Car hire Breda

Introduction

Breda is an old garrison town; the fortifications can still be seen in the centre, like the water gate in the Spanjaardsgat. The erstwhile military importance of Breda is also reflected in the Royal Military Academy, which was founded at the beginning of the 19th century. In the city, the rivers Mark and Aa come together. The name Breda originally meant 'Broad Aa'.

Population

The city has nearly 140,000 inhabitants, although the municipality (including several villages) has 170,000 inhabitants, making Breda the ninth largest municipalities in the Netherlands.

Location

Breda is located in the south if the Netherlands, in the province of Noord-Brabant. The city is located 60 kilometres to the west of Eindhoven, 55 kilometres to the south-east of Rotterdam and 70 kilometres to the south-west of Utrecht.

Economy

Economically speaking, Breda benefits from its central location between the ports of Rotterdam and Antwerp. Industrial activity is an important sector, especially the food and chemical industries. Transport and logistics also provide many jobs. In addition, Breda increasingly presents itself as a centre of knowledge and innovation. Incidentally, many of the city's inhabitants work elsewhere: more than 25% of the professional population commutes every day to the Rotterdam region.

Airports

In the Breda region, there are no airports. There are, however, two regional airports fairly nearby: Rotterdam Airport and Eindhoven Airport. Both airports maintain connections with European capitals and holiday destinations in Southern Europe. Larger airports like Amsterdam Schiphol Airport and Brussels Airport can be reached by car in a little over an hour.

Public transport

Breda has a network of city buses. All bus lines include the bus station in front of the Central Station. There are also regional buses to surrounding towns and villages.

There are excellent railway connections to Eindhoven and Rotterdam. At the moment, work it underway on a high-speed rail link, which will connection Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Antwerp. This railway, which will include Breda in its itinerary, is expected to be ready in 2008.

Traffic and Parking

Breda is surrounded by a number of motorways. The A16 motorway is to the west of the city and connects Rotterdam to the Belgian border. To the east of Breda, the A27 connects to Utrecht. The A58 and A59 provide east-west connections.

In other words, Breda is easy to reach, and in the city itself it is also easy to find your way to the centre. Once you get there, we recommend parking your car and exploring the city centre on foot. In and around the centre, there are five parking areas and five car parks. However, only two of them are open 24 hours a day

Did you know that most of the people of Breda use the bike to go to the centre? (Source: Burgerenenquête, Municipality if Breda)

Hotels

Breda has a reasonable number of hotels, including no fewer than five 4 star hotels. There are also several bed & breakfast accommodations. Generally speaking, it is not necessary to book your hotel room in advance, except during major events like carnival.

External Sources

For more information about Breda, we recommend Google, and the following sources:

• Wikipedia, Breda
• VVV Breda (Dutch and English)
• Municipality of Breda (Dutch and English)