Netherlands Guide
Getting around
By train
The best way of travelling around the Netherlands is to take the train. The system, run by Nederlandse Spoorwegen (NS – Dutch Railways; 
0900 9292, premium line from within the Netherlands; 
www.ns.nl ), is one of the best in Europe: trains are fast, modern, frequent and very punctual; fares are relatively low; and the network of lines comprehensive. Domestic services come in three main types: the speedy Intercity for city-to-city connections; the normal Sneltrein, which stops at main towns; and the snail-like Stoptrein, which stops at every station. Ordinary fares are calculated by the kilometre, diminishing proportionately the further you travel: reckon on spending about €4 to travel 25km or so. For a one-way ticket, ask for an enkele reis; a return trip is a retour. Same-day return tickets (dagretour) knock about ten percent off the price of one-way tickets for the same journey, but otherwise returns are normally double the price of singles. First-class fares cost about fifty percent on top of the regular fare. With any ticket, you're free to stop off anywhere en route and continue your journey later that day, but you're not allowed to backtrack. NS publishes a comprehensive and easy-to-use timetable (spoorboekje), which is available for €5.50 at all major stations, as well as mounds of information on its various services, passes and fares. Note, however, that you are not allowed to buy a ticket on the train and you cannot pay for a train ticket with a foreign debit card or, in most instances, a credit card.