoy different foods from around the world. And don't forget to look up and look at one of the biggest pieces of art on the planet! Inside, we will taste some Dutch cheese.

You have already noticed the cube houses probably, but now we will walk under them, and even enter one from inside. You will find out if it is a bit comfortable to live there.

We will walk towards the river Maas, close to the red bridge. This is where heavy fighting took place in May 1940, before the bombing of the city. From here on, we will have a clear view of Rotterdam's impressive skyline. You can also see the other side of the river,

From here, we will get our own water taxi (fast yellow boats for small groups). We will go on a 45 minute tour over the river Maas, to really appreciate the skyline and (a part of) the port of Rotterdam.

As we walk away from the river again, we are entering the Old Harbour area. This area is where the port of Rotterdam started in the 15th century. Nowadays, this is a place to go out for drinks or look at old ships being restored by hand and the actual port (the biggest of Europe) starts a few kilometers away!

We will walk closer to the river and see the Witte Huis.,the most prominent building in to the Old Harbour area. This is the oldest skyscraper of Europe, dating from 1898. You will learn about its significance to the city. And if you look carefully, you can see the remnants of German bullet holes! Your guide will tell you all about it.

We will now go underground, into the UFO shaped train station Blaak. From here, we will take a direct train to Delft city center (17 minutes).

From Station Delft, we will make our way into the city.

We will walk along the oldest canal of Delft. In the south of the city centre, we will pass by a large former weapons Armory of the V.O.C. Let's find out more about Delft's role in the golden days of the Dutch Republic. Also around here, we can take a look at the exact spot where Vermeer was standing when he made his famous painting 'View of Delft'.

On our way to the Beestenmarkt square, we will pass by Delft's old neo-classicist synagogue, as you walk along another one of Delft's quaint canals.

The newest church of Delft city centre! Only about 150 years old. It is a Catholic church, so it was not allowed before that time. How about the church's 2 distinct towers? You'll see.

On this former animal trading market square, the Beestenmarkt, we will stop for a well-deserved lunch. Nowadays, this is a very popular square among locals

We will see the second-highest church tower of the Netherlands, and home of the family grave of our royal family. The church is from the 14th century, but it has suffered quite some damage during the centuries. You'll learn more about it! If you want to, we will climb the tower (370 steps).

The old town hall of Delft is one of the most important historical buildings of the city. We will walk by it as we leave the Markt square on our way to the Old Church. What is so interesting about the town hall? Your guide will tell you.

After leaving the market square and passing by the butter house, the weighing house and Anthony van Leeuwenhoek's old house, we will go to the old beer brewing quarter and see the Old Church, the leaning tower of Delft. Johannes Vermeer is buried there. But why is it leaning? We'll find out

Opposite of the Old Church is the Prinsenhof, a former monastery. This place has played a deciding role in Dutch history, as our Father of the Fatherland has been assassinated here in 1584. You will find out more about it.

On our way down the Oude Delft canal, we will see the oldest house of Delft. It now has a heavily decorated facade, as it houses the Water Board since 1645. What is this and why was (and is) it so important?

We make our way back to the central Markt square, where there will be an electric tuktuk (threewheeler) waiting to take us to the Royal Delft Museum.

We arrive at the only surviving original Delft Blue pottery factory, from 1653. Here, you will get an audio tour through the museum and the operational factory itself. Afterwards, you can visit their shop and café, before a tuktuk takes you back to Delft again (to the city or to the station).

You are back in Delft, with the night ahead of you. If you want to eat or drink something in Delft, everything is within a few minutes walking from here. We can help you with planning your evening if you want to. If you booked an option 'with pick-up/drop-off', you will be dropped off again afterwards, at your hotel or another location of your choice.