King's Day in Netherlands - Koningsdag 2024
27 April 2024
King's Day also known as Queen's Day takes place every year on April 27th. It is one of the biggest and most colourful celebrations in the Netherlands. The holiday is hosted in Amsterdam and is an "orange" celebration held to celebrate the King Birthday of King Willem-Alexander's birthday on April 27th. The activities at this event are suitable for the whole family. Many people combine a short trip to Amsterdam with this event.
The city in orange
The Dutch celebrate the birthday of their monarch with this event. A day filled with music and festivities in the streets of Amsterdam. Well, not only in the streets, of course, the canals of the city are also popular spots for celebrations. If you want to participate in King's Day, you should wear at least one piece of clothing in orange colour to honour the hosts. Why orange? This is the colour of the Dutch royal family. You can imagine that all of Amsterdam shines in orange on Koningsdag.
How to celebrate King's Day in Amsterdam?
Numerous live bands and DJs provide musical entertainment. Especially popular on this day are the streets and squares in the centre of Amsterdam. Especially popular spots are Rembrandtplein, Westerstraat and Dam Square.
The events on Koningsdag in Amsterdam are usually free of charge. Participation is also quite simple. Just be in the city centre of Amsterdam. Experience King's Day also from the boat. In the middle of the hustle and bustle and you will figure out the best activities for you.
The open air market
Traditionally, flea markets are held on Koningsdag. Here they are called Vrijmarkt or Freimarkt. You can find flea markets all over the city. The Dutch and their guests sell their own goods and regional specialities. This is especially attractive for the sellers because they do not have to pay taxes on this day. No wonder the King's Day flea market in Amsterdam is one of the largest flea markets in the world.
The King's Day flea markets are also an important event for some Dutch children. They own the Vondelpark on this day. Here, children sell toys and used clothing.
Art, culture and culinary delights
King's Day in Amsterdam also includes various events. For example in the NDSM Vrijhaven. Here, in the north of Amsterdam on an old shipyard site, a colourful stage for music and stands for culinary and art is created every year. From Central Station, the ferry takes you to the shipyard site.
In the evening, the street festivities end, but not the celebrations as a whole. Several major festivals are held on this day. In most cases, they are electronic dance music. These include the Kingsland Festival, Loveland van Oranje as well as Oranjebloesem at the Olympic Stadium.
More about the King's Day
Every year, the organizers expect about 700,000 visitors. This almost doubles the city's population on this day. In the morning, cafes open around 9 a.m., and in the evening, participants can choose from numerous bars, pubs and clubs. Public transport in Amsterdam is very well developed. Cars and even bicycles are not a good option on this day.
It is worth arriving the day before. On King's Day itself, both the trains and the streets are crowded. Most museums are closed on Koningsdag. This is also true for most stores. But then there are the numerous street markets, which often have cheaper and more unusual offers.
Learn more about the King's Day in Netherlands - Koningsdag
Here are the steps to plan your trip
1. Go to the official website and double check the event dates, prices and regulations.
2. Book hotel rooms in Amsterdam available during the event. ⤵︎
2.1. Pick a hotel room by location and by price.
2.2. The search is done for 1 guest and the entire duration of the event. Click on the 'Filter', 'Guests', and 'Dates' buttons to adjust the search.
🏨 In the 'Filters' section, you can tell if you are looking for hotels or vacation homes. Here, you can filter the results by stars, review ratings, and budget.
👨👩👧👦 In this section, you can specify the number of guests (adults and children) and the number of rooms you want to book.
📆 Finally, you can change the date of your stay.
2.3. Save more money! Some hotel rooms are provided by multiple hotel booking websites. You will see them on the top of the hotel room details when you hover the mouse over the room. Be it Booking.com, Expedia, Trivago, Opodo, or other providers, select the best price provider for the room during the chosen period.
2.4. If hotel rooms are not available around the event location, you can zoom out or search by a nearby city/town name. If you have a specific hotel in mind, you can even search the particular hotel name.
2.5. Bonus tip: Switch to Experiences search. Perhaps you will find great tours and activities!
2.6. Pro tip: The map of the experiences may help you find the most vibrant areas in the city and the best locations where you can look for accommodations for your stay.
3. If everything is fine you can buy all the tickets
