Cubic Houses (Kubus woningen), Rotterdam

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Surprisingly these are inhabitable, a hostal here too, inside I guess all is pretty normal - very unusual from the outside though and worh a short trip to see them plus, there are some decent bars nearby!

From outside, these houses appear disorienting, and it's quite difficult to imagine how one can stay upright, much less live inside one -- but the interior's design is very ingenious, so that when you're actually inside, everything is in its right place, except that you have to look out of some unusually shaped windows. From outside, it looks tight and cramp, but inside the space is just right, no less than what you would get for a normal sized apartment -- perfect for a couple. Every little space here is utilized for something, so it is efficient. What's great about it is the number and size of the windows so that with plenty of light coming in, the rooms seem to be bigger. The shape and height of the ceiling might cause a bit of a problem for tall people, though.

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Piet Blom was commissioned to create an unusual bridge over the busy access road between Blaak and the Oudehaven (the old harbour).
The world famous result is the Cube Houses, also known as the Blaaske Bos (wood).
Each dwelling consists of three floors, with the staircase in the supporting pile.
Curious? Then pay a visit to the watch cube museum house and see a cube house from the inside.
€2,50 p.p

Those houses have been built by Piet Blom in 1984.
The complex is made by 32 cubic houses attached to eachother.

At first sight i should be really strange to live inside in such a house, they are made of 3 floors making a total of 100 square meters.

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The Cubic Houses built by Piet Blom in 1984.

There are 32 cubes attached to each other. They are very funny to look at but imagine how strange it must be to live inside there! You can look inside one of the cubic houses. The houses contain three floors and the only room which is ordinarily shaped is the kitchen. Even there though the ceilings and windows are angled at 45 degrees! Every apartment is around 100 square meters but they loose some space because of the angled ceilings.

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Rotterdam is famous for its architecture. The most striking for me are the cube houses (kubuswoningen) designed by architect Piet Blom in 1984. The houses look like a tree because the architect turned the cubes 45 degrees and put them on a pole. The 32 attached houses together look like a stone forest. The complex is built at a pedestrian bridge crossing a traffic road.

You can have a look in the so-called "show cube". This cube house, furnished as a normal house, is open for public. This house contains three floors. The entrance is at the ground floor in the 'trunk of the tree', the kitchen and living room are at the first floor and at the second floor are the bedrooms and bathroom.

I was very curious not only to see the complex, but also how to live in these unusual innovative houses, so I visited the complex and the showcube allready in the eighties. I was surprised about the great views from the 'treehouse' through the sloped windows. The design gives a nice combination of the more private parts of the house at the first and second floor and the entrance from an intimate public space at the groundfloor. I visited the cubehouses again in 2006. The small-scale shops and workshops at the groundlevel give the area a nice liveliness.

Opening hours of the showcube are from 11.00 am till 5.00 pm every day. In january and february you can visit the showcube only during the weekend.

These houses are pretty strange. They're set on a big pole and look like a tilted cube. There are quite a few of them and as it looks like a forest it's called Het Blaakse bos (the forest of the Blaak). There's a museum in one of these houses, where you can learn about how they look on the inside and about the history. The museum is open every day from 11.00 to 17.00, except for January and Februari when it's opened on friday, saturday and sunday. Entrance cost 2.00 EURO.

Designed by Piet Blom in 1984 these well known Rotterdam houses are a popular *must see* for visitors to the city. I would have loved to have seen them more clearly but the rain was blocking my view. They are "abstract trees" and the group of houses makes a "forest". They are also known as "Pole dwellings - Paal woningen" because the cubes sit on top of a pole which is also used for storage.

Oh really the website tells it all much better... I couldn't even see the damned things!

Cube Houses

I'm sure they look much better in the sunshine.

The houses all rest on pilons, have windows, and are all attached one to the other.
very strange to me to live here like some people do.

U can visit a "show cube", cant remember what we paid to get in....

When u enter these homeswhich are furnished like normal houses u can see
how it is possible that one can live in such weird build homes
Archictect: Blom

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Want to see some freaky houses? Even if you are not interested in modern architecture, you should not leave Rotterdam without visiting the Kubuswoningen. These living houses are one of many symbols for modern Rotterdam and perhaps one of the most interesting appartments in the world. One of the houses is open for public (entrance 1,80 EUR, opens at 10:00 a.m.) and gives you an impression how people live in these "dices". Around the Kubuswoningen, you will find some more examples of modern architecture.

One of many nicknames for these buildings is "blaakse bos" which means "Blaak woods". The name comes from the nearby Blaak metro/train station and the form of the houses. Although they have a cubic form, they look like trees as they are set on piles.