Netherlands Bus advice

[ge-gn]

Next month my family and I are travelling to the the Netherlands for a holiday basing ourselves near Bloemendaal.

We intend to travel around the country on day trip, mostly using the train, which we are fortunate enough to enjoy free of charge.

However there are some places that will require us to use the bus, or buses and metros as there is no convenient rail station nearby.

Last time we went to NL my children were young enough to travel for free, but now they are required to pay.

My questions are; what is the best way to pay for the bus with the family? Do I need a OV chipkaart for each of us? I understand an anonymous chipkaart can’t provide for a child discount. Is contactless an option, and if so how do I negotiate metro gate lines with the family? Are there vending machines where I can buy tickets prior to boarding? Can one ticket be used on connecting bus services?

Lots of questions. Apologies for that, but after much research on t’web I can’t find answers. I have looked at websites including OV chipkaart, 9292, Holland.com, and tourist sites.

TIA.

 

[DanielB]

My questions are; what is the best way to pay for the bus with the family?

Really depends on where you want to travel. Some regions have cheap family day tickets, other regions offer free travel for children under 12 when accompanied by an adult.

Do I need a OV chipkaart for each of us?

Yes, when using an OV-chipcard each passenger requires its own card.

I understand an anonymous chipkaart can’t provide for a child discount.

Correct, anonymous cards only offer travel at full fare.

Is contactless an option, and if so how do I negotiate metro gate lines with the family?

Also with contactless you'll need a card for each passenger. What could work is when you've both got a physical card and one in your wallet on your phone, as these count as different cards even when linked to the same bank account.
Note that you cannot get child discount yet with contactless cards, this should become available in the future however.

Are there vending machines where I can buy tickets prior to boarding?

For metro and some trams these exist, for buses they are rare.

Can one ticket be used on connecting bus services?

When in the same franchise yes, when in different franchises often not (even if the operator is the same this may be the case)
But there are regions as well where the province(s) has/have a fare system for all franchises together.

Lots of questions. Apologies for that, but after much research on t’web I can’t find answers. I have looked at websites including OV chipkaart, 9292, Holland.com, and tourist sites.

The Dutch public transport can be complicated when you're not local and even when you are local there are many weird exceptions.
But could you summarize where you want to travel? Then I could have a look into ticketing for you.

 

[Beachcomber]

For adults it is simple: just use a contactless bank card (debit or credit; Maestro, V PAY, Mastercard or Visa) to check-in and check-out ("OVpay"). Every passenger will need a bank card to pay the fare, but the card need not be in the name of the passenger.

Children between 4 up and including 11 years need to pay a reduced fare, but this can only be done by personal OV-Chipcard, hardly feasible for a short stay. However, most regions have day tickets for children, sometimes free, sometimes at a reduced rate. In regional buses, this ticket can be bought from the driver, again payable by (any) contactless bank card. Amsterdam, Rotterdam and The Hague have day tickets for children, but these must be bought before boarding. In Amsterdam, this ticket can only be obtained over the counter (of which there are few).

I can be more specific when you give details of the areas you intend to visit.

 

[ge-gn]

Thank you for your informative replies.

We will be travelling around Noord Holland & Zuid Holland as well as making a visit to Amsterdam.

I can’t find anything to say I can buy tickets on the bus.

As an aside would you consider the Steam museum in Hoorn a worthwhile excursion?

 

[rvdborgt]

I can’t find anything to say I can buy tickets on the bus.

AFAIK that is possible on all buses in the Netherlands.

 

[DanielB]

We will be travelling around Noord Holland & Zuid Holland as well as making a visit to Amsterdam.

In the southern part of Zuid Holland the Tourist Day Ticket may be an option. In the area around Amsterdam there is the Amsterdam and Region Travel Ticket as a day pass.

an aside would you consider the Steam museum in Hoorn a worthwhile excursion?

Definitely worthwhile. They offer round trip tickets for the steam tram from Hoorn to Medemblik (which has a level crossing with a motorway!), boat to Enkhuizen and the NS train back to Hoorn. Really fun to do, and even the part by NS train is nice (Enkhuizen - Hoorn is one of the few rural single track lines served by large VIRM sets)

 

[Beachcomber]

We will be [...] making a visit to Amsterdam.

Amsterdam GVB-only 24 hour ticket for adults € 9.00; children € 4.50. The child ticket is only available over the counter; there is one in Zuid and Bijlmer Arena railway station, and one right opposite the Central Station exit (city centre side),in the historic Noord-Zuid Holland Coffee House.
The Amsterdam and Region Travel Ticket has a wider validity, but it costs € 21.00 for the day. No child ticket. Hardly worth it for a few trips, especially when you already enjoy free train travel.
Regional bus child day tickets differ by concession region and are often free. Otherwise, pay the bus driver (card only).

 

[DanielB]

With regards to kids tickets, just had a look into fares for each franchise... (see this map for a rough idea of the area covered, clicking on a franchise will result in a page which also contains a list of bus routes)

Provincie Noord-Holland:

Franchise	Max. 4 kids under 12 accompanied by an adult pay:
Noord-Holland Noord (except Texel)	Free
Haarlem-IJmond	Free
Gooi- en Vechtstreek	Free
Amstelland-Meerlanden	€ 1,00 (day ticket)
Zaanstreek-Waterland	Free
Stadsvervoer Amsterdam	€ 4,50 (day ticket)

Provincie Zuid-Holland

Franchise	Max. 4 kids under 12 accompanied by an adult pay:
Zuid-Holland Noord	Free
Haaglanden Streek	€ 1,00 (day ticket)
Voorne-Putten en Rozenburg	€ 1,00 (day ticket)
Haaglanden Stad / Haaglanden Rail	€ 1,00 (day ticket)
Rotterdam Stad / Rotterdam Rail	€ 5,00 (day ticket)
Drechtsteden, Molenlanden en Gorinchem	No kids ticket
Hoekse Waard / Goeree-Overflakkee	Free (Mo-Fr before 9.00 € 2,25)

 

[ge-gn]

Thanks both for the in depth help!

One final question.. When boarding the bus in the Haarlem=IJmond area is it possible to by one ticket for that bus plus a connecting bus (ie service 81 connecting onto service 2.) if it is the same franchise.

i am a big fan of the public transport system in NL. It provides a nationwide level of integration we struggle to find in the UK outside London. But if you aren’t using the OV system for payment it does seem (from the outside anyway) pretty complex.

 

[DanielB]

Changing is allowed once for 90 minutes after purchase (you hand the ticket to the driver who scans the QR code to validate this. However, on weekdays this only is allowed when the ticket is purchased after 9.00.
See all conditions at the Connexxion website.

And indeed, ticketing is complex when not using the chipcard as each region has its own tickets and conditions.

 

[Beachcomber]

Bur remember that for a full fare paying passenger using contactless, it is neither necessary, nor advantageous to have an OV-Chipcard.