Rotterdam Museums

From: Rotterdam Travel Guide

Rotterdam Maritime Museum

ABOVE: Cranes and a navigation light are among the outdoor exhibits at Rotterdam's Maritime Museum.

Art museums

Two Rotterdam institutions are among the 10 top-ranked art museums in the Netherlands:

Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen The Museum Boijmans Van Beunigen is the leading all-around art museum in Rotterdam, with exhibits of paintings, sculpture, and design from the Middle Ages through the present day. The museum occupies a 1950s building in the Museumpark, on the western edge of the city center.

'Woman' by Anton Herring The Kunsthal, which was designed by the Dutch architect Rem Koolhas, presents a wide range of temporary exhibits. (At the time of this writing, current or scheduled exhibitions ranged from "New Horizons: The Hague School and the Modern Dutch Landscape" to "Modern Life: Edward Hopper and his Time."

The Chabot Museum, located across the street from NAI and next door to Sonneveld House (see our Rotterdam architecture and art page), is a 1930s villa furnished with paintings and sculptures by the Dutch expressionist artist Henk Chabot.

The Nederlands Fotomuseum, or Netherlands Photo Museum, is in a former warehouse near the Rotterdam Cruise Terminal just beyond the island side of Erasmus Bridge. (Much of the museum's collection can be previewed online.)

Maritime and Harbor Museums

Maritiem Museum Rotterdam The Maritime Museum is one of the world's leading museums of its kind, with an interactive "MainPort Live" exhibit, ship models, and special exhibitions that may run for a year or two. (During our visit, we enjoyed the display of luxury ship and yacht interiors.)

Havenmuseum exhibit, Rotterdam Maritime Museum The Maritime Museum now incorporates the former Havenmuseum or Harbor Museum, a "working museum" with indoor and outdoor exhibits about the Port of Rotterdam in the past and present. You can see old ships and tugboats, harbor cranes, an antique lighthouse, and other displays.

Kraneschipbrug Rotterdam Tip: After your visit to the Maritime Museum, head back into the city center via the Kraneschipbrug, a floating pedestrian bridge that connects with docks for vintage boats and the Leuvehaven water-taxi landing.

Other museums in Rotterdam

Dutch Tax and Customs Museum The Belasting & Douane Museum, a.k.a. the Tax and Customs Museum, is one of the more unusual museums in Rotterdam. And unlike the taxation office or a customs official, it won't demand payment: Admission is free.

The Natural History Museum Rotterdam has fossils, skeleton, stuffed animals, dead butterflies, and other exhibits that are typical of its genre. The museum is located in Museumpark, in a building that dates back to 1851.

Finally, Museum Rotterdam tells the "story of Rotterdam, the city with a young heart and an old soul." It has two locations: The main museum is next to City Hall, while a separate "'40-45 NOW" exhibition next to the Coolhaven metro station portrays Rotterdam during World War II.

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Rotterdam travel guide:

Introduction

Architecture, art

Sightseeing, attractions

Tours, excursions

Museums

Shopping