3 NIGHTS – 4 DAYS

£189* per person
(Based on 2 adults sharing a twin room, bed & breakfast)
*excludes all other charges, i.e. flight, transfer, tours, etc

To book please call or send your deposit payment of £50 per person to Unity Fitness & Dance as soon as possible – we have just 20 places on offer; download booking form from www.ufdance.co.uk

Join the UFDance crew with ‘Hell Yeah Travel’ to experience one of Europe’s friendliest cities and be a part of its spectacular street festival.

NH Atlanta Rotterdam
Hotel NH Atlanta is situated in one of the few monumental buildings remaining in Rotterdam. Located between the Coolsingel and the Lijnbaan, home to the well-known shopping street 'Koopgoot'. The beautiful marble floors, the Art Deco elements and chandeliers give it an authentic ambiance. This 4-star hotel occupies a unique location in the city centre, within walking distance of restaurants, cafes, shops, museums and all major attractions. We’ll be right in the heart of the carnival!
 
We plan to fly to Amsterdam in Holland on Easy Jet from Stansted airport – details as below.

Please book your flights as soon as possible by logging on to www.easyjet.com . The return flight is currently priced at around £59 (excluding checked baggage) but in order to get the best price you should purchase your flight with others in your group.
Checked baggage (20kg) is currently charged at £18 but if you pack smartly it might be possible to carry only your hand luggage which must not exceed maximum dimensions of 56x45x25cm. It is recommended that you share a checked case with you travel partner especially if you wish to bring liquids.

UFDance can book your flight and possibly arrange sharing the price of checked baggage but you must forward your full payment to us beforehand.

Flights must be booked quickly in order to secure your place and to get the cheapest price.

Transfer
Rotterdam is about 35 miles from Amsterdam. We’ll transfer from Amsterdam by train it takes around 1hr and costs approximately £19 per person each way.

How our weekend will run
The plan is to not tie ourselves to any ridged timetable but to instead enjoy a ‘mates break’ whereby we’ll decide as a group what we do. However here’s a rough guide to what we’ll be getting up to.

Friday 30th July
05:30 check-in at Stansted Airport
07:00 depart Stansted
09:05 arrive in Amsterdam
10:30 depart to Amsterdam by train
12:00 arrive at the hotel
12:30 lunch
13:00 shopping for groceries (breakfast & booze!) and cosmetics (shampoo, etc)
14:00 check-in at the NH Atlanta
18:30 walk over the Erasmus Bridge
19:30 dinner on the harbour
21:00 carnival drummers
22:30 Cantinero - Cuban night club plus check out loads of other bars and parties

Saturday 31st July
10:00 light run and body conditioning in the park
12:00 carnival & shopping – travel back and forth to hotel as you wish
22:00 Clubbing with ‘Hell Yeah’ at Club Tropicana or check out the many bars and parties – wear something white

Sunday 1st August
10:00 light run and body conditioning in the park
12:00 Rotterdam Central Station
13:00 Amsterdam train station
18:00 Amsterdam train station
19:00 Rotterdam Central Station
19:30 NH Atlanta
20:30 Euromast – dinner @ 100 meters above Rotterdam
22:30 live show or party night – tba – wear something red.

Monday 2nd August
11:00 check out – hopefully we’ll be able to leave our bags whilst we go shopping.
12:00 Spido boat tour of Rotterdam harbour or shopping
16:00 transfer to Amsterdam airport
16:00 check-in
18:15 depart
18:20 arrive at Stansted airport

The Zomercarnaval is one of Rotterdam's summer highlights, with a street parade comparable to other great carnival splashes around the globe. Holland's biggest tropical party promises to be extra special in 2009 as it celebrates its 25th birthday.
Participants come from Rotterdam's many ethnic groups, especially those from Cape Verde, the Antilles and Surinam, giving the event its own unique atmosphere.

The festivities kick off on Friday with the Battle of the Drums. On Saturday afternoon there is a Street Parade through the city centre, complete with a host of marching bands. Afterwards, a host of national and international artists and DJs perform on stages at the Coolsingel and Churchillplein as hundreds of thousands of people enjoy an all-day party.

Check out some footage on Youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FBGXJlvoHc0&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AanBl_A8Q_I&feature=related

Brief history

Rotterdam; city and municipality in the Dutch province of South Holland, situated in the west of the Netherlands. The municipality is the 2nd-largest in the country, with a population of 584,046 on 1 January 2007 and comprises the southern part of the Randstad, the 6th-largest metropolitan area in Europe, with a population of 6.7 million inhabitants.

The port of Rotterdam is the largest in Europe. From 1962 to 2004, it was the world's busiest port; then it was superseded by Shanghai. Rotterdam is situated on the banks of the river Nieuwe Maas ('New Meuse'), one of the channels in the delta formed by the Rhine and Meuse rivers. The name Rotterdam derives from a dam in the Rotte River.

Amsterdam is the capital and largest city of the Netherlands, located in the province of North Holland in the west of the country. The city, which had a population of 747,290 on 1 January 2008, comprises the northern part of the Randstad, the 6th-largest metropolitan area in Europe, with a population of around 6.7 million.

Its name is derived from Amstel dam, indicative of the city's origin: a dam in the river Amstel where the Dam Square is today. Settled as a small fishing village in the late 12th century, Amsterdam became one of the most important ports in the world during the Dutch Golden Age, a result of its innovative developments in trade. During that time, the city was the leading center for finance and diamonds. In the 19th and 20th centuries, the city expanded and many new neighborhoods and suburbs were formed.
The city is the financial and cultural capital of the Netherlands. Many large Dutch institutions have their headquarters there, and 7 of the world's top 500 companies, including Philips and ING, are based in the city. The Amsterdam Stock Exchange, part of Euronext, is located in the city centre. Amsterdam's main attractions, includes its historic canals, the Rijksmuseum, the Van Gogh Museum, Anne Frank House, its red-light district and its many cannabis coffee shops, draw 4.2 million tourists annually.