Eindhoven is a bustling, energetic city, a hub of creativity and innovation and an exciting place to visit with everything on offer from modern art to soccer games.
The art of the new
The city’s landmark attraction is the Van Abbemuseum, just to the south of the center on the south bank of the Dommel River. It houses one of the finest collections of modern and contemporary art in Europe. Among the highlights are works by Picasso, Mondrian and Kandinsky.
You can’t visit Eindhoven without becoming aware of the Philips empire and their impact on the place. The Philips Museum provides a detailed look at the history of the company and the city. You’ll learn everything about them, from their beginnings in the light bulb industry right up to their current role as a pioneer in electronics and technology and how they’ve helped to make Eindhoven the economic powerhouse that it is today.
Can you kick it?
Soccer fans should head for the stunning city-center Philips stadium, home Eindhoven, not only one of the great names in Dutch football, but also throughout Europe. Within the stadium is the PSV Eindhoven Museum, where you’ll find out about the club’s long and successful history.
Shopping heaven
Eindhoven center is a great place to shop. Surrounding the main market square, The Markt, are wide, pedestrianized streets lined with hundreds of stores and boutiques. Farther north from here is Bijenkorf, a huge department store, and the four-story Piazza Center, with a wide and varied range of stores, including clothing music and specialist shops, as well as many great cafés and restaurants where you can enjoy a cup of coffee or lunch.
One of Eindhoven’s oldest and most interesting districts is The Bergen (De Bergen). It’s one of the few parts of the city that wasn’t damaged during World War II and retains many of its traditional buildings. Here - in the triangle formed by the Kleine Berg, Grote Berg and Bergstraat - is where you’ll find many of Eindhoven’s funkiest fashion boutiques, as well as smaller independent stores.
Visit Van Gogh’s home town
About six miles east of Eindhoven is the charming little town of Nuenen, best known as the former home of Vincent Van Gogh as well as the site of one of the decisive battles of Operation Market Garden at the end of World War Two.
Many of Van Gogh’s famous paintings were of the town and its surroundings and you can find out more in the excellent Vincentre, which details the great artist’s life and work during his time in Nuenen.
While it’s an industrial powerhouse, Eindhoven retains plenty of its Dutch charm and has much to intrigue the visitor. With car rental at Eindhoven Airport you can see the best of it then venture into the rest of The Netherlands.