The public transport in the Netherlands is clean, efficient, and relatively inexpensive. The railway network covers most of the country. Larger cities have either tram or metro systems or both, while smaller cities and towns have bus links connecting suburbs with central areas.
Bus - There are regional and city buses throughout the Netherlands. Long-distance buses are limited to a few connections when there are no train connections. City buses operate at night while other means of transportation are unavailable after midnight.
Tram - Trams run in Amsterdam, The Hague, Rotterdam, and Utrecht, from 6 AM to midnight.
Subway (Metro) - Amsterdam and Rotterdam have affordable metro service that is generally faster than trams.
Train - The train is the main mode of public transportation in the Netherlands for long distance travel. The train network operated by NS (Nederlandse Spoorwegen) covers much of the country, but other train companies operate as well.
Wherever you are in the Netherlands, it is possible to use the OV-chipkaart for paying in the public transport.
The OV-chipkaart (OV stands for openbaar vervoer, or public transport) is the Dutch smart-card payment system that operates across the country and can be anonymous, personal and business:
Anonymous cards can be bought and topped-up from GVB ticket machines and GBV ticket offices at train and metro stations.
A personal OV-chipkaarts costs € 7,50 and is valid for five years. To buy it, you will need to register online from the OV-chipkaart official website, and you will need to provide a photo for the personal card. You can always charge your personal card online to have sufficient credit on your card. You can also view your travel details through My OV-chip and easily print off a travel expenses overview for your employer. For more information, you can visit the OV-chipkaart official website.
Business cards can be requested by your employer, and it is for your office and business trips. And, you won't need to send receipts to your employer manually for work-related trips.
Instead of topping up money to your OV-Chipkaart every time, you could also get one of the NS Flex subscriptions (abonnement). You can check the NS website to see which NS subscription suits your travel needs better and get a discount. Once you subscribe, you will get a monthly invoice for all public transportations you use.
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Always remember to check in and check out with your OV-chipkaart. If you switch from travelling by train to, say, travelling by bus, remember to check out. This usually does not apply when you switch trains unless you change train companies. If you transfer to a regional train company, you will need to check out as well and then check-in again.
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From 2023, you can also pay with credit/debit cards on public transport. Simply check in and out with the same card. This allows you to carry one less card or use your mobile wallet instead.