Study in Groningen - the Netherlands' best student city

Because Groningen is the urban centre of the north of the Netherlands and has such a large student population, its cultural scene is remarkably big and diverse. It has a vibrant and famous nightlife, dominated by students. Bars in the centre are allowed to stay open 24 hours a day. 

Underground pop club Vera has a great reputation among alternative music lovers all over the world. Bands like Nirvana, U2, White Stripes and Sonic Youth performed here in the early days of their career. Furthermore, electronic and urban music enthusiasts can count on top shows at places like Simplon and Paradigm on a regular basis. Do not forget to visit the famous Eurosonic festival when you´re in Groningen, Europe´s largest showcase festival. 

For your periodic dose of art, visit the Groningen Museum, a work of art in itself and one of the most beautiful and special museums in the Netherlands. Other museums in Groningen include a comics museum, tobacco museum and science museum.

Groningen offers its student population a wide variety of quality sports facilities at very affordable rates. At ACLO Studentsports you can enrol into many different sports courses, rent indoor and outdoor courts for racket and ball sports, join teams, go wall climbing and go for a swim in the pool, for only €60 per year. Add another €60 to that and you´ve got yourself an unlimited fitness pass for an entire year. 

Outside the student bubble, in and around the city, you will find even more facilities, such as an ice skating rink (rollerblading in the summer), a go-cart centre and a wakeboarding park. Rather relax a bit while being entertained by the pros? Groningen has various teams competing at the country´s highest level -- in football, basketball and volleyball among others -- so that means you´re in for a treat as a spectator here as well. Watch this video for more on sports in Groningen.

Groningen is known in Europe for its quality of life. As stated in the European Commission's 'Quality of life in European Cities' report (2020), Groningen is rated among the top 10 cities for many of the factors surveyed, such as for the inhabitants' satisfaction regarding cultural facilities, health care services. The city is also known for its safeness, its quality of water and air, and for being a good place to live for members of the LGBTQI+ community, among many other factors.

Over 61% of all trips in Groningen are made by bicycle. The Groningers (people of Groningen) invented a cycling template for cities all over the world. One of the greatest inventions were the traffic lights with rain sensors to give quicker priority to cyclists on wet days. By pedestrianizing some streets, building cycle tracks everywhere, and creating a unique transportation circulation pattern that prohibits vehicles from cutting through the city, Groningen actually made the bicycle -- in most cases -- the fastest and most preferred choice of transportation. The centre of Groningen is a very safe and comfortable environment for pedestrians and cyclists. Click here and have a look for yourself. 

Groningen is the economic capital of the north of the Netherlands. It has the largest natural gas-field in Western Europe, the world's largest sugar factory and one of the Netherlands' largest shipbuilding centres. Furthermore, Groningen and its surroundings attract multinationals such as IBM and Google. Startups and scale-ups also thrive in this city, with various co-working spaces harbouring companies that are striving every day to launch and grow tomorrow´s innovative digital services. 

Just outside the hustle and buste of the city, there are wide open spaces and striking cloud formations. A bit to the east you have the woods of Drenthe, with roe deer, foxes and sleepy villages. Yet most remarkable of all is the Wadden Sea, with its wildlife of seals and birds. At low tide, parts of these shallow wetlands fall dry. Then one can even reach a few islands on foot. However, this is tricky business, so don't do it without a guide.

Groningen is located two hours away from Amsterdam and Schiphol Airport, and three hours from The Hague and Rotterdam -- all easily accessible thanks to the direct train connections. Groningen is also located very close to the German border, only 50 km. It's two hours away from Bremen, and three hours from Hamburg. In addition, Groningen has its own airport as well.

For train schedules and fares, please visit the NS. Do you want to find out more about the bus schedules in Groningen? Please visit 9292.nl.

More about transport in Groningen

Want to know more about the city? Groningen.nl is a great place to start for information about living in the city, organisations for international residents, and much more!