Commissioned to design 65 shops in Rotterdam's central business district in the 1950s, architects Jo Van den Broek and Jaap Bakema came up with the concept of a traffic-free shopping precinct and created the Lijnbaan, two intersecting pedestrianised strips lined by two-storey shops made from prefabricated concrete panels. Wide and low, the shops were totally unlike traditional Dutch retail buildings. Van den Broek and Bakema's concept of a fully pedestrianised precinct influenced retail architecture and urban design around the globe.
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
1.85 MILES
Designed and built between 1925 and 1931, this modernist World Heritage–listed factory northwest of the city centre is an icon of 20th-century industrial…
13.06 MILES
Offering a wonderful introduction to Dutch and Flemish art, this splendid museum is set in a 17th-century mansion built for wealthy sugar trader Johan…
11.8 MILES
Impressive for both its size and its magnificent stained-glass windows, Sint Janskerk had chequered beginnings: previous incarnations of the building…
0.46 MILES
The roll-call of artists represented in the collection of Rotterdam's pre-eminent fine-arts museum is stellar and spans multiple periods and movements:…
13.27 MILES
Once home to members of the Dutch royal family, the 18th-century Lange Voorhout Palace now houses a collection of the work of Dutch graphic artist MC…
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7.18 MILES
One of the Dutch sites on Unesco's World Heritage List, this stretch of the Alblasserwaard polder encompasses two canals, 19 traditional windmills, a…
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0.38 MILES
When company director Albertus Sonneveld decided to commission an architect to design a contemporary home for his family, the obvious choice was Leendert…
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1.13 MILES
Good things often come in small packages, and so it is with this small but excellent museum sheltered under a bridge on the Coolhaven. An eight-minute…
Nearby Rotterdam attractions
0.07 MILES
Legendary Bauhaus architect Marcel Breuer worked with Amsterdam-based architect Abraham Elzas on the design of this department store, which opened in 1957…
0.14 MILES
Anyone who isn't convinced by Rotterdam's claim to the status of one of the world's most interesting cities of architecture need only check out the brach…
0.2 MILES
One of the few city-centre buildings to emerge unscathed after the WWII bombardments, this grandiose building designed by HJ Evers was constructed between…
0.22 MILES
A tribute to the original De Stijl building designed by JJP Oud and built in 1924, this cafe features the bright colours that are forever associated with…
0.23 MILES
The attractive Timmerhuis building designed by Rotterdam-based Rem Koolhaas is a classy location for this museum profiling the city's past, present and…
0.23 MILES
Designed by OMA, the 'Carpenter's House' (2009–15) incorporates apartments, shops, restaurants and Museum Rotterdam. Often described as a 'floating cloud'…
0.27 MILES
This controversial statue of a gnome-like Santa holding what may be a pine tree but may also be a butt plug (sex toy) was designed by American artist Paul…
0.28 MILES
Children adore this museum overlooking Leuvehaven, whose permanent exhibits are emphatically kid-focused. The best of these is the 'Offshore Experience',…