Vlaardingen in the context of South Holland

The Randstad (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈrɑntstɑt] ; "Rim City" or "Edge City") is a roughly crescent- or arc-shaped conurbation in the Netherlands, that includes almost half the country's population. With a central-western location, it connects and comprises the Netherlands' four biggest cities (Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague, and Utrecht), their suburbs, and many towns in between, that all grew and merged into each other. Among other things, it includes the Port of Rotterdam (the world's busiest seaport outside Asia), the Port of Amsterdam (Europe's fourth-busiest seaport), and Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (Europe's fourth-busiest airport). With a population of approximately 8.4 million people it is one of the largest metropolitan regions in Europe, comparable in population size to the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region or the San Francisco Bay Area, and covers an area of approximately 11,372 km (4,391 sq mi). The Randstad had a gross regional domestic product of €510 billion in 2022, making it the second most productive region in the European Union, only behind the Paris metropolitan area. It encompasses both the Amsterdam metropolitan area and Rotterdam–The Hague metropolitan area. It is part of the larger Blue Banana megalopolis.

The Randstad's main cities are Almere, Amsterdam, Delft, Dordrecht, Haarlem, The Hague, Leiden, Rotterdam, and Utrecht. Other cities and towns include Alkmaar, Alphen aan den Rijn, Amersfoort, Amstelveen, Capelle aan den IJssel, Gouda, Heerhugowaard, Hilversum, Hoofddorp, Hoorn, Lelystad, Nieuwegein, Purmerend, Rijswijk, Schiedam, Spijkenisse, Vlaardingen, Zaandam, Zeist, and Zoetermeer.

Schiedam (Dutch pronunciation: [sxiˈdɑm] ) is a large town and municipality in the west of the Netherlands. It is located in the Rotterdam–The Hague metropolitan area, west of the city Rotterdam, east of the town Vlaardingen and south of the city Delft. In the south, Schiedam is also connected to the village of Pernis via the Benelux tunnel.

The town is known for its historical center with canals, and for having the tallest windmills in the world.

The Nieuwe Maas (Dutch pronunciation: [ˌniu.ə ˈmaːs]; "New Meuse") is a distributary of the Rhine River, and a former distributary of the Maas River, in the Dutch province of South Holland. It runs from the confluence of the rivers Noord and Lek, and flows west through Rotterdam. It ends west of the city where it meets the Oude Maas ("Old Meuse"), near Vlaardingen, to form Scheur. After a few miles, the Scheur continues as the artificial Nieuwe Waterweg. The total length of the Nieuwe Maas (excluding the Scheur) is approximately 24 kilometres (15 mi).

Rijnmond (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈrɛimɔnt]; literally 'Rhine Mouth', 'Mouth of the Rhine', 'Rhine Estuary') is the conurbation surrounding the city of Rotterdam in the Netherlands. Another term used in this context is Stadsregio Rotterdam (literally 'Rotterdam Urban Region' or more conventionally 'Greater Rotterdam Area'). Located on the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, the region has a combined population of 1,181,289 as of 2021.

The term Rijnmond is used in the security region Rotterdam-Rijnmond, it consists of the following municipalities: Albrandswaard, Barendrecht, Brielle, Capelle aan den IJssel, Goeree-Overflakkee, Hellevoetsluis, Krimpen aan den IJssel, Lansingerland, Maassluis, Nissewaard, Ridderkerk, Rotterdam, Schiedam, Vlaardingen and Westvoorne.

Willem van Ruytenburch, lord of Vlaardingen and Vlaardingen-Ambacht (1600–1652) was a member of the Dutch gentry and Amsterdam patriciate of the Dutch Golden Age. He became an alderman of Amsterdam and joined the Schutterij (city guard) of Frans Banninck Cocq. Willem was featured, as a lieutenant, in Rembrandt's 1642 painting The Night Watch for which he is now probably most famous.