24 hours in Eindhoven during DDW

Dutch Design Week (DDW) lands in Eindhoven again for nine days. Sounds great, but what if you only have one day? No problem: you really don’t need to clear your whole week to get a real taste of the design festival. With our guide, you’ll discover the highlights of DDW and Eindhoven in 24 hours!

24 Hours in Eindhoven during DDW

Dutch Design Week (DDW) lands in Eindhoven again for nine days. Sounds great, but what if you only have one day? No problem: you really don’t need to clear your whole week to get a real taste of the design festival. With our guide, you’ll discover the highlights of DDW and Eindhoven in 24 hours!

First things first …
Many locations are within a reasonable walking distance from the central station. Our suggestion? Rent a bike! You can do so at Ketelhuisplein or the Fuutlaan. You can also rent one at the central station .

All you need to know about DDW

• Practical info Dutch Design Week
• Dutch Design Week for beginners
• Must-sees at Dutch Design Week

10:00 Breakfast hotspots

With only 24 hours on the clock, you’d better get off to a good start. Kazerne by Day is the place to go for that. French toast, eggs Benedict, or freshly baked banana bread: you’ll fuel up for the whole day here! Full? Good, because ‘Home of Design’ Kazerne is your first design stop. The former military police barracks houses more than 25 different works, such as Radical Chains and The Ripple.

11:00 Klokgebouw: a stage for young talent

Head to Strijp-S (a former Philips factory site turned creative district) by bike. Start at Klokgebouw, a DDW classic. Every year, the building functions as a stage for young talent: academies from all over the world show their work here. On the ‘Avenue of Fresh Perspectives’, you get a glimpse of what the next generation of designers has on their minds. You can walk from a project about biodegradable packaging straight into a VR flight simulator. You’ll be busy here for at least an hour!

12:00 Wandering around Ketelhuisplein

Next up: Ketelhuisplein, also known as the beating heart of Dutch Design Week. You’ll find countless square meters of creations by designers from all over the world here, from huge installations to the latest technological solutions. One eye-catching work is Blind Spots, an installation that asks: who is safety actually designed for? The brightly colored scaffolding sheets grab your attention right away, and between the nets you discover the answers. Another eye-catching installation is ‘If Soil Could Speak’, which draws attention to how the soil holds water. In the orange house, you see that process happen live. Book lovers are in for a treat at the pop-up bookstore of Motta Art Books at MU. You’ll find books on art, architecture, graphic design, photography, and more. Stop by and browse the collection.

12:30 Supercharge your day at Strijp-S

All that wandering can make you pretty hungry – we know from experience. For a proper bite, head to one of the food stalls at Ketelhuisplein, with currywurst, vegan fungi kebab, or freshly baked poffertjes (small, fluffy Dutch pancakes), among other things. Eat your snack sitting on the design chair Wuerstelhocker – yes, you read that right, a sausage-shaped chair. Pop-up bar The Bar is back too, and it’s the daily meeting place to catch up and unwind. The surrounding restaurants, like Ketelhuis, Hout, and Biergarten, are great options for a break, too.

13:00 The world of Piet Hein Eek

From Strijp-S to Strijp-R. Step into the world of Piet Hein Eek, known for his furniture made from reclaimed wood. He is based in the former Philips ceramics factory, where you can admire his design empire all year round. During DDW, you’ll find surprising works by other designers in every space, like the cushion collection of Through and Through 2.0, inspired by the scoubidou knot (the colorful plastic cord braids many kids make). The Academy of Fine Arts in Gdańsk (Poland) shows with Adaptive Futures how design – from furniture to public space – can respond to a world that is constantly changing. Another tip: take a peek at his design neighbors fffunction.studio, Studio RENS, and Daphna Laurens.

13:30 Coffee from a designer mug

Time for a coffee break at one of Piet's restaurants. Head to Green Restaurant, the lobby restaurant of the PHE-hotel. Or plop down in the cozy courtyard garden of Grand Café for drinks and bites made with local products. Is there anything he can’t do?

14:00 Green, greener, greenest at BioArt Laboratories

From Piet’s place, head on to the greener side of Eindhoven: BioArt Laboratories. Where design, science, and technology come together. You get a glimpse into the lab and what they work on all year round. From HYVE, a mobile beehive built to actively move bees from one green spot to another, to Alveo, which uses a 3D-printed clay reef to restore the habitat of the vanished Ross worm in the Wadden Sea. BioArt Lab sits among the greenery. So why not get some fresh air in Philips de Jonghpark or at Landgoed de Wielewaal (a country estate)?

15:00 The versatile Woensel-West

Next up: Woensel-West. This colorful neighborhood is always bubbling with creative ideas, and Dutch Design Week is no exception. Museum van de WWij, run by the community of Tante Netty, shows work by local designers and objects that portray the neighborhood itself. Young people from the neighborhood also give creative workshops, such as making a zine: a mini magazine.

In the old school building of Woensel-West, you’ll find KEVN (Kelderman en van Noort), a creative hub where design, art, live music, and international cuisine come together: an exhibition space that is constantly changing and a lively meeting place in one. Discover their program here.

17:00 Drinks at The Bar

By now, you’ve probably had your fill of design. Head from Woensel-West back to Ketelhuisplein, where the volume at The Bar goes up a notch around 17:00. Time for an aperitivo! Try a little dance to the sets of local DJs behind the decks. Everyone comes together here to wrap up the day, share stories, and meet new people.

18:00 Dinner time!

You could stay at The Bar all evening and grab some fries, but Eindhoven has so much more to offer. Head to NOR, a restaurant run by designers, at Ketelhuisplein. A different chef takes over the kitchen every day and serves recipes from their own culture.Want to eat among the machines that once kept Strijp-S running? You can at Radio Royaal, where a French-German kitchen awaits you.

In the city center, you can go to RADAR. They don’t focus on one particular cuisine, but literally serve whatever shows up on their radar. In the backyard of St. Catherine’s Church, you’ll find Residency for the People, where designers serve Thai dishes.

22:00 Dreaming of design

After a full day of DDW, you probably can’t wait to slip under the silky-soft sheets. Or you grab one more party. As a design lover, you want nothing more than to dream away in one of our design hotels. Whichever room you choose, they’re all super deluxe.

Day 2

10:00 Everything for a calm start

In theory, the 24 hours are over. But if you’d like to stick around a little longer, we still have a few more tips. Breakfast lover or not, your day probably isn’t complete without a cup of coffee. They know this all too well at Koffiehuisje in Philipsdorp, with coffee from local roaster Stadsbranderij and fresh pastries from ‘t Bakhuisje. For all-day breakfast, stop by True Blue Coffee on Willemstraat: a tattoo shop and coffee bar in one. Surrounded by art and brave souls, you start your day at an easy pace.

11:00 The famous Graduation Show

The Graduation Show in Microstad is a must-visit. More than 200 graduates from Design Academy Eindhoven show their graduation projects here. Everything goes, from fashion and handmade furniture to innovative projects and experimental ideas. Like PRISMA1.0, a light object that changes color when you touch or turn it. Or ENTROPY NO. 1: two sculptures with a latex skin that seem to breathe slowly. Want to take a stroll through the city center, too? On Markt, you’ll spot the seven-meter-tall golden bird. Inside its giant egg hides a consulting room where you can literally get things off your chest. At Temporary Art Centre (TAC), they present several exhibitions after a long renovation, including REWOVEN, which turns discarded cans into woven products, and It’s Not About Waste, about how a plastic collection in Jakarta grew into a shared system.

12:30 See you next time!

The 24 hours are really over now. Like to come back later in the week, or would you rather put together your own program? We’ve collected all our Dutch Design Week tips for you on this page.