Rotterdam Ahoy in Rotterdam

Ahoy Arena maximum

16,426

RTM Stage, live concert

7,842

RTM Stage, theatre set-up

2,816

RTM Stage, XL seated

4,398

Exhibition & Event Halls

About 30,000 m² in six halls

Convention Centre

35 conference and meeting rooms

The Ahoy Arena holds up to 16,426 visitors, and RTM Stage up to 7,842 for a live concert. How many actually fit depends on the layout: a seated theatre set-up in RTM Stage holds 2,816, and its XL seated set-up up to 4,398.

That puts the arena just below Ziggo Dome in Amsterdam, which takes up to 17,550 with a standing floor. Ahoy's own pages sometimes round the arena to 16,500.

The Ahoy Arena has a floor and two tiers of stands, the first ring and the second ring, all facing the floor. For many concerts the floor is standing and the rings are seated; for others the floor has seats too. The standard plan shows the first and second tier, but the layout changes per event, so use the plan the organiser shows while you book.

Some tickets say "general admission". That is used only for RTM Stage and for the arena floor: your ticket is not tied to a seat, and you pick any free place in the stands, or a standing or seating spot on the floor, first come first served. Because you cannot reserve a seat in advance, arriving when the doors open gets you the choice.

• Standing on the floor puts you closest to the stage; the rings give an overview of the whole show.
• RTM Stage can be set up as a theatre (2,816 seats), as an XL seated hall (up to 4,398) or for a standing live concert (up to 7,842).
• The ticket shows your entrance. RTM Stage is entered through Entrance A or B, and the Ahoy Arena through several marked entrances at the front.
• The 360° virtual tour and the floor plans on ahoy.nl show the arena and RTM Stage before you go.
• The first ring is the lower tier and the second ring the upper one, both facing the floor; wheelchair spaces, depending on the event, are on the first tier. Ahoy publishes no block-by-block guide or ranking of sight lines, so the plan in the booking flow is the reference.

1. Buy your ticket from the official provider on the event page. Ahoy has no ticket office, and tickets can be shown on your phone, so there is nothing to print.
2. Arrive from Zuidplein on foot in about 5 minutes. Doors usually open around one hour before the start.
3. Eat first if you want to: Bar Restaurant Seventy One and Restaurant RiVers are outside the entrance control, and once your ticket is scanned you cannot go back to them.
4. Pass security: bags up to A4 and 10 cm thick, no backpacks or suitcases. Staff may check coats and bags and ask for ID.
5. Leave valuables in a paid locker if the event offers them. There is no cloakroom at RTM Stage events.
6. Find your place. Pay for drinks by card or phone only, since Ahoy is cashless.
7. After the show, evening concerts end around 22:30–23:00. Lift users do best waiting 5–10 minutes before leaving.

From Rotterdam Centraal or Rotterdam Blaak, change to the metro towards Zuidplein. Zuidplein is on the North–South metro line, served by lines D (Rotterdam Centraal–Spijkenisse De Akkers) and E (Den Haag Centraal–Rotterdam Centraal–Slinge).

Concerts end around 22:30–23:00, so plan the way home first: Ahoy advises checking your evening journey in NS, RET or 9292 before you go. Neither Ahoy nor the readable RET pages give a last metro from Zuidplein, so look it up in 9292 or the RET app for your night. RET runs night buses on Friday and Saturday nights from Rotterdam Centraal, with the first departures between 00:30 and 01:00, so a late metro or train to Centraal connects with them.

• By bike: free, unsupervised bicycle parking at the front of Ahoy.
• Shared bikes and scooters: for some events you may not be able to park them at the entrance, so check the drop-off location first.
• By taxi: a taxi rank is next to the Main Entrance.

Parking at Ahoy costs €21 per vehicle per event day, including VAT. Buy a guaranteed parking ticket online for €20, up to two hours before the event: it gets you in even when the signs say the car park is full. You give your number plate when you buy, so the barrier opens by plate recognition on the way in and out.

There are more than 2,500 spaces on the car parks at Ahoyweg and Zuiderparkweg; the entrance from Ahoyweg is usually quickest. The Ahoy car park has no electric charging stations. The nearest garage, Q-Park Zuidplein 1 (5–7 minutes' walk), costs from €20 for 24 hours or from €15 for 17:30–05:30, and has chargers. Neither Ahoy nor Q-Park publishes a walking time or rate for Zuidplein 2, Hart van Zuid and Ikazia; Ahoy lists them as fallbacks when its own car park is full.

• Kiss & Ride: follow the signs to the front of Ahoy to the temporary area, where you may wait up to 15 minutes. Navigation address: Jacob Kleiboerweg 80, 3084 BA Rotterdam.
• Accessible parking: 18 spaces at the entrance for holders of a valid permit, at the standard fee.
• Touring cars and large buses: €50 per event day if there is space; report to the north side of Ahoy.
• If everything is full, use Q-Park Zuidplein 1 or 2, Hart van Zuid or Ikazia, then P+R Slinge.

ibis Styles Rotterdam Ahoy is within walking distance, right next to the venue. Ahoy also links to a hotel booking page with the best available rate, and there are many other hotels in the area.