Cube houses

Rotterdam Cubic Design

The Cube Houses in Rotterdam are famous all over the world because of their striking design. Tourists from all over the world visit Rotterdam to see these houses. You can make beautiful pictures from the outside but you also have the opportunity to visit one of the houses inside, the so-called Kijkkubus (show cube house).

Designed by Piet Blom

The Cube Houses were designed by Dutch architect Piet Blom, who tilted a traditional, cube-shaped house 45 degrees and lifted it on a hexagon-shaped pylon. Each of the houses represent a tree and all togther they represent a forest. The 38 Cube Houses are all connected together with two supersized cubes at both ends of the string. The houses have got three floors with a living space of around 100 square meters. Some residents use the small third floor as their garden.

No straight walls in the cube houses

The cubes don’t have any straight walls inside, so this gives residents a headache when they need to buy their furniture. People that choose to live in these houses have to be a genious in home decoration. Sometimes a Cube House is offered for sale: prices start at €175.000,-.

A Cube House on display for tourists

The Cube Houses attracted so many spectators that one of the residents decided to open his house to the public. This Kijkkubus (Show Cube) is open to the public to see what it’s like to live in a Cube House. After a visit, you can imagine the challenges that the residents have to deal with every day! Watch your head while walking through the house! Tip: you can make great pictures of the Old Harbour between the cube houses but also the other way around. You can make beautiful pictures of the cube houses from the Old Harbour to get history and modern design in one picture.

Sleeping in a cube house?

Do you want to experience what it´s like to sleep in a cube house? You can book a room in the StayOkay Hostel Rotterdam which is located in one of the megacubes. The hostel doesn´t have any straight walls and the staff had to be very creative to use the space. You can book a bed in a shared bedroom or your own private room.

Rotterdam Blaak Architecture

The Cube Houses are located within the Blaak area where you can find some other striking designs like the underground Blaak railway station, the city library and Het Potlood (Pencil tower). The cube houses are located opposite another popular attraction of Rotterdam, the Market hall, so it’s easy to combine your visit. Have a look at our page about architecture in Rotterdam for an overview of the most striking buildings in Rotterdam.