How best to get to Eindhoven?

[DarloRich]

On the 14th of July PSV Eindhoven will play Darlington in a friendly in Holland. Obviously I want to go and see my team play in their first European game but i have absolutely no idea how to get there or which option is best. I could fly but i would like to make an adventure out of it. That said my knowledge of European train travel is embarrassingly limited.

I would like to go by train ( obviously) but wonder if there is some kind of Europe wide National rial enquirers to help me plan.

it is clear there are four options for getting to Holland:

Drive (Tunnel/Ferry)
Ferry (Foot/train)
Plane
Train

Obviously we will want to stay a couple of nights and that doesn't need to be in Eindhoven thanks to the superb Dutch /Belgian rail networks. I would also like to ask for accommodation suggestions as left to me i will just book somewhere in Amsterdam or Eindhoven and that might not be the best option! Looking at the map Amtwerp isnt that far neither is Dusseldorf

Therefore I would like to ask the members here for a loan of their knowledge or to put it bluntly: HELP!

PS - I am unsure which sub forum this fits in. It isnt really a trip report/ planning as football is the main objective, it isnt really UK discussion but there might be discussion of how to get to he port/airport, it isnt entirely international travel so I have gone for general as it is a mixture.

 

[eastwestdivide]

If you want an adventure, mix a ferry one way with Eurostar the other?

Choice of ferries, Newcastle-Ijmuiden, Hull-Europoort, Harwich-Hook, all of which involve a bus transfer on the Dutch side at the moment. First two are overnight on the ferry, and the third has a choice of daytime or night sailings, but you can't really make it to Harwich from Darlington for the daytime sailing.

By Eurostar, bahn.de suggests Darlington-KX/STP-Brussels-Breda-Eindhoven, achievable in a day. This involves using the loco-hauled Brussels-Amsterdam IC services as far as Breda.

Seat61.com for general tips, bahn.de for timetable info. Loco2.com can offer tickets for the combined journey, but not for your dates yet.

 

[Old Yard Dog]

Don't stay in Eindhoven. It is a boring town and I don't think there is a single pub specializing in stocking a wide range of beers from small breweries.

Boringly the easiest and cheapest way is to fly to Amsterdam, stay there, and catch a train to and from Eindhoven on match day. There are flights to Amsterdam from Newcastle, Durham, Leeds/Bradford and Robin Hood airports and many cheap deals. The last train back from Eindhoven is about 2330. You could go on the one-way Eurostar through service from London if you are a hard core enthusiast but it will cost you a bomb.

I suggest you look online into OV Chipkaart before you go as all public transport uses this smart card and you can't use cash. You can buy these at Schiphol airport.

I gather you will be playing PSV's reserve or youth team and so won't get to go to the Philips Stadion. I saw England lose 3-2 to Portugal there in Euro 2000 after being 2-0 up. This was on a coach trip from Ellesmere Port with unofficial tickets. We stayed in Amsterdam but I got out at Breda en route and caught a train to Arnhem to watch Italy vs Tunisia. The tour organizer was arrested in Eindhoven for trying to sell spare tickets outside the ground.

The only English club side I have seen in Europe is Stockport County away to Os Belenenses in Lisbon in a PSF (by accident). Funny how the three of us are now all in the same league.

 

[Mutant Lemming]

The cheapest option will be plane - if you go on the Ryanair site you can get flights from Stansted to Eindhoven around the dates you want for under £50 return


there is one street that is just bars - touted as being the longest street of bars in Holland.

https://www.thisiseindhoven.com/en/visit/things-to-do/nightlife

 

[DarloRich]

I should point out i am in Fenny Stratford not Darlington now so Harwich is easy enough. I am also looking at Eurotunnel and driving as a back up

 

[cactustwirly]

I would get the Ferry from either Harwich or Newcastle, obviously depending on whether you're starting from MK or Darlo.
The overnight ferry is quite relaxing, and the ticket covers you to any dutch station (if you book a sailrail ticket)
You'll need a good book if you're doing the day ferry, so I'd suggest going via Brussels on the Eurostar instead.

 

[eastwestdivide]

I should point out i am in Fenny Stratford not Darlington now so Harwich is easy enough. I am also looking at Eurotunnel and driving as a back up

Aha - sorry, I was going by your location in the left-hand sidebar "Work - Fenny Stratford(MK) Home - Darlington"

The Harwich route can be pretty cheap with the Dutch Flyer deal - I'm getting £197.00 return in July from London to Any Dutch Station on the Stena site at the moment, and that's including overnight cabins:
https://www.stenaline.co.uk/ferry-to-holland/rail-and-sail

 

[DarloRich]

Aha - sorry, I was going by your location in the left-hand sidebar "Work - Fenny Stratford(MK) Home - Darlington"

Both are options as this is a gathering of the clans. Our party ranges in home base from Devon to Scotland! Obviously they can sort out their own travel options but we need ot agree a meeting point.

The Harwich route can be pretty cheap with the Dutch Flyer deal - I'm getting £197.00 return in July from London to Any Dutch Station on the Stena site at the moment, and that's including overnight cabins:

I didn't know about the Duthc flyer so that could be a really good option for me

 

[AlterEgo]

The overnight ferries are very civilised and would be my preferred mode of travel here, assuming time and money aren’t at a premium. Or mix it up and go one way on the ferry and return on a cheapo flight.

 

[Darandio]

On the 14th of July PSV Eindhoven will play Darlington in a friendly in Holland.

Careful, you are playing Jong PSV, the reserve side.

Should be a good weekend though, i'd imagine quite a few are going over. I know there are a group from Ferryhill going.

 

[ForTheLoveOf]

Alternatively, if you're prepared to endure a longer and perhaps less comfortable journey, try the Ryanair and Easyjet fare finders to see where it would be cheap to fly to/from on the dates you want. It might be cheaper to fly to Brussels, Frankfurt, Paris etc. depending on the prices, and then to take an onward train!

 

[radamfi]

To be pedantic, Holland is really just the provinces Noord and Zuid Holland in the west of the country and Eindhoven is in Noord-Brabant. However, some Dutch people call it Holland when speaking to foreigners when they mean the whole country even if they are from other provinces as they know foreigners know it as Holland. So not quite as bad as calling Scotland part of England, but the safest thing is to call it "The Netherlands".

I suggest you look online into OV Chipkaart before you go as all public transport uses this smart card and you can't use cash. You can buy these at Schiphol airport.

For train travel you don't really need an OV Chipkaart. You can get single or day return tickets from the machine, although it costs 1 euro more than the OV Chipkaart fare. Tickets are also available online, at the same price as with OV Chipkaart, valid any train that day but they are not refundable. You have to print the ticket out or add it to the NS app. There is no TOD.

Some bus companies no longer accept cash, but if they don't they will accept contactless Visa/Mastercard payment, or even Chip and PIN cards without contactless. Bus fares from the driver are normally much higher than the OV Chipkaart fare.

 

[Groningen]

Please Old Yard Dog: do not decide for others. Eindhoven has a population of 223,220 in January 2015, making it the fifth-largest municipality of the Netherlands and the largest in the province of Noord Brabant.

At this moment there are 7 beerbreweries in Eindhoven:
Lux Brewery
Brouwerij Van Moll
Brouwerij de Mouterij
Oldskool Brewery
PAPA Brews
Stadsbrouwerij Eindhoven
Brouwerij het Veem
Source: Biernet.nl

 

[Clip]

You could always get a psv.







I'l get me coat

 

[DarloRich]

You could always get a psv.
I'l get me coat

I would but i am not sure the club travel club knows where Eindhoven is. Exeter maybe but Eindhoven..................

 

[Old Yard Dog]

Please Old Yard Dog: do not decide for others. Eindhoven has a population of 223,220 in January 2015, making it the fifth-largest municipality of the Netherlands and the largest in the province of Noord Brabant.

At this moment there are 7 beerbreweries in Eindhoven:
Lux Brewery
Brouwerij Van Moll
Brouwerij de Mouterij
Oldskool Brewery
PAPA Brews
Stadsbrouwerij Eindhoven
Brouwerij het Veem
Source: Biernet.nl

Thanks for the update Groningen. I was going on "Bijzondere Biercafes in Nederland" but the latest copy I have is dated 2009 when I used to visit NL a lot on business. I'm now retired. Glad to hear that the beer scene in Eindhoven has improved.

 

[Stonesourscotty]

Eindhoven is one of the few cities in the world with a decent irish pub to go in on matchdays heavily recommend a prepint here

 

[DarloRich]

thanks for all of the advice. it was most helpful. After a great deal of consultation we have gone for the following:

• Eurostar ticket to any Belgian station - change at Brussels & spend the afternoon there exploring then train to Antwerp (perhaps) and explore in the evening
• Overnight Antwerp
• Early morning train to Eindhoven (explore)
• Match
• Overnight Eindhoven
• Train to Amsterdam (explore)
• Thalys/ Eurostar to St Pancras ( others fly out via Schipol)

We were interested in the dutch flyer but they sold out before pay day sadly. If this trip works out we might have a look at going further afield next time

Careful, you are playing Jong PSV, the reserve side.

I don't care if it PSV under 5's. Darlo. In Europe. The closest we have got to Europe before is Swansea!

 

[radamfi]

Early morning train to Eindhoven (explore)

There are now two ways to do this since last month. The "classic" way via Roosendaal or the new way using the high speed line via Breda. A more interesting way is to get the train to Turnhout then De Lijn bus to Reusel just over the border, then Hermes (Bravo) bus to Eindhoven. The easiest and probably cheapest way is by direct DB or Flixbus coach service. The motorway runs quite direct between the two cities where the train options involve a bit of a detour.