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A minimum deposit of £50 will secure your seat on this Tour, and the balance must be paid by 21st March 2025
The Netherlands Combination 2025
£598.90
Belgium, Netherlands 
May 07, 2025-
May 11, 2025The Bene Rapide tour has been one of our most popular for many years. It began as a minibus tour but as its popularity grew, particularly since we were able to add full access visits to both Kijfhoek and Maasvlakte yards, it progressed to a large coach.
As the interest in this tour increased, unfortunately so did the costs of providing it! Expenses of shuttle/ferry fares and hiring a coach from the UK resulted in a fare disproportionate to the short duration of the tour. When we calculated the cost of running it from the UK, the fare came out at a staggering £200 more than the cost we now offer you. Our answer has been to hire a local coach, thus eliminating not only the costs of channel crossings and UK coach hire, but also that of accommodating the coach drivers. Overnight coach travel has also been eliminated and, with this format, you get an extra day of activity making it better value for money. Of course, it means that participants must make their own way to Rotterdam, either by train through France and Belgium or by flying to Amsterdam Schipol. At the heart of this tour there remains the Bene itinerary, but with more added interest, an extra day. and a more realistic fare.
We offer an inspirational itinerary which will deliver so much. At the very core we concentrate on an area of Holland where the highest number of locomotives can be seen, and the majority are of Private Operators. In the area of Rotterdam Docks, one of the largest ports in the World, and at the locations of Waalhaven, Botlek, Kijfhoek, and Maasvlakte, which can only be reached by road, there is a feast of freight locomotives which abound. For the photographers, the opportunities to capture the diverse liveries are endless, mainly due to our access to the yards where we can get ‘up close and personal’ with the locomotives. Not only is this Dutch itinerary intensive but we retain a visit to Antwerpen Noord Depot on the final full day.
Remember- do not book your flight or travel arrangements until we have confirmed the tour as running.
What's not included?
- Hotel Single Room Supplement - £214.00 (Optional)
- Travel to and from The Netherlands
Itinerary
Day One
Arrival day. No visits or schedule has been arranged for today and after checking-in at the hotel, the remainder of the day will be free for you to explore as you wish. The hotel for the entire duration of the tour is Hotel Ibis Rotterdam Central, about 400 metres from Rotterdam Centraal Station.
Day Two
After breakfast we leave the hotel to travel to Gouda where a stop will be made at the Centraal station. From here we go on to Utrecht to visit the National Rail Museum with its extensive range of locomotives and rolling stock. The admission charge is included in your fare. Next comes Amersfoort. Here we will view the yards, the small Museum and preserved locomotives outside in the yard. A view of the EMU storage sidings will be next, before continuing to Arnhem where we visit the Station and then view the Arriva EMU depot, continuing on to the NS EMU sidings, to conclude the day’s activity.
Day Three
We start today with the Alsthom (Formerly Shunter BV) Locomotive Facility at Van Graftstraat, followed quickly by Waalhaven Yard. By now you will be seeing more and more of Rotterdam Rail Feeding (RRF) locomotives, private main line locos, and numerous Class 6400s. We call at Alsthom Blindeweg Workshops for a full visit. After collecting our guide, we make for Kijfhoek Yard for a full access visit. Here you could see and photograph up to 50 or more locomotives in many diverse liveries. Locomotive sightings will now double and treble as we probe deep into the Dock area. From here, we continue with a passing view of DB cargo at Hoogvlet to the small stabling point at Botlek. Then we are into the ‘heart’ of Euro port at Maasvlakte where, once more we access the yards where locomotives, both NS and Privateers, will literally surround you. From here we make the journey to Den Haag where hopefully we will visit or view NS Leidschendam Depot, followed by a view of Voorburg and Binkhorst Depot & Yard from where we return to Rotterdam.
Day Four
Today, depots may be few, but locomotives seen will more than compensate. Firstly, we visit Dordrecht station to clear up the stabled stock and passing traffic. Continuing to Roosendaal for another station visit, Yards and Old Depot. Then the big depot of the tour Antwerpen Noord, including the Workshops and Yards. Another first on this tour will be the Antwerpen EMU depot, from where we return to Rotterdam.
Day Five
Dispersal
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