Best app for Netherlands travel

[wizbit93]

We are going to Rotterdam soon and we would like a day trip to Amsterdam. I'm getting myself confused with all the different ways of booking train tickets. Can anyone recommend an app please?

www.ns.nl/en

Should give you all the information you need.

Thank you!

The 9292 app, or 9292.nl, is excellent as it covers all public transport in the Netherlands.

You can use your ordinary debit card on all public transport in the Netherlands. Just tap in when you get on and tap out when you get off. There aren't always physical barriers at the exit, so don't forget to tap out as otherwise you will be charged to the end of the line.

This is perfect for the trams and buses, but it means you pay the full second-class fare on the train. It can be worth buying off-peak tickets if you are travelling outside of rush hour, which is recommended anyway since the trains get pretty full with commuters. Dutch trains are basically buses on rails — there are no seat reservations and only a few discounts.

From Rotterdam Centraal there are about 6 trains to Amsterdam Centraal every hour. It takes about 70 minutes unless you get the non-stop express service which takes 50 minutes and costs €3 more.

Thanks, I'll download that and have a look.

@samarrange Thank you, that is very helpful! I guess if we are doing a long journey (Rot to Ams) it's worth getting a travel card. Leiden maybe less so.
Thanks, much appreciated.

Slightly off-topic, but: the Netherlands has the best and tastiest junk/snack food in all of Europe.

Saucijzenbroodje ("soh-size-uh-broa-chuh"): Sausage roll but with super-flaky pastry.
Kaasbroodje ("kahz-broa-chuh"): Ditto but with cheese.
Broodje kaas ("broa-chuh kahz"): A cheese roll. Completely different item to the previous one, despite being made up of the same words. Dutch filled rolls are the best cheap sandwiches anywhere. Also available: ham, rare roast beef, large meat ball, salad ("broodje gezond", meaning "healthy"), etc etc.
Croissant ham-kaas: A ham and cheese croissant, but nicer than any you've had before.
Broodje kroket ("broa-chuh croquette"): A meat-ragout-filled croquette about three times the size of a standard potato croquette, served in a roll with mustard. Absolutely delicious but watch out when you bite into it because the filling is very hot!
Patat/friet/frites: The best chips anywhere. They come without ("zonder") sauce, which you have to pay extra for. Get mayonnaise, or try pindasaus ("pin-duh-souse"), a thick peanut sauce that is to the Netherlands what chip shop curry sauce is to the UK (i.e., vaguely inspired by their imperial past but now a national dish in its own right).

You can get all of these almost everywhere, except (we found, ironically) that they are not always easy to find within 1km or so of Amsterdam central station, because it's all poke bowls and avocado toast and quinoa and all the other standard international hipster crap.

@samarrange Thanks for that! The peanut sauce sounds a must! It all sounds like the type of things we eat when on holiday so we shan't go hungry
Much appreciated.

Not all Visa/Mastercard cards work when tapping on and off, despite what NS claim. My Visa debit card worked fine on the ticket machines but not on the ticket barriers, whereas my Visa credit card worked fine on both. So best to have a second card with you, if you did want to tap on/off.

Second the 9292 app for travel info, and the tap in tap out debit card. You can buy tickets on the app too though. Dutch trains are great and double decker too!

There is a decent size Albert Heijn supermarket at Schiphol if you need snacks for the journey.