The Ham Nomads

15 Jul 2019. <NL> Amsterdam to Hoek van Holland, Netherlands —

Today was all about...

1. getting out of our hotel in Amsterdam,
2. getting to Centraal Station, Amsterdam,
3. taking the train from Amsterdam to Rotterdam Centraal,
4. taking a train from there to Schiedam Centrum,
5. catching a bus from there to Hoek van Holland Hafen (because the route has been taken over by the Rotterdam Metro, but the rail line has not been built yet!),
6. getting to the Stena Terminal for boarding Stena Hollandica for the overnight crossing to Harwich.

And here's how it all panned out ...

1. There was a taxi sitting just outside the door. Very easy!
2. We got to Centraal in plenty of time.
   
   
   
   
   
   
3. Centraal is well laid out, well run — we got to our platform in plenty of time for the train.
   
   
   
4. 
   The train was comfortable and fast. One little issue at the start — we had reserved seats, and found someone occupying them. No problem ... he moved without any argument. (We're not even sure if he was on the right train!!!)
5.  
   
   
   
   Got to Rotterdam — a magnificent new station. Checked with Information where we needed to go to catch the bus, and were told we needed to be at the next station down the line in the Metro, Schiedam Centrum. Easily solved — we're Metro-savvy by now!
   
   
6. At Schiedam Centrum, checked with Information again, and were directed to the bus stop, on the outside of the station.
7. The buses were frequent, so we were soon on our way to Hoek van Holland Hafen. It's a fair distance across country, so the bus travel took about 30 minutes.
   

8. 
   
   
   

   Got to the Stena Terminal way early, where there are virtually no facilities (except for WiFi and toilets) until closer to boarding time. We were advised that there was a nice little village not far away, and a good fish shop nearby. Technically, they don't give you any facilities to store your baggage if you want to go out to explore, but the staff were very caring, and offered to mind our cases in a secure area until we got back.So we went out, found the fish shop and had a nice meal (much to the disgust of the seagulls, who had their eyes on it!). We then wandered across to the village and spent some time in the shops and in a restaurant where Suzie washed her fish dinner down with a Caffè Latte, and Warren with something a little stronger!

   
9. Finally, we returned to the terminal, collected our luggage, passed through passport control, and finally boarded.
   
   

10. Went up to our cabin, settled in, and then went down to the restaurant/bar at the front of the passenger area, where we had a good view out of the harbour.
    
    
11. Finally, at 10:00pm the Stena Hollandica was under way towards Harwich. We went up to our cabin and settled in for the night's crossing.