Sittard - city and former municipality in Limburg, the Netherlands

Sittard is a city in the region South Limburg, in the Dutch province of Limburg.

Understand

Sittard is a city in the Dutch province of Limburg, which is the southernmost province of the Netherlands. On the east Sittard borders on Germany (municipality Selfkant, in North Rhine-Westphalia). It has some 48,400 inhabitants (including those of neighbouring villages Munstergeleen, Limbricht, Einighausen and Guttecoven). Sittard is part of the municipality of Sittard-Geleen.

Sittard has a small historic city centre with numerous architectural monuments, including several old churches (St Peter's, St Michael's, Basilica of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart) and a few half-timbered houses. The city has retained part of its city wall. On the south-eastern side of the city centre, the St Rosa chapel crowns the Kollenberg hill. Museum "Het Domein" is situated in a converted nineteenth century school building in the city centre. It focuses on contemporary art, urban history and archeology.

• VVV Sittard Tourist Office, Rosmolenstraat 2, +31 900-555 9798. M 13:00-17:30, Tu-F 10:00-17:30, Sa 10:00-16:00.

Get in

By train

The main train station is a 10-minute walk from the city center. Sittard is served by intercity and regional train services. The intercity trains coming from the north (thus from the directions of Amsterdam, Utrecht, 's Hertogenbosch, Eindhoven, Weert, Roermond) are split in two here, with one part continuing to Heerlen and another to Maastricht. In the opposite direction, the two trains are combined here to continue north as one.

Regional trains pass through from the directions of Echt, Roermond, Heerlen and Maastricht.

Trivia: According to NS (Dutch Railways), the Sittard train station has the longest train platforms in the Netherlands, as of 2021.

By bus

The bus terminal is next to the train station. The bus operator in Sittard and surrounding cities is Veolia, with lines to most of the smaller town in the region but also to larger destinations like Heerlen, Maastricht, Roermond, and Geleen.

By car

Get around

On foot and bike

As nearly all stores, restaurants and bars are located in the center, walking is a good way to get around Sittard. From the main railway station, it's a 10-minute walk through the Steenweg to reach the Market and most of the sights. The streets in the center are pretty much free of cars and bicycles.

Bike rentals:

• Rijwielshop Station Sittard, Stationsplein 2-A (Railway station Sittard). M-F 07:00-19:00, Sa 08:00-19:00, Su closed. €2.85 per day

By bus

Veolia offers bus connections from Sittards railway station to the surroundings. You can plan your trip door-to-door using 9292ov.nl, though results vary. Busses run twice an hour to most locations. Fares are €2 per zone.

By car or taxi

If you have a car, try parking outside the city center as it is much cheaper or even free. Renting a car is only useful if you want to head to the outskirts of town or even other cities or villages. The city center is small enough to do on foot, but also mostly car free. Taxi's are a fairly expensive way to get around, but you can find them at the trainstation.

See

Sittard has a quite interesting and historic city center. Just wandering around for a while will give you a fair idea of the town, but make sure to include some of its ancient churches in your tour.

• Basiliek van Onze-Lieve-Vrouw van het Heilig Hart, Oude Markt, Sittard, +31 46 - 4515141. This 19th-century Catholic church is located right in the middle of Sittard's historic center. It was the first Dutch church to be declared a basilica minor, by Pope Leo XIII in 1883.
• Sint-Petrus' Stoel van Antiochiëkerk, Kerkplein Bij 1. This church became a collegiate church in 1299. It has an impressive church tower and was renovated and expanded a number of times.
• Museum Het Domein, Kapittelstraat 6, +31 46 4513460. This museum houses a small but descent collection of contemporary art as well as collections on the history of the city Sittard.
• Agnetenwal & Fort Sanderbout, in a circle around the old center. The old city wall is still more or less intact for a large part of Sittard. The walls and fortress were part of the city's defense fortifications.

Do

• De Nieuwe Hateboer, Sportcentrumlaan 9 (Bus 13 (to Kemperkoul), Bus 70 (to Roosteren) or Bus 18 (to Grevenbicht)), +31 46-4000212. Indoor swimming pool. During the summer outdoor pools are also open. €3.50
• Pool & Snookercentrum Centerpocket, Rijksweg Noord 26, +31 46 4510130. M-Th 18:30-00:00, F 18:30-01:00, Sa 14:00-01:00, Su 14:00-00:00. €8.50 per hour
• Football: Fortuna Sittard play soccer in Eredivisie, the country's top tier. Their home ground (capacity 12,500) is 2 km southwest of town centre.

Buy

The lively city centre is a popular place for general shopping. On any sunny Saturday afternoon you'll find large crowds combining a day of shopping in the charming streets with a bit of relaxing on the market square terraces.

Eat

The Markt and surrounding streets are your best bet when looking for a place to eat. Popular places include:

• Silvester's, Paardestraat 25, +31 46 451 12 24. This Mediterranean restaurant gets good reviews but, very importantly, has one of the finest terraces in the country. €35
• Pretzels, Putstraat 37, +31 46 451 53 52. An old-fashioned café with a menu that is different. Not so much in terms of the dishes, which are good but common, but rather by the huge amount of information and facts about them. It's only in Dutch. Nevertheless, it's a cosy place to eat.
• Thai Garden, Rijksweg noord 8, +31 46 451 73 24. Good Thai cuisine and friendly service
• Schtad Zitterd, Markt 25, +31 - 46 - 4513643. This old-fashioned, cosy café offers good lunch options and dinner mains start from €12.50. Inside the café smoking is still common. €15

Drink

Sittard is not only a reasonably large town, but it also has a large higher education institution, whose students of course encourage the city's nightlife. Most of the café's and bars are located on and around the market square, so just head there and explore the different establishments, especially on Saturday nights.

Sleep

• Hotel De Limbourg, Markt 22, +31 46 451 81 51. Check-in: 15:00 - 00:00, check-out: 11:00 - 12:00. from €85
• Hotel de Prins, Rijksweg Zuid 25, +31 46 451 50 41. Check-in: 16:00 - 20:00, check-out: 08:00 - 11:00. From €45
• Oranje Hotel Sittard, Rijksweg zuid 23, +31 46 4513673. Check-in: 14:00 - 23:00, check-out: 07:00 - 11:00. From €65
• Bed&Breakfast De Juiste Toon, Broekstraat 3, +31-46-4110206. Luxurious B&B in a former farm €95 for 1 or 2 persons
• undefined, Klaverstraat 17, +31-46-4511145. This simple budget hotel is one of the cheaper options in town, starting with rates of €30 p.p. A normal double is €70.

Connect

As of July 2022, Sittard has 5G from all Dutch carriers.

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