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De haven van Rotterdam is de grootste haven van Europa met een totale overslag van 420 miljoen ton in 2008. Rotterdam was tussen 1962 en 2004 de grootste haven ter wereld, maar deze positie is overgenomen door Sjanghai.
De haven van Rotterdam is zowel economisch als toeristisch van groot belang voor Rotterdam. Er komen veel toeristen de haven bekijken, een rondvaart maken met de Spido, de Euromast bezoeken en de bruggen van Rotterdam bekijken zoals de Erasmusbrug en de Willemsbrug.
Het is ook een aanlegplaats voor cruiseschepen zoals de Queen Mary 2. Vroeger was de Holland-Amerika Lijn een belangrijke verbinding met New York City in de Verenigde Staten. Qua overslag is de haven van Rotterdam veruit de grootste haven van Europa. Tevens is de haven de derde haven van de wereld, na Sjanghai en Singapore. De haven van Rotterdam is belangrijk op het gebied van overslag van containers en massagoederen, ook wel 'bulkoverslag' genoemd, zoals ruwe olie chemicaliën, kolen en ertsen. De goederenoverslag in Rotterdam bedraagt 420 miljoen ton (2008). De haven draait momenteel op z'n top en dat beperkt voorlopig verdere groei.
Verder is de haven van Rotterdam de belangrijkste containerhaven van Europa met bedrijven zoals Europe Container Terminals. De haven biedt directe werkgelegenheid aan ongeveer 86.000 mensen in Rotterdam. Daarbuiten nog eens aan ongeveer 200.000 mensen. Van hieruit worden goederen vervoerd naar onder andere het Ruhrgebied in Duitsland, Engeland en Antwerpen in België
The Port of Rotterdam is the largest port in Europe, located in the city of Rotterdam, South Holland, the Netherlands. From 1962 until 1986 it was the world's busiest port, now overtaken by Asian ports like Singapore and Shanghai. In 2006, Rotterdam was world's sixth-largest container port in terms of twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) handled.
Covering 105 square kilometers (40.5 sq mi), the port of Rotterdam now stretches over a distance of 40 kilometers (25 mi). It consists of the city center's historic harbor area, including Delfshaven; the Maashaven/Rijnhaven/Feijenoord complex; the harbours around Nieuw-Mathenesse; Waalhaven; Vondelingenplaat; Eemhaven; Botlek; Europoort, situated along the Calandkanaal, Nieuwe Waterweg and Scheur (the latter two being continuations of the Nieuwe Maas); and the reclaimed Maasvlakte area, which projects into the North Sea.
In the first half of the twentieth century the port activities moved from the centre westward towards the North Sea. The Nieuwe Waterweg was dug from Rotterdam to the North Sea, a canal to disembogue the shallow Rhine and Meuse. The Nieuwe Waterweg was ready in 1872 and all sorts of industrial activity formed on the banks of this canal.
Rotterdam's harbour territory has been enlarged by the construction of the Europoort (gate to Europe) complex along the mouth of the Nieuwe Waterweg, and by the Maasvlakte in the North Sea near Hoek van Holland. The construction of a second Maasvlakte received initial political approval in 2004, but was stopped by the Raad van State (the Dutch Council of State, which advises the government and parliament on legislation and governance) in 2005, because the plans did not take enough account of environmental issues. On October 10, 2006, however, approval was acquired to start construction in 2008, aiming for the first ship to anchor in 2013.
Most important for the port of Rotterdam are the petrochemical industry and general cargo transshipment handlings. The harbour functions as an important transit point for transport of bulk and other goods between the European continent and other parts of the world. From Rotterdam goods are transported by ship, river barge, train or road. Since 2000 the Betuweroute, a fast cargo railway from Rotterdam to Germany, has been under construction. The Dutch part of this railway has been opened in 2007. Large oil refineries are located west of the city. The river Meuse and Rhine also provide excellent access to the hinterland.
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