Eindhoven (original) (raw)

Eindhoven is a major city in the province of North Brabant in the Netherlands. With a population of over 230,000 people (2019), it's the fifth-largest city of the Netherlands. It is by no means a main tourist destination in the country and most travel guides will devote no more than a page or two to it. Nevertheless, this bustling and modern city has a lot more to offer.

Eindhoven's history is dominated by industrial development and is inextricably linked to electronics giant Philips and, to a lesser degree, DAF Trucks. Although those industries have mostly disappeared, Eindhoven remains a European technology hub, hosting a technical university and many technology companies and cooperation initiatives. In addition, over the past decade the city has become the capital of Dutch design.

Eindhoven City Centre, with the Light Tower and Witte Dame on the right, the Blob on the left and the Admirant tower in the back.

Until the beginning of the 20th century, Eindhoven was no more than a village. Less than a century later its number of inhabitants had boomed to over 200,000. The main reason for this tremendous increase in size was the establishment of electronics multinational Philips, which was founded as a light bulb manufacturing company in 1891 and was headquartered in Eindhoven until 1997. As Philips grew, the city of Eindhoven grew with it to feed the company's constantly growing need for workers. Philips' strong presence in the city gained it the title of "Lichtstad" (City of Light) and is still prominent today, as many of its former buildings are considered valuable industrial heritage and have been renovated. Frits Philips (1905–2005), who led the company for decades, was the city's main benefactor and was extremely popular among the people of Eindhoven. When walking the streets of Eindhoven today, you'll find his and other names associated with Philips everywhere. Parks, theatres, sports facilities and many streets are named in their honor.

Although Eindhoven is an old city, with town and market rights already awarded in 1232, little of this long history is visible when exploring its centre today. Large parts of the city were destroyed during air raids in World War II and post-war reconstruction was focused on ambitious, modernist plans with little respect for the historic heritage that was left. Nevertheless, there are 140 national heritage sites (Rijksmonumenten) in and directly around the city, including many 19th- and early 20th-century buildings and a handful of older ones.

Looks can be deceiving, when it comes to Eindhoven's history. Modern as the city is today, it is in fact one of the oldest towns in the Netherlands. Henry I, Duke of Brabant, already chartered the then little village of "Endehoven" in 1232, as part of his extensive town planning process. Eventually the town established itself as a trading stop between Holland and Liège. Its early industrial activities centred on tobacco and textiles.

The city was destroyed and rebuilt several times in its written history. Despite late 14th-century improvements to its fortifications and the establishment of a castle within the city walls in the 15th century, Eindhoven was plundered and burned by the Guelders in 1486. No more than 6 houses remained. Rebuilding took almost 20 years and left the town in poverty, with the fortifications being neglected. This resulted in another plundering in 1543. That same year, a fire ruined most of the city. During the Dutch Revolt, control of Eindhoven repeatedly alternated between the Dutch and Spanish, the city was burned down again, besieged for 3 months, and finally captured by Spanish troops in 1583. When the French armies took over the already weakened city some years later, large parts of it were destroyed yet again. In 1629, Eindhoven became part of the Netherlands for good, but its tumultuous history left it a damaged and minor city.

This would change with the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. Due to the presence of Philips, DAF trucks and some other major industry, Eindhoven developed as a major player in the global technology and industrial design scene. It is considered to be the epicentre of Dutch design with such institutions as the Design Academy and the Dutch Design Week that takes place every October.

Eindhoven
Climate chart (explanation)
JFMAMJJASOND 65 6 0 60 7 0 52 11 2 41 16 4 56 19 8 63 22 11 76 24 13 73 24 12 59 20 10 61 15 7 68 10 4 75 7 1 Average max. and min. temperatures in °C Precipitation+Snow totals in mmCheck Eindhoven's 7 day forecast at Weer.nl
Imperial conversion JFMAMJJASOND 2.6 43 33 2.4 45 33 2 52 36 1.6 60 40 2.2 67 46 2.5 72 51 3 75 55 2.9 75 54 2.3 68 49 2.4 59 44 2.7 50 38 3 44 34 Average max. and min. temperatures in °F Precipitation+Snow totals in inches

The temperate climate is pleasant in Eindhoven. Due to its location, the average temperatures of this city are slightly higher and the rainfall is just slightly lower than the average of the rest of the Netherlands. However, it remains a coastal climate with mild, wet winters and cool summers. Daylight hours run between 05:30 and 21:45 in the summer, and from 08:45 to 16:30 in the winter.

Tourist information

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Eindhoven Airport is geared towards low-fare carriers

Eindhoven Airport is connected to the city and its main train station by means of two bus lines: 400 and 401, which alternate throughout the day and provide a 20-min ride between the airport and the train station approximately every 10 minutes at daytime. There is no bus service between midnight and 06:00. There are different prices depending on how you buy it. The ticket costs as of January 2024:

Regarding e-hailing, Uber and Bolt cover the airport.

Amsterdam Airport Schiphol

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Schiphol Airport is the largest airport in the Netherlands and a major global hub with a vast array of short-haul and intercontinental connections.

Düsseldorf International, Düsseldorf Weeze, Maastricht Aachen Airport, Rotterdam The Hague Airport, Brussels Airport are all within 1½ hours by car from Eindhoven. Public transport from Eindhoven to those airports will take way more time and require multiple changes.

If you see this facade and Mr. Philips in front of it, and look for a bus to the airport, you are on the wrong side of the station.

51.4433955.479622 Eindhoven Centraal is a major rail transport node in Southeastern Netherlands.

Train services (NS) calling at Eindhoven Centraal include:

Listed by distance, travel times to major Dutch destinations include:

On Friday night Arriva runs a nighttrain from Maastricht - Sittard - Roermond - Weert to Eindhoven and further onward to 's Hertogenbosch - Utrecht - Amsterdam - Schiphol Airport. On Saturday morning the train runs from Schiphol to Eindhoven and further to Maastricht. Tickets for this train can only be bought in the glimble app, arriva app or 9292 app. The price is €5, €10 or €15 depending on the distance.

Coming from Germany with a Deutschland-Ticket, take the RE13, e.g., from Düsseldorf to Venlo. And then the InterCity (every 30 min) to Eindhoven for €6-11 (Feb 2024).

You can only access and walk through the train station by going through check-in gates payable with a debit/credit card. By entering and leaving within 1 hour, no money will be deducted from your debit/credit card. So you have enough time to buy something or rest inside the train station.

When exiting the station on the south side, turn around and take a look at the building from a distance. Architect Koen van der Gaast designed the 1956 station to resemble a Philips radio of that time, gaining it national heritage site status.

There is a secondary station called 51.4503555.4570233 Eindhoven Strijp-S next to the former Philips business park Strijp-S. This station is served by regional trains. This is one of the last railway stations in the Netherlands only accessible by stairs.

Flixbus and Regiojet run long-distance buses to destinations in the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, France, Germany, Czech Republic, Switzerland, Poland, Serbia, Hungary and Romania.

Public express bus lines serve destinations to nearby towns, the buses are at the back of the train station, and include connections to and from:

Trains are generally a more convenient way to travel to or from these places, unless you want to make a stop in one of the villages on the way.

Multiple bicycle highways towards Eindhoven are partly finished allow faster biking from the neighboring cities:

The A2 national highway from Amsterdam to Maastricht passes Eindhoven to the west and south of the city. The A2 connects here with the A58 to Tilburg and Breda and to the A67/E34 from Venlo to Antwerp. The A50 connects Eindhoven to Nijmegen and Zwolle. If you're driving to Eindhoven, local access from the highways is provided by the N2 "Randweg", which runs in parallel along the A2 and A67 highways around Eindhoven. Look for "Randweg N2" early on when approaching Eindhoven to avoid having to make substantial detours, or use an up-to-date navigation system.

As in all larger Dutch cities, parking in the city centre is quite expensive and during rush hours the main streets can be jammed.

There is however a Park & Ride service operating next to exit 31 of the N2. This service, called P+R Meerhoven (Page in Dutch), costs €4 for the first 24 hours, and €5 per day after the first. From here, 401, 402 and 403 provide a frequent bus service (every 5 to 10 minutes) to the city centre with return bus tickets to the city centre costing €0.50 per person if you also have a parking ticket. The bus and parking tickets can be bought on-site at the machine using a debit or credit card.

Map

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Map of Eindhoven

The city centre is largely car-free and small enough to get around on foot. If you're headed for the outskirts or surrounding villages, take the bus or rent a bike.

Eindhoven has an bus network where most lines start and end at the train station. You pay your trip by tapping your debit or credit card when entering and exiting the bus (OVpay, €1.08 + €0.194 per km). It is also still possible to buy a single use paper ticket with your debit card at the bus driver (€ 4,96 for one trip no transfers, € 7,80 for unlimited trips after 9 AM). You can plan your trip in advance using the trip advisor of Hermes bus company which serves bus transport in the Eindhoven region.

You can rent a bicycle at Velorent:

51.43875.4881 Velorent, Gasfabriek 35613 CP, ☏ +31 40-2112032, info@velorent.nl. Tu-Su 10:00-17:00. bike rental OSM directions (updated Oct 2024)

umob is the exclusive app in the city to use shared bicycles, e-bikes, cargo bikes and e-mopeds. With the app you can rent bikes (€1.50 for first 30 minutes) and e-bikes (€2.50 for first 20 minutes) from Dott (Mar 2026). They can be unlocked and returned anywhere in the service area. In busy locations the bikes can be only be parked at official hubs.

In some locations there are e-cargo bikes (€2 euro for first 20 minutes) available from Cargoroo, also only with the umob app. These have to be returned to their original location.

OV-fiets bikes are available at the train stations for €4.80/24 hr (€9.80/24 hr after the first three days). These bikes can only be rented with a personal OV-chipkaart with valid NS flex or OV-fiets subscription which can only be taken with a Dutch bank account (updated Mar 2026). At the central train station the OV-fiets location at the North side/bus station has limited opening times, when the North location closed you can return your bike at the south/center side without any extra fee.

Bicycle theft is a problem in the Netherlands, and Eindhoven is no exception, so make sure that you have a proper lock and always lock the bike to the bike stand. When you're out shopping in the city centre, use the free guarded bike parks under the 18 Septemberplein (entrance in the middle of the square, open M-Sa 08:00-23:30) or in the basement of the Heuvelgalerie (entrance on the north-west corner, M-Th 08:00-20:00, F Sa 08:00-04:30). Both are open on "shopping Sundays", but for limited hours. The guarded bike park in the train station has broader opening hours and costs around €1.35 per day.

E-mopeds are available in the umob app from Felyx (€5.99 euro for first 20 minutes, every next minute €0.34, April 2026), for e-mopeds you need an AM driving licence and always use the helmets included. With e-mopeds those that go 45 km/h (yellow licence plate) do not drive on the bikes lanes! You have to use the regular (car) road, and when there is a mandatory moped (and bike) lane (round blue sigh with moped and bike) you have to use that lane with a maximum of 30 km/h. Especially in the city center this can be confusing as you have to switch from the road to the mandatory moped lane and back to the road at the square white signs for mopeds. Do not drink and drive with e-mopeds and be careful with the speed. Where parking outside hubs it allowed it should only be done on wide parts of the sidewalk to not block pedestrians.

Uber and Bolt cover the city.

Taxistands can be found on the north and south sides of the railway station. Taxi transport in the Netherlands is rather expensive. The maximum rate is a starting fee of €3.36 plus €2.47 per km (2022). Eindhoven Airport has a taxistand 50 m from the terminal entrance/exit.

There is an Avis car rental office on the Fuutlaan, a 10-minute walk from the train station. There is a Sixt car rental is at the Vestdijk in the city centre, there is an office of Hertz at the High Tech Campus. At the airport there are car rental offices of Avis, Enterprise, Europcar, Hertz and Sixt.

All areas within the inner ring (rondweg) are paid parking and a low emission zone. Private passenger cars are not limited by emissions, but zero emission is required for company vans and trucks.

In the city centre, it is difficult to find a place to park on the street, but there are quite a lot of parking garages, well indicated by "P" signs. Prices of garages in the city centre are €4 per hour with a maximum of €24 per day (2025). Just outside the city centre you can park at parking garages and parking areas for around €2.25 per hour, with a daily maximum around €10 (2025).

To park on the street in a residential area you will pay €2.20 per hour with a maximum of €7.70 per day (2025).

There are two P+R areas: Meerhoven (north east of Eindhoven) or Genneper Parken (south of Eindhvoen) where you can park for €4 per 24 hours, and continue by bus (€0.50 for a return) or bike sharing to the city centre.

The new building of the Van Abbemuseum is quite a sight itself

In order to claim you have seen Eindhoven, at least a glance at its Philips-related history is a must. Fortunately, this is hardly a challenge as many of the Philips sights are right in the heart of the city. The Van Abbe Museum is the main attraction listed by travel guides and is an excellent pick if you're into modern art.

Inside the DAF Museum

Reconstruction at the open-air Eindhoven Museum

De Lichttoren, while hardly spectacular, is one of Eindhoven's key landmarks

The Evoluon was built as a futuristic reminder and celebration of the city's innovative and technical character.

Catherinakerk in the night

Eindhoven is perhaps the liveliest city in the South of the Netherlands. If you're willing to get informed, you'll find events are taking place at almost any given time. If you're flexible in planning, try to visit during one of the main events like GLOW or the Dutch Design Week. When you've had enough of the urban vibe, just head for one of the many natural areas around and see a whole different side of the Eindhoven region.

Direction sign Rondje Eindhoven

There are signed bicycle tours in and around Eindhoven. Just rent a bike and explore the surrounding villages, forests and heaths.

Concerts & theatere

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Dynamo

Despite its industrial character, Eindhoven is the "greenest" of the five largest cities in the country. Even within the province of North-Brabant, it is the greenest of the top five cities there. The park and grass fields around Lake Karpendonck make a great place for a summer picnic. If you're up for a stroll, try the City Walking Park (Stadswandelpark), at walking distance from the centre and decorated with some 30 sculptures. Just south of the Stadswandelpark lie the larger Genneper Parks where nature and recreational activities come together (see above under "Do"). Within the Genneper Parks you'll find the Heempark Frater Simon Deltour, with example gardens showing original regional landscape types and natural habitat. The Philips van Lenneppark in the north of the city was named after Frits Philips' wife, whose maiden name was van Lennep. The family donated the park to the city for the 75 year anniversary of the Philips company. It houses a playground, skate park and petting zoo. Older is the Philips de Jonghpark just 1 km to the north between the Oirschotsedijk and the railway. This park was donated in 1920 by Anton Philips (the father of Frits) and his wife, whose maiden name was De Jongh. In the middle of the park is a pavilion for drinks and snacks.

The GLOW festival transforms the entire city into a giant lights show, including many of its monuments and key buildings, like the Stadhuis, almost unrecognizable in this photo

Eindhoven is a large and bustling city, with a full agenda. Dozens of large and small events are organized each year, a number of which are unsurprisingly about artificial light and design. Some of the major ones are listed below, but check the event calendar on the tourist information website to see what's planned during your visit.

Dutch Design Week brings about unexpected levels of creativity

The Eindhoven branch of the Dutch department store De Bijenkorf has a fittingly modernist facade, with the honeycomb theme reflecting the store's name, meaning "the beehive"

Eindhoven is the regional centre for shopping, and offers a wide range of large and small stores, including all the large chains in the Netherlands and a good number of small speciality shops. As it is hardly a touristic city, traditional souvenirs are relatively hard to come by. The VVV tourist information office in the train station has some Dutch and Eindhoven oriented gadgets. Light bulb cartoons and similar images are a typical reference to Eindhoven's history in lightning. Also, museum shops will have some gift items relevant for their exhibitions.

With some exceptions, shops close at 18:00 on weekdays and 17:00 on Saturdays, like in the rest of the country. Friday is "buying-evening" in the city centre, with shops open until 21:00. Shops are now allowed to be open on Sunday and most of the shops in the city centre indeed open every Sunday from 12:00 to 17:00. Most places in shopping centre Woensel XL open only the first and last day Sunday of the month, and keep similar hours. You'll find that businesses in the other districts typically remain closed on Sundays, with the exception of bars and restaurants.

The Heuvel Galerie occupies a big portion of the city's centre

With the covered shopping centre 'De Heuvel Galerie', large department stores including 'De Bijenkorf' and an extensive selection of boutiques and specialist shops, the centre of Eindhoven is the most bustling shopping centre in the south of the Netherlands. The following streets form the main, pedestrianised shopping area: 18 Septemberplein, Nieuwe emmasingel (admirant), Demer, Rechtestraat, de Markt, Nieuwstraat, Hermanus Boexstraat, Vrijstraat and Hooghuisstraat.

Campus TU/e

Eindhoven is home of a technical university, a design academy and an international school.

You'll find plenty of restaurants in the city centre. Main restaurant areas are the Dommelstraat (almost directly opposite the train station), the Markt and the Bergen kwartier, comprising both the Kleine Berg and the Grote Berg. They are mostly in Dutch, but numerical ratings will give you an idea of popularity at least. Many restaurants are closed on Mondays and some close down for a week or two during summer.

The Market Square terraces are a popular place to linger on a sunny afternoon

Bars and eateries's opening times in the city centre are usually until 02:00 during the week, and 04:00 on a Friday and Saturday. Student-nights in Eindhoven are Thursdays. The city's late nightlife mostly takes place in Stratumseind, a street literally filled with bars and fast food places, and the Market Square. The Stationsplein and adjoining Dommelstraat has a few bars too and for a less main stream experience, try the places on the Kleine and Grote Berg which are also more popular with an artistic crowd. Main party days are Thursday to Sunday, and you might find some places to be closed on other days.

On a sunny day, the Grand Café terraces on the Market Square fill up in no time. This is the heart of the city, where the shopping crowd sits down for a break, colleagues drink an after work beer and friends meet over coffee or cocktails. You'll find a number of places on and around the Square. Most of them also serve meals, which is why some are listed above under "Eat".

Stationsplein and Dommelstraat

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The Stationsplein lies directly across the street from the train station. It has some "Grand cafés", dancing bars and terraces. The Dommelstreet with all its restaurants is a side-street of the Stationsplein and has a bunch of good bars too. All the way at the end of the Dommelstreet you'll find the Effenaar, Eindhoven's main popular music music stage.

Stratumseind: the longest pub-street in the Netherlands

Go for a pub-crawl in the longest pub-street in the Netherlands. With over 40 bars and a number of places to eat, Stratumseind is Eindhoven's main nightlife area. Bar-hopping is the best way to get the Stratumseind-vibe. Its venues attract renowned DJs on a regular basis and when the weather allows the street becomes part of the party ground. The eating places stay open late, even after the bars close, to allow for the essential bite afterwards. The bars include:

'De Bergen' is a piece of old Eindhoven, which is still in reasonably original condition. The pleasant bars and restaurants on the 'Kleine Berg' are popular with the more artistic members of the public. It is a few minutes' walk through the narrow streets to Wilhelminaplein.

In this characteristic square there are authentic brown bars, terraces and live-performances. In summer, open-air performances are regularly organized. Every Sunday afternoon and Monday evening stunning live performances are given at café Wilhelmina.

This guide uses the following price ranges for a standard double room:
Budget Under €50
Mid-range €50 to €100
Splurge Over €100

Hotel rooms are abundantly available in the city, mainly serving an international business crowd visiting the many technology initiatives. With the exception of major soccer matches in the PSV stadium, Eindhoven rarely runs out of places to stay. Most accommodation is offered by large chains in the city centre and doesn't come cheap. Listed minimum prices can be significantly higher when the cheaper rooms are all taken, so check actual prices on the hotel or booking websites. Prices are often lower in the weekends. In many cases, €3.50 tourist tax and breakfast are not yet included.

If you're on a budget, check out the bed & breakfasts. These are smaller places which are often cheaper than the hotels (some starting around €30) but many of them don't have a website. Alternatively, consider the villages surrounding the city where you will find some smaller hotels and campsites. The best place to start is at the VVV (tourist info) office just outside Eindhoven Central Station or on their website.

Eindhoven city centre from above

Eindhoven, as with much of the Netherlands, is safe for the most part. However, up until the late 2000s, the city had the unfortunate reputation of being the country's "murder capital". Though an exaggerated moniker, it did highlight crime rates that were quite high by western European standards. Nowadays you should not have any problems if you know how to be street-smart. The Woensel section, in the north-northwest of the city, has been described as sketchy and seedy by locals and the media, but it has no touristic appeal.

Eindhoven has good 4G/5G coverage from all Dutch carriers. Wifi is widely available in public places.

The small scale rural countryside around the city has a number of charming villages worth a visit. In the South East Brabant region, to which Eindhoven belongs, there are a number of natural areas and parks with marked bicycle and hiking routes. Even to Belgium, which is only a stone's throw away. Visit the tourist information office or check the North Brabant tourist website for more information.

Amsterdam ← 's-Hertogenbosch ← N S → Weert → Maastricht
Arnhem ← Oss ← N S → END
Vlissingen ← Tilburg ← W E → END
Antwerp ← ← Belgium border (22 km) ← W E → Venlo → German border → Duisburg
END ← W E → Helmond → END

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