Travel Facts
- The nearest train stations to the castle are Venlo (30 minutes by bus) and Nijmegen (one hour by bus). These two train stations offer direct connections to international destinations.
- The small train station at Venray (15 minutes by bus from the castle) has direct connections to destinations within The Netherlands only. There is no information window at this station and students must purchase train tickets from a machine that only takes coins. (Use your OV-Chipkaart to avoid this problem!)
- Buses don’t run all night. If participants miss the last bus from the train station to Well, they are faced with an expensive taxi ride (€80 in some cases).
- If participants travel by air within Europe and they miss their flight, they often have to buy a new ticket.
- You will need to carry your passport with you while traveling.
- Düsseldorf Weeze Niederrhein Airport (NRN) is a regional airport approximately 20 minutes by car from Kasteel Well, and should not be confused with Düsseldorf International Airport (more than one hour by car from the castle.)
At nearby Weeze Niederrhein Airport, several airlines fly to different European cities.
View Directions to Airport Weeze in a larger map
The OV-Chipkaart
The Netherlands has a travel “smart card” similar to Boston’s Charlie Card for use on all buses, trains and tram cars in the Netherlands. During Orientation weekend the Castle staff will explain the “ins and outs” of the OV-Chipkaart.
View more information on the OV-Chipkaart system.
Travel Considerations
- Decide what kind of experience you want to have.
- Plan to talk to other students about planning trips together.
- Check the castle schedule before booking anything- there are a few mandatory group excursions and you are not allowed to travel on the weekends before midterms and finals.
- Some students prefer to make their weekend and excursion travel plans early, some wish they had not planned out ALL their weekends in advance. Sometimes the earlier you plan your trips and buy your tickets, the cheaper it will be. Book at least three weeks in advance to get the best price.
- You will usually need to spend extra time and money taking the bus/subway from the Ryan Air hub airport to the city center you are trying to get to. Keep this in mind when planning your budget.
Air Travel Websites Recommended by Former Castle Students
- Ryan Air
- Easy Jet
- Sky Scanner
- Wizz Air (flights to Budapest, Bucharest and Katowice)
- Ebookers
- Edreams
- Momondo
- Lowcostairlines
- Student Universe
Travel Apps for your Mobile Phone
- Flight Search - Skyscanner
- Trains - DB Bahn
Culture Shock & Reverse Culture Shock
Most of you will experience culture shock to some degree, whether it is on arrival to the Netherlands, or reverse culture shock when you return home after living and traveling in Europe.
Many students experience something less than culture shock on arrival, but rather homesickness. Since students are more or less “confined” to campus with fellow Emerson students, European professors and staff members who speak English, it is less likely that severe and long lasting culture shock will set in on arrival.
To help minimize the effects of culture shock, you should read about countries you want to visit ahead of time. Learn about the people, the culture and their history and try to learn some simple phrases of language for the countries you want to visit. Remember, if you are having difficulty, our colleagues at OSA are always there to talk to.
Most castle students experience reverse culture shock on their return. The depth of reverse culture shock varies widely from student to student. Some students may be elated to return home; in other cases, some students might struggle with the readjustment. Remember, this is a natural part of the study abroad experience.
To help minimize the effects of reverse culture shock, maintain the contacts and new friends you made over the past 3 months. Communicating with other students who have had study abroad experiences will reduce your sense of loneliness and frustration. Try to practice and respect the travel skills, language, and knowledge you gained while abroad!
Stages of Reverse Culture Shock
1. Disengagement – Before departure from the castle some students may experience feelings of loss and perhaps some unhappiness about returning home to problems they left behind. Other students may be completely happy or even “relieved” to be returning home.
2. Excitement – You are happy to see your family, your friends, and your pets again! You are excited to share how much you’ve learned. You are anxious to share photos and videos, and what you wrote in your journal.
3. Alienation – Some feelings of frustration may set in. Your home country may be different from how you remembered it. Friends and family may be excited to see you again, but may soon become disinterested or resentful of your continual references to your time abroad. You may feel disappointed that no one recognizes the “new you”. You may also miss the excitement of learning new things every day.
4. Readjustment – You have regained your balance and your study abroad experience becomes an integrated part of your life!