Among Dutch cities, Rotterdam is considered one of the larger cities with a higher incidence of crime – in particular property crime, car/bicycle thefts, youth crime (e.g. vandalism) and drug-related crime. In terms of registered crime incidences, Rotterdam ranks third after Utrecht and Amsterdam. The good news is that crime rates throughout The Netherlands (including Rotterdam) have dropped in 2005 (source: Statistics Netherlands).

As in most large cities, keep away from the public parks and the main central station after dark. In 2004, the Gemeente Rotterdam identified the Stadscentrum district in central Rotterdam as one of the crime hotspots, and since then, the Gemeente Rotterdam has been introducing measures to beef up security in the hotspot areas.