Rent in Rotterdam - is the room available?

Finding a suitable room (as the most evident option for a budjet student, writing a thesis during the summer time) - quiet, cozy and affordable is a question in such a dense-populated city, as Rotterdam.

There are some options - if you just have lost your room or just arrived, lets say after internship abroad -

1) staying at friends for some time (if you have such a nice welcoming friend;) - cost nothing! Just smiling all the time if their flat is over-populated:)
2) staying at hostels for some days (cost some money but at least you are independent)
3) finding the room while you are still abroad.

Lets go quickly through all the options.

1) staying at friends for some time - hmmm if you have friends who you haven't seen for quite a long time I bet you will be spending all your time partying when one morning your friends will say we are welcoming now other friends. Have you got your new room yet? - glancing at you eye to eye. Not a good option though.

3) finding the room while you are still abroad. - very risky. Do you know all those people writing tepmlated emails like Dear I got through classifieds and felt in love with you from the first sight. Or I am acontractor, the room is vacant, please meet with my agent and give hime the money for two months and receive the keys. And the keys is from nothing actually.

2) So-so option. If you don't mind to pay 20 euros per night in a 8 male/female/mixed dormitory - go to the Stay Okay Totterdam (city center, always overcrowded) or try family run hostel in the South of Rtterdaam  singe 1 night 30, twin 50 euro. All facilities including internet, TV, shower and washing machine. Limited offer only till the niddle of may. I am the owner of that nice flat,

Cheers Tom 06 2498 9944
More about family running hostel at our colleagues at www.rentholland.blogspot.com

Is Hostel a Good Beginning?

It is very difficult question, especially in the Netherlands, the unique European country which largest part the territory of is water and lands below the sea level.

Is Hostel a Good beginning? 

That is the question. And the question could be an answer as well, but just be followed by a sub-question: Beginning of What?

My blog is for the people who are in need of accomodation for more or less long time, 1-3 months, half a year, or maybe one year. Most of my readers are students or young trainees coming to Rotterdam for study and sometimes following internships at big world companies that are widely distributed in the Netherlands.

Therefore the sub-question is: Yes, I need the accomodation for more or less long time.

As my colleague, Tom Aksen, in one of his articles said about 'High Season' - August, September, October, November - the most difficult time for people searching for suitable accomodation - "It is very difficult to find a descent room during this time".

This again can be explained by a housing shortage in the Netherlands, especially in big cities, like Rotterdam, Den Haag and of course, Amsterdam.

But that also can be explained by some private landlords using the very high volume demand from students and increasing the prices dramatically. It can follow to misunderstanding, when some parties can not pay either accept the living conditions, and landlords asking for more and more money.

It is like a circle. But is it, or there are some other ways to find the suitable accomodation? There is the answer: Is the Hostel a Good beginning?


So we have arrived at the same question again, which is basically answer to the questions: Is the Hostel a Good Beginning for finding suitable accomodation, and the answer is Yes.

There are quite few descent hostels in Rotterdam: Quite Posh and avangard Stay Okay Rotterdam. Many people are starting their way in the Netherlands (South Holland) exactly from Stay Okay: there are more StayOkay in the Netherlands.

Another example is Hostel Room Rotterdam. I don't know much about the hostel personally and professionally but just some references from guests are: the best hostel in Rotterdam (from Ricardo, post is published on 2008-10-26 at the web-site of the hostel).

Some people advising to use one of web-resourse, for example couch surfing dot com, and try to find accomodation (temporary, of course) via those resources, but I think that one is more for travellers. And most of travellers are in Amsterdam, as like Dutch people saying, Amsterdam is for fun, Rotterdam is for work, Den Haag is for court.

One of the freshest examples are family running hostels. There are not much of them yet, but one is located in South Rotterdam (3081TW)

This one is a small family running hostel ideally suitable for 1-2 weeks short stay. It is equipped with all necessary facilities for a comfortable short term staying.

Why Short Stay? The answer is simple, because the choice is quite modest as per Tom Aksen words, in High Season. Is it probably better to try 1-4 weeks staying in a lets say the same family running hostel instead of coming and hurring up to find the best room on a very short notice?

Good luck and I will continue!

A. Aksenovs,
HollandLive (c) 2010.