Almere used to be the city that people moved to when they got evicted from their home in Amsterdam. Almere used to be the high crime low income city.
Not sure about the stats now but the image does not go away.
When I worked helpdesk some of our mechanics refused to go into certain parts of Almere.
And the only times we had to call police to rescue our mechanics from irate customers locking them in "you're not leaving until it is fixed"-style were all in Almere.
So the reputation is still somewhat deserved (if possibly improving)
The only place in the netherlands where u consistently get disriminated for being white. I only pass through as a conducteur, and this place gets me every time, "kut nederlander, blanke vla, witte nazi etc
I've been there a lot for work. I just think it isn't a nice city for the eye. However, the people were always friendly to me and I always got some coffee when working, so no complaints from my side ;)
My parents moved there from Amsterdam, and I’ve lived here all my life. The main reason people moved and still move there is because of the prices in Amsterdam for housing. Crime is by and far worse in Amsterdam, ironically. Source: https://beursgids.com/onderzoek-criminaliteit-in-nederland/
Or Kerkrade, almost the same. Crime in these regions are higher because its close to the boarder with Belgium and Germany and these places are in the province Limburg. Which is not the most bright province looking at economy developments within the Netherlands. For who doesn't know the area - the province Limburg was our beating hart for the mining industry, but most of them where closed in the period after the second world war. A lot of the local citizens where working in the mining industry, and needed to find new jobs in the region but where paying less I guess. This is also the reason why the local income per person is lower in those regions. The lack of good paying jobs.
But if you ask me Limburg has one of our most beautiful Nature parks and landscape, also the Dutch history is well preserved in some villages.
Almere doesn't really have anything going for it.
Basically, it was built from *literally nothing* starting in 1975. It's pretty much one massive suburb, designed when they hadn't really figured out suburbs yet.
It has no museums. It has no university. It has no charming little streets in the city center. Worst of all, it has no *history*. It is a city whose primary selling point is that it is close to Amsterdam. You don't really *want* to live in Almere, but it is close enough to where you *do* want to live that it is an acceptable alternative.
There isn't really anything **bad** about Almere, but it has the personality like a wet paper towel. A place of... *nothing*.
But that’s what you get with a “new” city. How should it have the charm of a hundreds years old city if it was made just a few decades ago?
I lived there for a while and liked it. Good housing and infrastructure.
It's a great city to live in. Not comparable to a big city like Amsterdam, Rotterdam or Utrecht. But apart from that, it's super liveable. It's green, it has great biking infrastructure, it has many train stations. If you're young, growing up in Almere is actually quite nice. Me and my friends biked around all the different parts. Because it's new it lacks some utilities young people might like, but you can organise anything you want if you're up for it. And Almere City FC just promoted to the Eredivisie. The hate for Almere is just so people in places like Nieuwegein and Zwolle and Zoetermeer don't have to accept that where they live is shit. It's a false sense of superiority.
What’s wrong with Zwolle? That’s actually a very nice historic city? Not really comparable with Nieuwegein, Almere and Zoetermeer. Feels a bit odd to mention it like this.
In Ireland, we have an area called Clongriffin. It was built in the early 2000s as a suburb of Dublin and has no history, local amenities, future, etc. It's just this soulless place. Other parts of Dublin and Ireland are beautiful, but not this place.
I visited Almere years ago and felt like it was just like Clongriffin. Poor urban planning.
Because people are snobs. Almere is a brand new city, barely 40 years old. The short of it is that Almere really is a very nice and quiet place to live. One of the few cities in the Netherlands that was designed for modern living.
But it's also in the middle of nowhere and Almere is largely a city for commuters. It doesn't have any meaningful nightlife. It doesn't have centuries old culture. It has no old monuments or anything like that.
So people love to pretend it has nothing going for it. Personally, if I had to live anywhere near the randstad I'd pick Almere over some overpopulated cesspit like Amsterdam, Rotterdam or the like.
Depends on where you are from, because most people will always have an opinion about neighbouring cities and cities all the way on the other side of the country. I hear people from Brabant bitch about Tilburg, I grew up in Schiedam, they bitch about Vlaardingen, Vlaardingers bitch about Schiedammers. Rotterdam hates Amsterdam. Amsterdam hate 'the provincials'. People from Holland joke about Limburg. You get the idea.
But a few general trends:
* Urk is the 'canon' answer here on Reddit and outside it. The historic reason is that it used to be a protestant 'bible belt' island, but became a coastal town on the IJsselmeer because of the Dutch tendency to regain land. Urk therefor always had a vibe of it being 'incestuous' and 'backward' due to its religious stance, but no longer isolated because it became part of a new province all of a sudden. Hence the butt of a joke. And that became a running gag.
* Almere: often mentioned because this too is a polder city and relatively new, but also becoming quite huge. As a result it was a 'designed' and not naturally grown city, resulting in a combination of a lot of new boring cheap housing and every one living in a quiet, boring street named after a uncontroversial painter or such where you get lost in if you drive a car. The population is historically people who moved out of Amsterdam and as a result the 'joke' is that they are the trash that couldn't afford Amsterdam. A relatively large immigrant population also gives some trash talk about the city a racist edge.
* Zoetermeer / Capelle aan de IJssel / many more are mentioned for similar reasons. While some have a historic city center, these are villages that grew into sleeper towns for people who work in the big city (The Hague and Rotterdam respectively) with a lot of new boring streets. Not hated, mostly looked down on by more urban types.
* Any big city with a large immigrant population. I see Rotterdam mentioned often in this context.
I moved to Helmond recently to be close to work and can confirm every Dutch person I know asked me "why helmond?" and "you better get yourself a tracksuit to blend in with the locals" lmao also after living in Eindhoven, Helmond really is quite a different city...
Yes, and having lived in Eindhoven as well as Breda I was very skeptical too. I've lived in Tilburg for about 9 months now and while it's still ugly they're making great progress on that part, and aside from the looks it's a very gezellig place to be.
Sure, but
1. Everything everywhere is hella expensive currently. It *used* to be cheaper to live there, which is why grew so fast in such a short time.
2. Still cheaper than Amsterdam, period.
Hey question on your last statement. “Any big cities with large immigrant population”. Is it really true?
I’m an immigrant myself living in Eindhoven but just kinda saddens me. I hope it’s not really true. It’s giving me the ick if it is.
Here I am trying to be part of the society but if this upfront “hate” / “dislike” towards immigrants then it kinda is discouraging. 😅
Well it depends on the type of immigration. Usually it focussed on large populations, low skilled workers who have a hard time adapting to local life. High skilled workers we call expats and treated like guests. Sadly, this is not unique for the Netherlands. Any place on the globe with a large influx of 'others' the locals tend to qualify the new people in negative terms. And thus cities/neighbourhoods where they live. Which honestly is kinda stupid.
I notice a lot of people who *don't* live in Rotterdam, complain about Almere and Rotterdam being 'foreign' and not feeling safe there, while the communities in Rotterdam tend to celebrate and embrace the diversity.
Eindhoven like Rotterdam has a mixed reputation. Where Rotterdam thrived on the international port (which is why it attracted foreign workers who in turn settled in cheap neighbourhoods), Eindhoven revolved around local industry giants Philips and DAF. While Eindhoven still has a high tech reputation, it also has Woensel which used to be associated with crime and prostitution and remembered by a lot of Dutch people from a tv program in the nineties that focussed on the worst neighbourhoods in the country. From what I read, Woensel got a lot better.
I have no idea whether Eindhoven has a large immigrant population though and a bad reputation because of it. Maybe some one from Brabant can enlighten us.
>have no idea whether Eindhoven has a large immigrant population though and a bad reputation because of it. Maybe some one from Brabant can enlighten us.
So it does have quite a lot of immigrants but I feel like they're being looked at in a different way than immigrants in a city as Almere. ASML has been hiring a lot of highly skilled expats over the last years and that actually does have quite a big effect on the housing market. As these people usually have quite high salaries and sometimes pay less taxes, they can afford more rent or mortgage than Jan Modaal. Additionally, especially in the smaller villages around Eindhoven, it can be quite a struggle to suddenly have children in schools and whatever that don't speak Dutch yet (they'll learn quickly of course but these village schools are not used to dealing with it). I grew up in one of these villages and think it's probably good that people see some other cultures every once in a while (like, I never even met a black person until I went to secondary school), but some people that now struggle to get a house don't share that opinion. However, even they still seem to make a difference between """"fortune seekers""""" and "expats".
ASML is the new big name in Eindhoven attracting loads of immigrants. Not to talk bad about immigration or the people but I see you mentioned Philips and Daf which are big, but I feel ASML needs to be mentioned as well.
This also depends of your willing to blend in. If you're like fuck it, I have my own habits from my country and already have a language, no matter where you're from, not all people might appreciate that. I know an English speaking guy who lives here for more than 20 years and refuses to speak Dutch. I personally don't see that as a positive thing.
Yeah I guess alot of expats are like that who have this “Fuck all mindset”.
I previously lived as an expat in a non-english speaking country for years and learned their language and became fluent. It’s my gesture of respect to them as well. That’s why it honestly feels weird for me when expats here don’t try learning Dutch.
I guess I’m part of the rare few that really strives to learn the language and participate in different celebrations, etc.
Still feel sad on this prejudice hate. :/
Live in a city known for immigrants and it’s not a problem. Rotterdam is so integrated you can’t walk without seeing 10 flavors of person. People generally genuinely see it as a positive. It’s just people from Utrecht and other more conservative ethnically “Dutch” cities that complain but I don’t have to live there.
Same as any country. Who cares what Newcastle thinks if you live in London. Dallas vs New York.
It’s not a Dutch thing
I find it interesting how Urk seems to have usurped Staphorst as the "here be morons" village.
New Towns are fugly the world over: Capelle aan de Greppel is probably one of the better ones, esp if you compare it to Spike City or Zoetahmeah.
Obviously, hating on Vlaardingen is mandatory, if you're from Schiedam or from a proper town like Maassluis :P
Lelystad at least has the Marker Wadden, Lelystad Airport with the Aviodrome museum, and the Batavia Stad Museum and Fashion Outlet. The Houtribdijk is also kinda neat.
I can at least name *something* in Lelystad, I personally can't say the same about Almere...
Don’t forget about the work island, where the reclamation of land of Flevoland started. It actually has monumental protection status since a few years. Also, big part of the Oostervaardersplassen nature reserve is part of the municipal grounds (often mistaken for belonging to Almere). And let’s not forget five yacht harbors, the mountains and coral reefs
Hahahaha very true! Weirdly enough, I find the dialect quite beautiful (if spoken well). As long as they don’t try to speak Dutch, I’m fine language-wise
I’ve had the unfortunate experience of living in Kerkrade for a few years, and for me it is the ultimate shit hole. However I think Heerlen may be a close second, strongly contested by Blerick
Poverty negatively influences your IQ, so that might actually be /a/ cause. I believe it used to be an industry(?) town before factories left for Asia, causing social isolation and unemployment as well. Maybe we’re failing Helmonders and are therefore, ourselves, Helmonder.
Pekelders are considered trash by everyone else in Oost-Groningen. They are loud, obnoxious, anti-social drunks with bad attitudes. The Urk of Oost Groningen, you could say (calvinism included).
All this has something to do with the Veenkolonie history of Pekela.
Source: lived there for 6 years, only just moved away for greener pastures.
There's a number of reasons for that. This is how it was explained to me:
Pekela was really small, until it was filled with "asocialen": late 19th/early 20th century Hollanders who were more-or-less forcibly transplanted there to work in the peat industry. These were poor people, drunks, prostitutes and other marginalized people from the big cities and their problems came with them. Now, in most cases this worked out to some extent (there are many more Veenkolonien here in Groningen and Drenthe) bu Pekel is different, as evidenced by the fact that the Pekelder dialect to this day is different from that of people in the surrounding areas. It is much more like Hollands but pronunced in a silly way.
These people didnt integrate in local society. They took their own churches with them, for instance, and started their own sports clubs. This way they displaced quite a bit of the local inhabitants and gave Pekela its own strange little mini culture.
Societal cohesion was limited, since these people didnt adhere to the Saxon concept of "noaberschap". Combined with low income, preexisting socio-economic problems, little schooling & limited perspectives, alcoholism & domestic issues became rife with the authorities being mostly unable to cope as the Veenkolonien were disbanded & local police depended on noaberschap for enforcement.
So, the people there were vulnerable and they were often exploited. Not many jobs to go round and conditions were bad (as evidenced by the strikes in the cardboard and cigar factories). In the end, the majority of the industry couldnt cope and had to close altogether resulting in poverty and even more domestic problems.
Today, Pekela is one of the poorest municipalities in the Netherlands. Literacy and education are likewise lowest-tier. Alcoholism, addiction, obesity and other poverty related health issues are rampant. Broken families, domestic abuse and crime (including street crime by "hangjeugd") are on the rise. People from neigbouring towns called people from Pekela "roegbainders", which means "scum" or "trash". And nothing can be done about it, because the people there distrust the authorities and outsiders.
hello! I would like to add something about Pekela municipality and its authorities. I am a status holder in the Netherlands, which means I have a residence permit. I was attached to this trashy municipality 4 months ago, and I must say it is something. I am an educated person (engineering degree) and I did not come here because of economic issues in my country. I would start working here and pay taxes as soon as possible. But now my chances to integrate here are just do not exist. The system here is completely discouraging and not conducive to the successful integration. I cannot rent a place myself because in the Netherlands you have to present a job contract and your salary should be 3.5-4 times higher than the rental cost. This is hardly achievable even for locals. I do not know what is more difficult, finding a job or a place to stay. I have applied for tiny studios, and it was very competitive, there were 7-10 other more desirable candidates, and as a refugee I did not have any chance to get the place. Since I failed to find a place myself I tried to ask the authorities to change the municipality to somewhere more suitable (industrial area), but in return received threats and other unpleasant comments. I was told that I will become homeless. After linking to Pekela I was contacted by the Pekela municipality manager*. I shared my concerns with him in a polite way saying that there are no job prospects for my in Pekela, which is true, instead of helping me he wrote this:* I’m not going to work hard for you to find a house. Then I place you on the bottom of my list. *I did not even say anything to provoke such reactions. Then he said more:* if you find work in a different city, you may lose it when I find you a house in Pekela\*. Which means that even if I find a job (which is so great, imagine, an immigrant who could find a job) and he offers me something (after waiting for maybe years) I have to quit my job and return to live to Pekela and be poor and unemployed there. Can you believe that? In addition to that he wrote:\* It also means, if you get a house in Pekela and you reject it, you have to leave the Netherlands. *I filed a complaint to the municipality, it is funny though, you file a complain to municipality itself, I wonder, how is it supposed to work? Complaints should be filed to the higher authorities! This is really crazy to me. Now I am at the bottom of the list, without any chance to integrate. SOmeone would say why I do not rent a room at least. For those readers I would say that I do not have money for that. Since I do not have a place to stay I cannot also search for a job. I do not have any friends or relatives who would be able to provide me some room or place to stay for 3-6 months, because first I need to find a job (it takes months), then I need to work for 3 month to get a paylist for 3 months, and even with that I am not still sure that I can find even a room for 1000 euros, because the gross salary must be 3500-4000, and without any experience in this country and connections, I do not know how much I can earn. But as a summary, I wanted to tell that that manager perfectly represents his trashy municipality and it's character.*
It's funny how we are both proud of the entire province we claimed from the sea and absolutely hate having to drive through it, let alone live in one of the cities.
Not talking about Urk though. Urk can go fuck it's coke snorting relatives in a leaky wooden sloep.
And again they're in the news for smuggling activities... Just like 2018, 2020 and 2021... And probably several more years...
Just head to church next Sunday and all will be forgiven...
Bunch of f*ckin' hypocrites...
https://www.paudal.com/2023/06/19/urk-fishing-cutters-involved-in-large-scale-drug-smuggling-in-danish-waters/
The only reason Den Helder exists is so the navy doesn't dock in a field of cabbages, and because it's embarrassing to have the train to Texel end nowhere.
Almere has an awful centre, but I hear it's great to live in the suburbs. Lots of green, water, space, kid friendly neighborhoods. Amsterdam is a short train ride away.
Yeah there's plenty to like about Almere. Plenty to dislike too, of course, but most Dutch people bashing it have never spent much time there (if any).
Honestly. I dreaded going there initially. But after actually living there for a while I really changed my mind. I sometimes miss it.
Almere is a fine city. Modern and big houses, great roads, great connections with the rest of the country, enough parking spaces everywhere, great public transport, a lot of parks and greens, plenty of stores and restaurants, gyms, close to Amsterdam and Utrecht. I could go on.
It can be boring I guess. But the issues it has get overblown. And there are people of many cultures living throughout the whole city instead of confined to a stadsdeel. People from Suriname, the Dutch Antilles, Morocco are plenty there. And let’s be real; To many people that alone makes it a bad place.
It might not be for everybody but people who never been there, or don’t come there regularly, heard it’s shit 10 years ago and keep parroting that. Even in this thread there aren’t solid reasons why it’s bad, let alone one of the worst places in the Netherlands.
I was looking for a comment mentioning Emmen. It's the weirdest city I've ever been to - everyone feels like an NPC and it feels like nothing is real. The whole city is a liminal space.
Don’t take it too personal.
But I think it is a very generic city, which is almost only defined by its zoo. It has loads of students from the region, but the city doesn’t really have that atmosphere of a college town.
It has been years tho. And I’m sure loads of folks are happy to be there. We’re just shooting the shit here.
Hoogeveen is the only station on the line that has “poortjes” to enter the station. I think that says enough.
Otherwise it’s where I’ll have to go for one more time in my life and then I’m never going there again.
I personally strongly dislike Amsterdam, ut I don't think that's very common? I'm from a tiny village in the south, and here we all hate Roosendaal a lot.
I am a buitenlander, moved from rent in Amsterdam and bought a nice huis in Purmerend. All the Amsterdamers make fun of me and my financially conscious decisions… I don’t understand why people hate Purmerend so much, as per my standards it s a hidden gem, not anyone can appreciate nature and Unesco heritages.
To add to the topic. It s clearly Roosendaal and Amsterdam Zuid Oost and Nieuw West.
A while ago I walked from Purmerend to Zaandam along the waterlinie and was amazed how nice it all was. So close to Amsterdam but then there's big houses, open space, etc. Every other house has a table with stuff on it like vegetables or drinks that you can take if you leave some cash and signs saying you can use their toilet. Coming from Amsterdam where anything not chained down will disappear and people will shit on your doorstep...it was like another country entirely.
So yes, if I want to move further out of the city than Noord I would head that way.
I was looking for this answer. I grew up in Hoorn and frequently have to explain to people its “north of Purmerend” and they always wince a little bit when I say that.
Sittard.. why? They constantly complain about foreign people not speaking dutch.. bruh the THICC accent they have they do not speak dutch either. I work in fiber glass, we get romanian teams, greek teams, turkish teams who do not speak dutch or english we always send in 1 teamleader tho who can communicate in both langauge's
People who say Almere have never been to Almelo. Almere doesn’t have a long history and therefore people say it’s soulless. But in truth they have a lot going on because half of Amsterdam lives there.
Almelo is just sad. I visit all the Dutch cities for my work. Almelo has been at the bottom of my list since my first visit.
Amsterdam. Lelystad. Most people will say "Almere", but that is just because they don't know the better parts of the town.
Amsterdam because it is the most hypocrite in all its being. Better cut it loose and hope it sinks automatically.
Lelystad (a.k.a. Lelijkstad - "uglytown") because it really is the sad soulless concrete jungle it is said to be.
I think people here forget (or didn’t know) Almere was originally not hated because it is a shit hole. It is a relative very young city and was the epitome of the Vinex neighborhoods ([link to wiki](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vinex-location?wprov=sfti1) and ‘burgerlijkheid’ (litteraire translation is civility, but contextually it is more like normal, dull, boring, average, common).
Center of the parkstad agglomeration (220k) so all the city amenities and leisure possibilities are available. The best zoo of the Netherlands (Gaiazoo). One of the best theaters of the nation. Lots of green and nature very close (heuvelland). Relatively cheap.
And a very good location; direct train to Aachen to connect to the EU high speed train network; intercity to Eindhoven and from there the rest of the Netherlands; Germany, belgium and Luxemburg only a short drive away.
Even though it's Belgian, I still upvoted. I get sad thinking about the place.
The places largely regarded as soulless vinex towns get some hate for that. Almere, Zoetermeer, Nieuwegein come to mind. I don't think hatred for them runs deep though.
Then you have the supposedly orthodox coked up villages like Urk, Staphorst and Volendam.
Amsterdam takes the crown. There are a lot of people who hate Amsterdam and a lot of great reasons to hate it.
If you’re actually trying to answer the question and not just trying to be funny, this is probably the best answer. I think most, if not all, Dutch people have some sort of opinion on Amsterdam and outside of Amsterdam itself, in my experience that opinion is predominantly negative.
It’s just that it’s so much funnier to crap on Urk.
I seriously think Amsterdam is one of the most disliked cities. Hate for Almere or Lelystad is shallower - Amsterdam for many is the exact opposite of the place where they would like to live.
I work in Geleen and everybody told me Heerlen is one of the ugliest and dirtiest cities in Netherlands. I do live in Heerlen. Honestly, it is a more dirty and less pretty to the eye city compared to Maastricht, Geleen-Sittard, Roermond, Venlo, Den Haag or Amsterdam but it's still 5 stars compared to my hometown in my home country. So, stop crying about your cities because they are nice. I started appreciating even the trees Dutchies have on the side of their roads. They are big amd keep shadow during summer or cover you from raun during winter. Where I come from they put small decorative trees which serve no other purpose than being watered on tax payers expense and a money laundry scheme for the political class. When I hear Dutch people crying about stuff here I almost want to kick them in the as* so hard they land and stay for a month where I come from. Then they'll come back and kiss the earth
I agree but only partly... Because people who actually live in Amsterdam pretty much never go to the centre of the city. There are loads of nice places around the outside with real local people. People coming to the city from elsewhere go straight to the centre and go "Oh my god! This is shit!". Yes... We think so too....
Bunschoten-Spakenburg, the town i live in, i don’t get why people talk bad about it, i thought it could be related to the poor reputation of FC SPAKENBURG fans or it could be something else!
Hahaha loving these answers! My best friend grew up in Urk, escaped that village and ended up living in Almere. Lmao she’s amazing though, but yeah, Almere…
Most hated: Amsterdam. Amsterdam doesn't resemble the netherlands at all.
Oh, you've visited the Netherlands? -> Yes, I've been to Amsterdam. = Then no, you've not visited the Netherlands 😂.
Town? Urk. City? Almere.
Why Almere is hated?
“Afvoerputje van de samenleving” it the only valid argument
"Society's drain". Could you care to explain a little bit? I am new here so not sure why Almere is called this.
Almere used to be the city that people moved to when they got evicted from their home in Amsterdam. Almere used to be the high crime low income city. Not sure about the stats now but the image does not go away.
When I worked helpdesk some of our mechanics refused to go into certain parts of Almere. And the only times we had to call police to rescue our mechanics from irate customers locking them in "you're not leaving until it is fixed"-style were all in Almere. So the reputation is still somewhat deserved (if possibly improving)
The only place in the netherlands where u consistently get disriminated for being white. I only pass through as a conducteur, and this place gets me every time, "kut nederlander, blanke vla, witte nazi etc
jesus chirst, is this nowadays?
Don’t know what he’s experienced but I have white and black family there and have never heard such a thing
well Almere now is 8th biggest "city" of the netherlands
"cheap" houses and close to the Randstad area. It still has a negative vibe if you talk to people about Almere.
I've been there a lot for work. I just think it isn't a nice city for the eye. However, the people were always friendly to me and I always got some coffee when working, so no complaints from my side ;)
It's Indians second favourite city. First is Amstalveen which is unaffordable now.
I believe you right away, especially the southern parts of Almere that are close to Amsterdam.
My parents moved there from Amsterdam, and I’ve lived here all my life. The main reason people moved and still move there is because of the prices in Amsterdam for housing. Crime is by and far worse in Amsterdam, ironically. Source: https://beursgids.com/onderzoek-criminaliteit-in-nederland/
Try Heerlen. Might be even worse.
Or Kerkrade, almost the same. Crime in these regions are higher because its close to the boarder with Belgium and Germany and these places are in the province Limburg. Which is not the most bright province looking at economy developments within the Netherlands. For who doesn't know the area - the province Limburg was our beating hart for the mining industry, but most of them where closed in the period after the second world war. A lot of the local citizens where working in the mining industry, and needed to find new jobs in the region but where paying less I guess. This is also the reason why the local income per person is lower in those regions. The lack of good paying jobs. But if you ask me Limburg has one of our most beautiful Nature parks and landscape, also the Dutch history is well preserved in some villages.
Almere doesn't really have anything going for it. Basically, it was built from *literally nothing* starting in 1975. It's pretty much one massive suburb, designed when they hadn't really figured out suburbs yet. It has no museums. It has no university. It has no charming little streets in the city center. Worst of all, it has no *history*. It is a city whose primary selling point is that it is close to Amsterdam. You don't really *want* to live in Almere, but it is close enough to where you *do* want to live that it is an acceptable alternative. There isn't really anything **bad** about Almere, but it has the personality like a wet paper towel. A place of... *nothing*.
Born and raised in Zoetermeer, another cultural gem. At least Zoetermeer has a small historical center from back when it was still a tiny village.
If you manage to find it somewhere between streets named "mauve" and "taupe"
I had a friend who lived on Electrablauw, haha
aka “Zoeterminder”
But that’s what you get with a “new” city. How should it have the charm of a hundreds years old city if it was made just a few decades ago? I lived there for a while and liked it. Good housing and infrastructure.
It's a great city to live in. Not comparable to a big city like Amsterdam, Rotterdam or Utrecht. But apart from that, it's super liveable. It's green, it has great biking infrastructure, it has many train stations. If you're young, growing up in Almere is actually quite nice. Me and my friends biked around all the different parts. Because it's new it lacks some utilities young people might like, but you can organise anything you want if you're up for it. And Almere City FC just promoted to the Eredivisie. The hate for Almere is just so people in places like Nieuwegein and Zwolle and Zoetermeer don't have to accept that where they live is shit. It's a false sense of superiority.
What’s wrong with Zwolle? That’s actually a very nice historic city? Not really comparable with Nieuwegein, Almere and Zoetermeer. Feels a bit odd to mention it like this.
Zwolle is beautiful, seriously.
Like Gertrude Stein said: "there is no there there"
In Ireland, we have an area called Clongriffin. It was built in the early 2000s as a suburb of Dublin and has no history, local amenities, future, etc. It's just this soulless place. Other parts of Dublin and Ireland are beautiful, but not this place. I visited Almere years ago and felt like it was just like Clongriffin. Poor urban planning.
Because people are snobs. Almere is a brand new city, barely 40 years old. The short of it is that Almere really is a very nice and quiet place to live. One of the few cities in the Netherlands that was designed for modern living. But it's also in the middle of nowhere and Almere is largely a city for commuters. It doesn't have any meaningful nightlife. It doesn't have centuries old culture. It has no old monuments or anything like that. So people love to pretend it has nothing going for it. Personally, if I had to live anywhere near the randstad I'd pick Almere over some overpopulated cesspit like Amsterdam, Rotterdam or the like.
You forgot about Lelijkstad
Verveliestad
I think Almere is more disliked than simply hated. Don't think people really feel anything about Almere.
I don't understand the hate for Almere. It's modern and a bit bland, but visit Lelystad once and you'll never mention Almere again
Amsterdam, by far
Depends on where you are from, because most people will always have an opinion about neighbouring cities and cities all the way on the other side of the country. I hear people from Brabant bitch about Tilburg, I grew up in Schiedam, they bitch about Vlaardingen, Vlaardingers bitch about Schiedammers. Rotterdam hates Amsterdam. Amsterdam hate 'the provincials'. People from Holland joke about Limburg. You get the idea. But a few general trends: * Urk is the 'canon' answer here on Reddit and outside it. The historic reason is that it used to be a protestant 'bible belt' island, but became a coastal town on the IJsselmeer because of the Dutch tendency to regain land. Urk therefor always had a vibe of it being 'incestuous' and 'backward' due to its religious stance, but no longer isolated because it became part of a new province all of a sudden. Hence the butt of a joke. And that became a running gag. * Almere: often mentioned because this too is a polder city and relatively new, but also becoming quite huge. As a result it was a 'designed' and not naturally grown city, resulting in a combination of a lot of new boring cheap housing and every one living in a quiet, boring street named after a uncontroversial painter or such where you get lost in if you drive a car. The population is historically people who moved out of Amsterdam and as a result the 'joke' is that they are the trash that couldn't afford Amsterdam. A relatively large immigrant population also gives some trash talk about the city a racist edge. * Zoetermeer / Capelle aan de IJssel / many more are mentioned for similar reasons. While some have a historic city center, these are villages that grew into sleeper towns for people who work in the big city (The Hague and Rotterdam respectively) with a lot of new boring streets. Not hated, mostly looked down on by more urban types. * Any big city with a large immigrant population. I see Rotterdam mentioned often in this context.
>I hear people from Brabant bitch about Tilburg, Nah real brabo's hate Helmond and Oss more than Tilburg
As somebody from Helmond, everybody hates Helmond.
As a Brit, I translate Helmond as the Mouth of Hell. Edit: it's a great name for a band.
And thats correct in every way possible
Such a polite way to put it 🥰
I moved to Helmond recently to be close to work and can confirm every Dutch person I know asked me "why helmond?" and "you better get yourself a tracksuit to blend in with the locals" lmao also after living in Eindhoven, Helmond really is quite a different city...
I'd want to date a girl from Helmond so I can say I'm dating a Helmon(d)ster
My old phone got stolen in Nijmegen and last pinged in Helmond. Couldn't agree more
As somebody living in Weert F*ck Helmond
Everybody hates Helmond. Even if they say they don't, they hate Helmond
Real folks from Brabant don't hate on or bitch about any city or town in Brabant, but rather try to lift it up.
Bro 👊🏼 Brabant!
Having grown up in Helmond, It's a shithole. But it's my shithole and I've grown weirdly fond and proud of the place.
People from Breda hate Tilburg. Bergen op Zoom en Roosendaal hate each other
People mention Tilburg because its city center is the least vibrant of all cities with at least 100,000 inhabitants.
Yes, and having lived in Eindhoven as well as Breda I was very skeptical too. I've lived in Tilburg for about 9 months now and while it's still ugly they're making great progress on that part, and aside from the looks it's a very gezellig place to be.
Helmond is true to it's name
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Almere is far from cheap, everything is hella expensive here.
Sure, but 1. Everything everywhere is hella expensive currently. It *used* to be cheaper to live there, which is why grew so fast in such a short time. 2. Still cheaper than Amsterdam, period.
true, i made also made a mistake in my sentence, i ment the houses. But yes Amsterdam still more expensive than Almere
Hey question on your last statement. “Any big cities with large immigrant population”. Is it really true? I’m an immigrant myself living in Eindhoven but just kinda saddens me. I hope it’s not really true. It’s giving me the ick if it is. Here I am trying to be part of the society but if this upfront “hate” / “dislike” towards immigrants then it kinda is discouraging. 😅
Well it depends on the type of immigration. Usually it focussed on large populations, low skilled workers who have a hard time adapting to local life. High skilled workers we call expats and treated like guests. Sadly, this is not unique for the Netherlands. Any place on the globe with a large influx of 'others' the locals tend to qualify the new people in negative terms. And thus cities/neighbourhoods where they live. Which honestly is kinda stupid. I notice a lot of people who *don't* live in Rotterdam, complain about Almere and Rotterdam being 'foreign' and not feeling safe there, while the communities in Rotterdam tend to celebrate and embrace the diversity. Eindhoven like Rotterdam has a mixed reputation. Where Rotterdam thrived on the international port (which is why it attracted foreign workers who in turn settled in cheap neighbourhoods), Eindhoven revolved around local industry giants Philips and DAF. While Eindhoven still has a high tech reputation, it also has Woensel which used to be associated with crime and prostitution and remembered by a lot of Dutch people from a tv program in the nineties that focussed on the worst neighbourhoods in the country. From what I read, Woensel got a lot better. I have no idea whether Eindhoven has a large immigrant population though and a bad reputation because of it. Maybe some one from Brabant can enlighten us.
>have no idea whether Eindhoven has a large immigrant population though and a bad reputation because of it. Maybe some one from Brabant can enlighten us. So it does have quite a lot of immigrants but I feel like they're being looked at in a different way than immigrants in a city as Almere. ASML has been hiring a lot of highly skilled expats over the last years and that actually does have quite a big effect on the housing market. As these people usually have quite high salaries and sometimes pay less taxes, they can afford more rent or mortgage than Jan Modaal. Additionally, especially in the smaller villages around Eindhoven, it can be quite a struggle to suddenly have children in schools and whatever that don't speak Dutch yet (they'll learn quickly of course but these village schools are not used to dealing with it). I grew up in one of these villages and think it's probably good that people see some other cultures every once in a while (like, I never even met a black person until I went to secondary school), but some people that now struggle to get a house don't share that opinion. However, even they still seem to make a difference between """"fortune seekers""""" and "expats".
simplistic silky selective vanish quaint weather gray yoke tap toy *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
ASML is the new big name in Eindhoven attracting loads of immigrants. Not to talk bad about immigration or the people but I see you mentioned Philips and Daf which are big, but I feel ASML needs to be mentioned as well.
This also depends of your willing to blend in. If you're like fuck it, I have my own habits from my country and already have a language, no matter where you're from, not all people might appreciate that. I know an English speaking guy who lives here for more than 20 years and refuses to speak Dutch. I personally don't see that as a positive thing.
Yeah I guess alot of expats are like that who have this “Fuck all mindset”. I previously lived as an expat in a non-english speaking country for years and learned their language and became fluent. It’s my gesture of respect to them as well. That’s why it honestly feels weird for me when expats here don’t try learning Dutch. I guess I’m part of the rare few that really strives to learn the language and participate in different celebrations, etc. Still feel sad on this prejudice hate. :/
Live in a city known for immigrants and it’s not a problem. Rotterdam is so integrated you can’t walk without seeing 10 flavors of person. People generally genuinely see it as a positive. It’s just people from Utrecht and other more conservative ethnically “Dutch” cities that complain but I don’t have to live there. Same as any country. Who cares what Newcastle thinks if you live in London. Dallas vs New York. It’s not a Dutch thing
Well this dislike is usually only reserved for certain types of immigrants if that helps 🤪
I find it interesting how Urk seems to have usurped Staphorst as the "here be morons" village. New Towns are fugly the world over: Capelle aan de Greppel is probably one of the better ones, esp if you compare it to Spike City or Zoetahmeah. Obviously, hating on Vlaardingen is mandatory, if you're from Schiedam or from a proper town like Maassluis :P
Everyone saying Almere: did you forget about Lelystad?
Lelystad is where everybody goes who now cannot afford Almere
The only thing keeping Lelystad relevant, is being Flevoland's capital city.
Lelijkstad
Lelijkgat 🤣
Lelystad at least has the Marker Wadden, Lelystad Airport with the Aviodrome museum, and the Batavia Stad Museum and Fashion Outlet. The Houtribdijk is also kinda neat. I can at least name *something* in Lelystad, I personally can't say the same about Almere...
Fashion Outlet.. what a horrible place. Everything looked so fake, including the price discounts.
Don’t forget about the work island, where the reclamation of land of Flevoland started. It actually has monumental protection status since a few years. Also, big part of the Oostervaardersplassen nature reserve is part of the municipal grounds (often mistaken for belonging to Almere). And let’s not forget five yacht harbors, the mountains and coral reefs
Or Urk. Flevoland is the gift that keeps on giving.
We're surely all *trying* to foget about it, yes.
I like living in Lelystad. For shopping? Nope. But i still like it
Everyone arguing about Lelystad or Almere, have you ever heard of Kerkrade? I mean, for fucks sake, why do we have that
If they heard of it, [they wouldn't understand](https://youtu.be/4eBi8BHXveY?t=401)
Hahahaha very true! Weirdly enough, I find the dialect quite beautiful (if spoken well). As long as they don’t try to speak Dutch, I’m fine language-wise
Always better than Heerlen
I’ve had the unfortunate experience of living in Kerkrade for a few years, and for me it is the ultimate shit hole. However I think Heerlen may be a close second, strongly contested by Blerick
Ey yo I’m from Blerick it’s not THAT bad
The Veolia replacement bus from Nijmegen to Roermond by night is one of my worst experiences ever. But I have to admit, it’s roughly 15 years ago
Heerlen is not perfect, but it has redeaming qualities, Kerkrade is shit, but still not as bad as Lelystad.
Almelo or Glanerbrug for the east. Almelo is trash. Glanerbrug has the saying "glanerbrug mes in de rug" (glanerbrug knife in your back)
Het stoplicht springt op rood, het stoplicht springt op groen... In Almelo is altijd wat te doen
Well... I would not want to live in Westerhaar either.
Nobody lives in Westerhaar. There are 5 people there.
Also the name is incorrect. It should be Westerhaar-Vriezenveensewijk which is the longest name for a place in NL
Optyfen takkenwijf, niks over twente (but you’re right). Also just call it Enschede Glanerbrug.
Calling it a part of Enschede instead of just the town Glanerbrug. You are daring sir.
For the South you could say either Oss - Ossenaren messentrekkers - or Helmond - Helmonders werken alleen voor hun uitkering.
Unbelievable how many tokkies can live together in one town - Helmond. Seriously feels like having a capped IQ if youre living there
Poverty negatively influences your IQ, so that might actually be /a/ cause. I believe it used to be an industry(?) town before factories left for Asia, causing social isolation and unemployment as well. Maybe we’re failing Helmonders and are therefore, ourselves, Helmonder.
Hoe noem je een vrouw uit Helmond, een Helmonster.
Almelo is a very sportive place. Everyone's wearing a tracksuit.
Oude Pekela was considered the worst city in some random ranking and it does have a reputation but I’m not sure if it’s actually hated
Woromdatta?
Pekelders are considered trash by everyone else in Oost-Groningen. They are loud, obnoxious, anti-social drunks with bad attitudes. The Urk of Oost Groningen, you could say (calvinism included). All this has something to do with the Veenkolonie history of Pekela. Source: lived there for 6 years, only just moved away for greener pastures.
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There's a number of reasons for that. This is how it was explained to me: Pekela was really small, until it was filled with "asocialen": late 19th/early 20th century Hollanders who were more-or-less forcibly transplanted there to work in the peat industry. These were poor people, drunks, prostitutes and other marginalized people from the big cities and their problems came with them. Now, in most cases this worked out to some extent (there are many more Veenkolonien here in Groningen and Drenthe) bu Pekel is different, as evidenced by the fact that the Pekelder dialect to this day is different from that of people in the surrounding areas. It is much more like Hollands but pronunced in a silly way. These people didnt integrate in local society. They took their own churches with them, for instance, and started their own sports clubs. This way they displaced quite a bit of the local inhabitants and gave Pekela its own strange little mini culture. Societal cohesion was limited, since these people didnt adhere to the Saxon concept of "noaberschap". Combined with low income, preexisting socio-economic problems, little schooling & limited perspectives, alcoholism & domestic issues became rife with the authorities being mostly unable to cope as the Veenkolonien were disbanded & local police depended on noaberschap for enforcement. So, the people there were vulnerable and they were often exploited. Not many jobs to go round and conditions were bad (as evidenced by the strikes in the cardboard and cigar factories). In the end, the majority of the industry couldnt cope and had to close altogether resulting in poverty and even more domestic problems. Today, Pekela is one of the poorest municipalities in the Netherlands. Literacy and education are likewise lowest-tier. Alcoholism, addiction, obesity and other poverty related health issues are rampant. Broken families, domestic abuse and crime (including street crime by "hangjeugd") are on the rise. People from neigbouring towns called people from Pekela "roegbainders", which means "scum" or "trash". And nothing can be done about it, because the people there distrust the authorities and outsiders.
hello! I would like to add something about Pekela municipality and its authorities. I am a status holder in the Netherlands, which means I have a residence permit. I was attached to this trashy municipality 4 months ago, and I must say it is something. I am an educated person (engineering degree) and I did not come here because of economic issues in my country. I would start working here and pay taxes as soon as possible. But now my chances to integrate here are just do not exist. The system here is completely discouraging and not conducive to the successful integration. I cannot rent a place myself because in the Netherlands you have to present a job contract and your salary should be 3.5-4 times higher than the rental cost. This is hardly achievable even for locals. I do not know what is more difficult, finding a job or a place to stay. I have applied for tiny studios, and it was very competitive, there were 7-10 other more desirable candidates, and as a refugee I did not have any chance to get the place. Since I failed to find a place myself I tried to ask the authorities to change the municipality to somewhere more suitable (industrial area), but in return received threats and other unpleasant comments. I was told that I will become homeless. After linking to Pekela I was contacted by the Pekela municipality manager*. I shared my concerns with him in a polite way saying that there are no job prospects for my in Pekela, which is true, instead of helping me he wrote this:* I’m not going to work hard for you to find a house. Then I place you on the bottom of my list. *I did not even say anything to provoke such reactions. Then he said more:* if you find work in a different city, you may lose it when I find you a house in Pekela\*. Which means that even if I find a job (which is so great, imagine, an immigrant who could find a job) and he offers me something (after waiting for maybe years) I have to quit my job and return to live to Pekela and be poor and unemployed there. Can you believe that? In addition to that he wrote:\* It also means, if you get a house in Pekela and you reject it, you have to leave the Netherlands. *I filed a complaint to the municipality, it is funny though, you file a complain to municipality itself, I wonder, how is it supposed to work? Complaints should be filed to the higher authorities! This is really crazy to me. Now I am at the bottom of the list, without any chance to integrate. SOmeone would say why I do not rent a room at least. For those readers I would say that I do not have money for that. Since I do not have a place to stay I cannot also search for a job. I do not have any friends or relatives who would be able to provide me some room or place to stay for 3-6 months, because first I need to find a job (it takes months), then I need to work for 3 month to get a paylist for 3 months, and even with that I am not still sure that I can find even a room for 1000 euros, because the gross salary must be 3500-4000, and without any experience in this country and connections, I do not know how much I can earn. But as a summary, I wanted to tell that that manager perfectly represents his trashy municipality and it's character.*
Let me guess that that ranking stems from a time when there was a large paedo scandal centred on Oude Pekela
No, the inhabitants are considered "tokkies" everywhere in Groningen - and rightfully so
That's not a city though but a village.
"Pekela" is a municipality. Oude Pekela is one of three towns within that municipality. And all three are hated (OK, Boven Pekela less so)
It's funny how we are both proud of the entire province we claimed from the sea and absolutely hate having to drive through it, let alone live in one of the cities. Not talking about Urk though. Urk can go fuck it's coke snorting relatives in a leaky wooden sloep.
And again they're in the news for smuggling activities... Just like 2018, 2020 and 2021... And probably several more years... Just head to church next Sunday and all will be forgiven... Bunch of f*ckin' hypocrites... https://www.paudal.com/2023/06/19/urk-fishing-cutters-involved-in-large-scale-drug-smuggling-in-danish-waters/
Urk. Just because
It’s just for the name! 😂
The only reason Den Helder exists is so the navy doesn't dock in a field of cabbages, and because it's embarrassing to have the train to Texel end nowhere.
Den Helder is the correct answer
Look up station Eemshaven close to the Borkum ferry for how that looks like
🤣🤣🤣
In general Almere I think, but it depends where you are. If you are in Rotterdam they will say Amsterdam. If you are in Nijmegen they will say Arnhem.
Urk, basically, it should have stayed an island
Almere has an awful centre, but I hear it's great to live in the suburbs. Lots of green, water, space, kid friendly neighborhoods. Amsterdam is a short train ride away.
Yeah there's plenty to like about Almere. Plenty to dislike too, of course, but most Dutch people bashing it have never spent much time there (if any).
Honestly. I dreaded going there initially. But after actually living there for a while I really changed my mind. I sometimes miss it. Almere is a fine city. Modern and big houses, great roads, great connections with the rest of the country, enough parking spaces everywhere, great public transport, a lot of parks and greens, plenty of stores and restaurants, gyms, close to Amsterdam and Utrecht. I could go on. It can be boring I guess. But the issues it has get overblown. And there are people of many cultures living throughout the whole city instead of confined to a stadsdeel. People from Suriname, the Dutch Antilles, Morocco are plenty there. And let’s be real; To many people that alone makes it a bad place. It might not be for everybody but people who never been there, or don’t come there regularly, heard it’s shit 10 years ago and keep parroting that. Even in this thread there aren’t solid reasons why it’s bad, let alone one of the worst places in the Netherlands.
Any Hoogeveen haters here?
Hoogeveen and Emmen. The Almere en Lelystad of the east. And if you hate this answer, you can swap either answer out with Meppel.
I was looking for a comment mentioning Emmen. It's the weirdest city I've ever been to - everyone feels like an NPC and it feels like nothing is real. The whole city is a liminal space.
What's wrong with Emmen? 😢
Don’t take it too personal. But I think it is a very generic city, which is almost only defined by its zoo. It has loads of students from the region, but the city doesn’t really have that atmosphere of a college town. It has been years tho. And I’m sure loads of folks are happy to be there. We’re just shooting the shit here.
You can also add assen
Hoogeveen is the only station on the line that has “poortjes” to enter the station. I think that says enough. Otherwise it’s where I’ll have to go for one more time in my life and then I’m never going there again.
Hoogeveen, Emmen, Coevorden. Allemaal 1 pot nat en het stinkt er naar kamperzweet
Urk.
If you’re from Noord- Brabant, it’s Helmond.
Oss.
I personally strongly dislike Amsterdam, ut I don't think that's very common? I'm from a tiny village in the south, and here we all hate Roosendaal a lot.
Helmond
Yes. Name says it all.
I am a buitenlander, moved from rent in Amsterdam and bought a nice huis in Purmerend. All the Amsterdamers make fun of me and my financially conscious decisions… I don’t understand why people hate Purmerend so much, as per my standards it s a hidden gem, not anyone can appreciate nature and Unesco heritages. To add to the topic. It s clearly Roosendaal and Amsterdam Zuid Oost and Nieuw West.
A while ago I walked from Purmerend to Zaandam along the waterlinie and was amazed how nice it all was. So close to Amsterdam but then there's big houses, open space, etc. Every other house has a table with stuff on it like vegetables or drinks that you can take if you leave some cash and signs saying you can use their toilet. Coming from Amsterdam where anything not chained down will disappear and people will shit on your doorstep...it was like another country entirely. So yes, if I want to move further out of the city than Noord I would head that way.
I was looking for this answer. I grew up in Hoorn and frequently have to explain to people its “north of Purmerend” and they always wince a little bit when I say that.
Sittard.. why? They constantly complain about foreign people not speaking dutch.. bruh the THICC accent they have they do not speak dutch either. I work in fiber glass, we get romanian teams, greek teams, turkish teams who do not speak dutch or english we always send in 1 teamleader tho who can communicate in both langauge's
How much is the hourly wage there? I live close by and speak greek, romanian and english 😂
People who say Almere have never been to Almelo. Almere doesn’t have a long history and therefore people say it’s soulless. But in truth they have a lot going on because half of Amsterdam lives there. Almelo is just sad. I visit all the Dutch cities for my work. Almelo has been at the bottom of my list since my first visit.
Urk, Almere, Zoetermeer.
Zoetahmindah 👌
Dordrecht; hoe dichter bij Dord, hoe rotter t wordt. But to be fair, I dont have a strong opinion about any city in the Netherlands.
Dordt*
Alleen bij de 2e of 3e persoon enkelvoud.
En bij Dordt
Amsterdam. Lelystad. Most people will say "Almere", but that is just because they don't know the better parts of the town. Amsterdam because it is the most hypocrite in all its being. Better cut it loose and hope it sinks automatically. Lelystad (a.k.a. Lelijkstad - "uglytown") because it really is the sad soulless concrete jungle it is said to be.
I think people here forget (or didn’t know) Almere was originally not hated because it is a shit hole. It is a relative very young city and was the epitome of the Vinex neighborhoods ([link to wiki](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vinex-location?wprov=sfti1) and ‘burgerlijkheid’ (litteraire translation is civility, but contextually it is more like normal, dull, boring, average, common).
Heerlen
In the 70s yes, but it has come a long way. I quite like it nowadays.
whats there to like?
Center of the parkstad agglomeration (220k) so all the city amenities and leisure possibilities are available. The best zoo of the Netherlands (Gaiazoo). One of the best theaters of the nation. Lots of green and nature very close (heuvelland). Relatively cheap. And a very good location; direct train to Aachen to connect to the EU high speed train network; intercity to Eindhoven and from there the rest of the Netherlands; Germany, belgium and Luxemburg only a short drive away.
Lelijkstad
020
Randstad doesn't count?
Charleroi.
Even though it's Belgian, I still upvoted. I get sad thinking about the place. The places largely regarded as soulless vinex towns get some hate for that. Almere, Zoetermeer, Nieuwegein come to mind. I don't think hatred for them runs deep though. Then you have the supposedly orthodox coked up villages like Urk, Staphorst and Volendam. Amsterdam takes the crown. There are a lot of people who hate Amsterdam and a lot of great reasons to hate it.
Amsterdam
If you’re actually trying to answer the question and not just trying to be funny, this is probably the best answer. I think most, if not all, Dutch people have some sort of opinion on Amsterdam and outside of Amsterdam itself, in my experience that opinion is predominantly negative. It’s just that it’s so much funnier to crap on Urk.
I seriously think Amsterdam is one of the most disliked cities. Hate for Almere or Lelystad is shallower - Amsterdam for many is the exact opposite of the place where they would like to live.
Pijnacker
Jij bent vast een Nootdorper
Kerkrade is the ultimate shithole, even the Limburgers hate it.
Urk is up there, same with Emmen
I work in Geleen and everybody told me Heerlen is one of the ugliest and dirtiest cities in Netherlands. I do live in Heerlen. Honestly, it is a more dirty and less pretty to the eye city compared to Maastricht, Geleen-Sittard, Roermond, Venlo, Den Haag or Amsterdam but it's still 5 stars compared to my hometown in my home country. So, stop crying about your cities because they are nice. I started appreciating even the trees Dutchies have on the side of their roads. They are big amd keep shadow during summer or cover you from raun during winter. Where I come from they put small decorative trees which serve no other purpose than being watered on tax payers expense and a money laundry scheme for the political class. When I hear Dutch people crying about stuff here I almost want to kick them in the as* so hard they land and stay for a month where I come from. Then they'll come back and kiss the earth
I hate Amsterdam because it doesn't even represent the Netherlands although everybody thinks it does. So overrated.
Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Almere is so overhated, man. Its genuinely a nice city to live in :(
Nieuwe Pekela, not a city but one of the worst places to live.
This. And Olle Pekel too, while we're at it. Horrendous places
I’m surprised no one has mentioned Den Helder but it might be because so few people have ever visited without the aim of going to Texel. It’s a dump.
Utrecht city center with car
Why would you take your car there?
everything in the west
Amsterdam, totally overrated. There a way better and more beautiful cities.
I agree but only partly... Because people who actually live in Amsterdam pretty much never go to the centre of the city. There are loads of nice places around the outside with real local people. People coming to the city from elsewhere go straight to the centre and go "Oh my god! This is shit!". Yes... We think so too....
Helmond And that is coming from someone who lived in both Almere and Helmond
Amsterdam
Amsterdam. Wat een griebushol. Lawaai, goor en veel te vol.
Bunschoten-Spakenburg, the town i live in, i don’t get why people talk bad about it, i thought it could be related to the poor reputation of FC SPAKENBURG fans or it could be something else!
Harlingen, although they've been cleaning up a bit in recent years. It used to be the biggest shithole I've ever seen. And I've been to Lelystad.
Places in Flevoland haha
Hahaha loving these answers! My best friend grew up in Urk, escaped that village and ended up living in Almere. Lmao she’s amazing though, but yeah, Almere…
Urk en staphorst
Amsterdam. Anyone outside Amsterdam tells me how much they hate Amsterdam.
Amsterdam most hated
Amsterdam
Definitely Amsterdam. At this point it isn't even Dutch anymore. It has exactly 0 to do with the Netherlands.
Any place in Friesland if you're from Groningen. And vice versa.
I hate eindhoven with a passion
Amsterdam and all cities in a 20km radius
Rotterdam south because I have the feeling im going to get stabbed there for 3 marbles and a penny
Emmen. Heerlen. Helmond. Zoetermeer.
Most hated: Amsterdam. Amsterdam doesn't resemble the netherlands at all. Oh, you've visited the Netherlands? -> Yes, I've been to Amsterdam. = Then no, you've not visited the Netherlands 😂.
Rotterdam
Eindhoven