With its UNESCO-listed waterways, world-class museums, and edgy Red Light District, home to a plethora of entertainment venues and a thriving nightlife scene, Amsterdam is likely to be on your radar for a future trip to Europe.
Something tourists often fail to take into account when planning a visit, however, is how crowded and expensive it can be, with most museums and popular attractions requiring reservation months in advance, and modest-at-best hotels running you up $180 a night.
If you’re looking to beat the crowds and you’re not exactly keen on breaking the bank, then Amsterdam shouldn’t be your destination of choice––that’s not to say it’s all that the Netherlands has to offer.
This city just 2 hours by train from Amsterdam is equally criss-crossed by canals, and with fewer tourists, it feels far more authentically Dutch than the capital:
This Is The Oldest City In The Entire Netherlands
A compact city with a population of just over 119,000, Dordrecht is usually shunned by tourists in favor of Amsterdam’s jam-packed canal-front or The Hague’s globalist appeal, even though it’s the country’s oldest settlement.
You read that right: before there was even a Dam, there was Dordrecht, with its fortified port and harbor markets.
Its importance as a trading hub would eventually wane, but the cultural wealth would live on in centuries-old buildings and winding canals that, despite being less extensive, have provided the blueprint for Amsterdam’s own complex system of navigable waters.
Though at least eight centuries have passed since its founding, a whopping 950 historical structures remain scattered around the Old Town, including the landmark Grote Kerke, or Big Church, a Brabantine Gothic effort that began construction in 1285.
The 65-meter bell tower that rises triumphantly above the otherwise-even townscape is home to 67 bells, including the heaviest one in all of The Netherlands, weighing 9830 kilos––you can rest assured you’ll hear its resounding cry at the turn of every hour.
What Else Is There To See In Charming Dordrecht?
Other historically significant churches include Augustijnenkerk, dating back to around 1293, and Nieuwkerk, or ‘New Church’–now, this is a funny one, as, despite its name, it’s, in fact, the oldest building in all of Dordrecht, built as early as 1175.
Additionally, Dordrecht is famous for its 14th-century ‘Mint of Holland‘, where nearly all coins used in medieval Holland were struck, the 17th-century Kyck over den Dyck windmill, the last-surviving of its kind in town, and the medieval… hem, *clearing sound*, Groothoofdspoort.
That one was a bit of a mouthful.
Anyways, this richly-decorated city gate is part of Dordrecht’s original 14th-century fortifications, and it sits right at the spot where the rivers Meuse, Merwede, and the Rhine, which runs into the Western half of Germany, all meet.
All around town, you should expect to find well-preserved merchants’ houses, antique shops, quirky art galleries, and as customary in any locality in Holland, cheese markets selling fresh gouda, maasdam, and every regional variety under the sun.
If you’re keen on sampling Dutch delicacies, Dordts Genoegen is the place to go.
Located in the Voorstraat, a 1.2-km shopping street that claims to be the longest in the Netherlands, it serves the best apple pies in town.
Smaller Crowds!
For a city with so many incredible sights and as culturally rich as Dordrecht, you’d expect it to be buzzing with tour groups or, at the very least, day-trippers from nearby The Hague or Rotterdam, which are only 15 to 50 minutes away by train.
In reality, in strolling the canal streets of Dordrecht, visiting its riverside museums, and paying the odd medieval church a visit, you’ll find no sign of the tourism hordes you would typically get in larger Dutch metropolises.
Dordrecht feels very much frozen in a time when Instagrammers were yet to discover The Netherlands and its host of treasures: whichever picturesque corner you turn, whichever charming cafe with a Northern Mannerist facade, long lines of people are uncommon.
The absence of mass tourism also means Dordrecht is not commonly targeted by pickpockets and criminal gangs: in fact, it was listed as one of the ten safest municipalities in The Netherlands according to a study carried out by Travel Safe – Abroad.
We would still advise you to keep your wits about yourself, and a close eye on personal belongings, but petty crime and violence are less of an issue in Dordrecht as they are in Amsterdam or Rotterdam, where mass, irregular immigration and ghettoization have led to decreased safety levels.
Dordrecht Is More Affordable To Visit
Other than its off-path appeal, Dordrecht is significantly cheaper to visit than Amsterdam, from food to accommodation.
Based on Numbeo estimates, tourists spend an average $14.95 on meals in inexpensive eateries––we’re talking combo kebab meals and stroopwafel straight from the market.
In mid-range restaurants, a more elaborate, three-course dinner for one typically costs $41.50.
When it comes to hotels, the price of 3-star listings (breakfast included) ranges from $96 to $133, while beds in shared hostel dorms start from $44 on Booking.com.
Getting to Dordrecht by train from larger Dutch cities is extremely easy (and cheap), though if you’re coming from Amsterdam-Centraal, that will typically involve transferring in Rotterdam.
Tickets cost only $25.56, and there are multiple trains leaving every hour.
The Amsterdam-Rotterdam stretch takes 43 minutes, while Rotterdam-Dordrecht is only 15 minutes.
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