In this article, I will inform you on how to travel from Breda to anywhere else in the Netherlands. Holland is a small and densely populated country. Therefore, easy accessible by car, bike and of course public transport. The public transport infrastructure is well organized however, it can be true maze on how to get from A to B. I got lost in public transport before. For example, on my way to my first day of school, I was so nervous and took the wrong train. I ended up somewhere near Utrecht, so now I always triple check before stepping into a train or bus. To prevent you from this I will give you the best tips, to help you survive the public transport system.

OV-chipcard

The Netherlands has an excellent railway network. Our country counts over 400 railway stations. The trains are comfortable, they often offer WIFI and electricity. In the Netherlands, you have two ‘classes’ inside the train: first and second class. But in my opinion, the first class is not worth the extra pay. You have a few different ways to pay for your trip. The easiest and most common way to pay for public transport is to use the OV-chipcard. There are different subscriptions available to save some money. For example, weekend discounts, off-peak discounts, peak discounts and NS flex. For these subscriptions, you need a personal OV-chipcard. To check in and out of the train you need to make sure you always have at least a 10,- euro balance on your card and If you ride the bus metro or tram you need at least 4,- euros. If you have an anonymous OV-chipcard (the blue one) you always need to have at least 20,- euros balance on your card, If you don’t have this amount of money you cannot enter the train, metro, tram or bus. If you choose for the NS-flex subscription you can check-in- and out and the money gets written off your bank account at the end of every month.

Take the bus, tram or metro

Going by tram is an easy and fast way to travel through a city. All transportation methods use the same OV-chipcard as the train. Make sure you have purchased and charged your OV-chipcard before stepping into the tram. Most of the time there is a possibility to buy a day or an hour ticket this will cost you around 3-4,- euros. I would recommend using the OV-chipcard because this is way cheaper. For small distances use the bus, tram or metro. Not all cities or villages have a metro or tram network (for example in Breda) so you might need to use the bus in those places.

Ferry and other water transport

Since around 19% of the Netherlands consists of water, it's no surprise they also offer a public transport system by boat. You can for example travel to the Wadden Islands or travel from one side to another side in Amsterdam. You can also take a touristic trip through the Breda canals.

Other

A new thing that appeared in multiple cities is rentable scooters. These are fun, cheap, easy to use and perfect for small distances. Good to know: if your drivers' license is valid in the Netherlands you can use this to drive around. In Breda, we have the Go Scooters. But there are a few more services available in the Netherlands. Like Felyx, their service is only available in Rotterdam, Amsterdam, Den Haag, Groningen, Delft and Eindhoven.

Note

Due to the corona situation face masks are required in public transport. It is also important to sit down at the therefore destinated seats and you need to keep your distance at all time.

Travel safe everyone!

Need more information on this topic? Watch this funny video: “The public transport chip card: teasing a foreigner ... or a genius system?”