Parking

There are 10 car park spaces on the grounds of Metta Vihara.

There is a free public parking lot 700 meters from the retreat center.

Public transport

Travelling from the Netherlands by train and bus

Travel by train to Goes and follow the instructions under Regional Travel to Metta Vihara. Information about trains can be found on www.ns.nl. For complete travel planning (including buses and trains) see www.9292.nl

Travelling via Amsterdam Schiphol Airport

Amsterdam Schiphol airport is well connected to international airports. The website www.skyscanner.net surveys flights and prices from many major airlines.
Schiphol Train Station has train ticket offices and ticket machines on the main plaza.
Take the direct train to Goes– departure every half hour, price € 22,90. From there, follow the instructions under Regional Travel to Metta Vihara.

Travelling from Belgium and France by train and bus

Travel by train to Gent or Antwerp – whatever suits you best – and follow the instructions under Regional Travel to Metta Vihara.
From the region of St. Niklaas (Belgium) it is possible to travel with DeLijn Bus 22 or 43 to Hulst (price € 3,00) and join the route from Antwerp.
Information about trains can be found on www.nmbs.be (Belgium), www.sncf.fr (France) or www.bahn.de (Europe).

Travelling via Brussels

You can travel by plane, train or coach to Brussels.
Train stations and the airport in Brussel have direct connections to Gent and Antwerp. From there, follow the instructions under Regional travel to Metta Vihara.

Travelling from Germany

Travel by train to Goes and follow the instructions under Regional Travel to Metta Vihara.
Information about trains – also in the Netherlands – can be found on www.bahn.de

Travelling from the UK

Your main options from the UK are travel by train, plane or coach to Brussels, plane or coach to Amsterdam, plane or coach to Rotterdam or by ferry to Hoek van Holland.

By train and bus

There are also very cheap bus services to Antwerp, Rotterdam or Amsterdam. See www.goeuro.com for options and prices. Be aware of Megabus as they stop at places which are not convenient central locations.
Check bus services online as companies, timetables and prices change continuously.
Try to arrive in the morning as this will give you enough time to get to Metta Vihara.

By plane

Fly to Brussels or Schiphol Amsterdam Airport.

By ferry

If you are travelling from East Anglia or London, you may be interested in the Rail&Sail option from Stena Line Ferries- see www.stenaline.com This option includes your train journey from East Anglia to Harwich, your onward journey from Hoek van Holland to your destination train station (Goes) in the Netherlands, and your return journey.
The overnight ferry is a good option if you have plenty of time. It’s a very relaxed and straightforward journey. Cabins are compulsory and very comfortable.
With the day ferry you can easily get to Goes by train and by bus to Terneuzen. Unfortunately, you will be too late to catch a bus from Terneuzen to Metta Vihara. Instead you can use the Haltetaxi.ja. Please contact info@mettavihara.nl for consultation on this!
From the ferry terminal Hoek van Holland – Haven, take the train to Schiedam Centraal or Rotterdam Centraal Station. From there, take the train going to Vlissingen and get off at train station Goes (approx. 2 hours). From Goes, follow the instructions under Regional Travel to Metta Vihara.
Prices (last checked Nov 2014):The Rail&Sail option starts from £45 each way, including train and ferry tickets. Overnight cabins start from £30 (single) or £43 (twin).
Information on train schedules can be found on www.ns.nl. For complete travel planning including train and buses, see at www.9292.nl

Goes, Gent and Antwerp are the three access points from which you can travel to Metta Vihara. Departure from Goes and Gent are the most straightforward options.

Use public transport to get to bus stop ‘ Hengstdijk Dorp’. From there, it is about a 500 meter walk to the retreat centre.

Travelling from Goes

Hourly departure, price € 8,54.

Take Connexxion Bus 20 going to Hulst.
There is a so-called ‘connection guarantee’. As soon as you get on bus, please tell the bus driver that you want to change to Bus 10. In that case, Bus 10 will wait for you.
At Terneuzen bus station Westerscheldetunnel (Terneuzen WST) change to Bus 10 going to Kloosterzande.
! On weekdays the last bus departs at 18.15 hrs. from Terneuzen WST. On Saturdays the last bus departs at 17.15 hrs. On Sundays and public holidays there is no bus service. Instead, you can travel with the Haltetaxi. Please contact info@mettavihara.nl for consultation on this!!
Get off the bus at the bus stop Hengstdijk Dorp (please use stop button when display in bus shows it as next stop)

Travelling from Gent

Hourly departure, price € 9,54.

Take deLijn Bus 55 going to Zelzate and get off at bus stop Klein-Rusland
Change to Connexxion Bus 6 going to Terneuzen.
There is a so-called ‘connection guarantee’. As soon as you get on the bus, please tell the busdriver that you want to change to Bus 10. In that case, Bus 10 will wait for you.
At Terneuzen bus station Westerscheldetunnel (Terneuzen WST) change to Bus 10 going to Kloosterzande.
! During weekdays the last bus from Terneuzen WST departs at 18.15 hrs. On Saturdays the last departure is at 17.15 hrs. On Sundays and public holidays there is no service. In that case, you can travel with the Haltetaxi. Please contact info@mettavihara.nl for consultation on this taxiservice!
Get off at bus stop Hengstdijk Dorp.(please use stop button when display in bus shows it as next stop)
During the summer period only (from June 28-August 29), Bus 50 travels directly from Gent to bus stop Terneuzen Ziekenhuis (Terneuzen Hospital).
At bus stop Terneuzen Ziekenhuis, change to Bus 10 and get off at bus stop Hengstdijk Dorp. Deze bullet staat een niveau te hoog (is namelijk onderdeel van during summer period)?? Begrijp dit niet
! On weekdays, the last Bus 10 from bus stop Terneuzen Ziekenhuis will depart at 18.35 hrs. On Saturdays the last departure is at 17.35 hrs. On Sundays and public holidays there is no service. In this case, you can travel with the Haltetaxi. Please contact info@mettavihara.nl for consultation on this taxiservice.

Travelling from Antwerp

Hourly departure, price € 10,00

Go to metrostation Halewijnlaan (metro 3, 5 & 9 from Station Diamant near Antwerp Central Train Station).
Take Connexxion Bus 19 going to Hulst.
Change at bus station Hulst to Connexxion Bus 20 going to Goes.
At bus stop Terneuzen Ziekenhuis change to Connexxion Bus 10 going to Kloosterzande.
! On weekdays, the last bus from bus stop Terneuzen Ziekenhuis will depart at 18.35 hrs. On Saturdays, the last bus departs at 17.35 hrs. On Sundays and public holidays there is no service. In that case, you can travel with the Haltetaxi. Please contact info@mettavihara.nl for consultation on this!
Get off at busstop ‘Hengstdijk Dorp’..(please use stop button when display in bus shows it as next stop)

Walking from bus stop ‘Hengstdijk Dorp’

Walk in the opposite direction the bus is going.
Take the first street on the left (Plevierstraat).
Stay on the left side of the road.
Take the second street on the right (Hengstdijkse Kerkstraat). You will pass the church.
Stay on the right side of the road, keep following it and follow the slight bend in the road. When leaving the village, continue walking along this road until you reach Metta Vihara, which you will find on the right side of the road.

Remarks

Standard fares for public transport in the Netherlands are based on the use of the OV-chip card. (comparable with the Oyster Card in London and la carte Orange à Paris) This is a public transport card which can be used to travel on all Dutch trains and buses. Single tickets are also available at fixed rates from bus drivers, but are more expensive.
If you plan to make more frequent use of public transport in Holland, consider buying an anonymous OV-chip card. You can buy an OV-chip card for € 7,50 at all main train stations, most kiosks and big supermarkets. Charge at least € 20,- to the card. The minimum debet to checkin is €4; for the train it is €20.
When you get on the bus/train, don’t forget to check in with the OV-chip card and to check out with it when you leave. Be careful: getting a refund on the money charged to your card is complicated and virtually impossible!
Train tickets can be bought online at www.ns.nl The price of a return ticket is 2x the price of a single ticket. The prices indicated are estimates only and are subject to (annual) change.