With its investments in Erasmus Bridge and the Kop van Zuid peninsula, the city definitively crossed the Maas in the 1990s. Where you used to be dependent on taxis to take you through the Maas Tunnel and across Willemsbrug, business travellers and tourists with their hair waving in the wind now share a water taxi across the Maas. Functional or just for fun? You decide! Rotterdam provides countless attractive connections and spectacular ways to discover the city.
“It needed to be there. In Rotterdam.”
Of course you can always choose a classic solution by buying (or renting) a bicycle. But tourists and visitors would rather choose a different experience. Driving along in the back of a bike taxi or cruising the Maasboulevard on a Segway. Alternatively, you could literally immerse yourself in all the beauty that the city has to offer and discover Rotterdam the authentic local way: from the water. For instance, with the unique amphibious bus. Embark at Splashtours for a spectacular adventure. A bus that sails the river. Nothing could be more counter-intuitive than driving straight towards the water! Once that bus drives down that slope, a big wave splashes all across the windshield of the busboat. Because yes indeed, now we are suddenly a boat. We are sailing! Sail calmly past Hotel New York, Erasmus Bridge and other spectacular Rotterdam attractions. Initiator Christoffel Wielders viewed the sailing bus as a deeply cherished desire: “We were very determined. It needed to be there. And Rotterdam was the only option for us. Rotterdam is audacious. Rotterdam is water. Rotterdam is the ultimate location for Splashtours.”Innovative amusement
After three years of serious ups and downs, it worked. The initiative was in line with the zoning plan, in which the city sought innovative amusement on water. Wielders: “In the end, Mayor Opstelten gave us the push we needed. He saw the potential of our plan. We came up with this ourselves, developed it ourselves, made it happen and invested all of our money in it. Relying on a strong conviction that this attraction will enrich the city.” And it was a success. The amphibious bus attracts 40,000 to 50,000 visitors annually. Wielders never doubted it for a second: “If you believe you can, then you will succeed.” More info on the attractive connections to and in Rotterdam: Splashtours Watertaxi Segway Fietstaxi (Dutch)
