Dutch Design Week 17-25 October: one 29.50 euro wristband covers nine days, and two adults with two teenagers pay 88 at the box office

Dutch Design Week (DDW) runs in Eindhoven from 17 to 25 October under the theme R.A.W. (Rebel Authentic Worth), and the organisers describe work by 2,500 designers at around one hundred locations across the city, seen by some 350,000 visitors an edition. It is not an exhibition in one building but a nine-day route through the former factory district of Strijp-S, the Klokgebouw, the design academy's graduation show and several museums, and one personal wristband covers all nine days, including leaving and coming back during opening hours. For anyone living in the Netherlands who wants an autumn weekend of design with the family, the ticket maths comes first: adults pay 29.50 euro online until 10 October, anyone aged 12 to 17 or with a student card pays 17.50, children aged 11 and under go free, and there is a family ticket sold only at DDW's own box offices.

• How the wristband works: an e-ticket bought online is exchanged on site for a personal wristband, which stops being valid once it is removed or cut, and nobody can collect one for someone else. Wearing it and registering gives free use of the Polestar Design Rides, running daily from 11:00 to 18:00 between Ketelhuisplein, Piet Hein Eek, Stadhuisplein, Fuutlaan, the design academy and Sectie-C. (source 1, source 4)
• Price details: from 11 October the adult ticket rises to 32.50 euro and the youth and student ticket to 19.50, all prices include VAT, and tickets are non-refundable. Without the nine-day wristband you can buy single visits: Dutch Invertuals and Kazerne cost 5 euro each, New Order of Fashion 2 euro and the Philips Museum 12.50 euro. (source 1)
• Who the family ticket suits: listed at 88 euro on the ticket page, it is sold only at the box office from 17 to 25 October, needs the whole family at the desk, takes cards only and fits just three combinations: one adult with three children, two adults with two children or two adults with one child. As children aged 11 and under are free anyway, it only matters when you bring 12- to 17-year-olds. (source 1)
• Before you go: student-ticket holders must show an ID or student card when collecting the wristband. E-tickets are exchanged, and door tickets sold, at the Klokgebouw, the design academy graduation show, Strijp TX, Sectie-C, Eindhoven Centraal and the Van Abbemuseum. Most locations have no cloakroom or lockers, so travel light; Design Tours run in half-hour slots, with custom tours bookable until 2 October and other tours until 19 October. (source 1, source 2)

Do the sum yourself: separate tickets = adults × 29.50 euro (32.50 from 11 October) + 12- to 17-year-olds or students × 17.50 euro (19.50 from 11 October) + children aged 11 and under × 0, then compare with 88 euro. Two adults with two teenagers pay 2 × 29.50 + 2 × 17.50 = 94 euro on early-bird tickets, 6 euro more than the family ticket, or 104 euro from 11 October, 16 euro more. Two adults with one teenager pay 76.50 early and 84.50 later, both below 88, so buy online; one adult with three teenagers pays 82 early, still cheaper, but 91 from 11 October, when the family ticket starts to win. Put in your own group before deciding.

Where

Klokgebouw, Klokgebouw 50, 5617 AB Eindhoven and about 100 other locations

When

17–25 October・most locations 11:00–18:00

Price

Adults from € 29.50・ages 12–17 and students from € 17.50

Ages

11 and under free

Note

Non-refundable・wristband void once removed・family ticket needs everyone present, cards only

Hokimi field note: if the family only has one afternoon and mainly wants a single stop such as the Philips Museum or Dutch Invertuals, add up the single-visit tickets before buying wristbands; the nine-day wristband pays off when you split the visit over two days, step out and back in, and use the Design Rides between districts.