Laurenskerk offers unique experience of history and city

The iconic tower of the Laurenskerk will have the new presentation '365 steps through time' on display from 19 May. Using a combination of technology, storytelling and experience, the tower will be transformed into a public attraction, where visitors can experience Rotterdam's history in a unique way.

The tower climb, a popular activity for many years, will be expanded into a full-fledged experience. Visitors will soon be able to climb the 365 steps daily and learn about the story of the city and the church along the way.

Halfway up the climb, visitors are immersed in a projection, with the walls of the tower coming to life with the voice of Rotterdam actress Imanuelle Grives. She tells the story of Rotterdam. From its medieval origins and the construction of the church to the 1940 bombing and the rebuilding of the city.

The renovated tower offers an interactive carillon console on which visitors can experience for themselves the operation and history of the seventeenth-century carillon. At the top of the tower, innovative binoculars reveal what Rotterdam looked like before the bombing.

Connection between past and present

The renewed tower experience not only makes the past visible, but also makes the connection with today's Rotterdam. The tower thus becomes more than just a viewpoint: it becomes a place where stories come together and where visitors can experience and understand the city in all its layers. 365 steps through time is a collaboration between the Laurenskerk and Museum Rotterdam, which will soon open their new museum in the Steigerkerk, a stone's throw from the Laurenskerk, and the Archaeological Department of the Municipality of Rotterdam.

Open daily

A key ambition of the plan is to make the Laurenskerk more accessible to visitors from now on, even during events when the church is closed to the public.The layout of the tower allows monument visits to be separated from rental activities. This creates a better balance between exploitation and public accessibility. This makes the Laurenskerk a permanent fixture in Rotterdam's cultural offering. The Laurenskerk is open from Tuesday to Saturday from 10:00 - 17:00.