Kings day in the netherlands егэ

It’s that time of the year again. It’s one of the holidays the Netherlands is best known for. We celebrate our dying monarchy by congratulating our king and drinking ’til we drop.

After two years of cancelled King’s Day festivities (no thanks to the coronavirus pandemic), you can bet we’re going back to wearing orange and drinking Dutch beer.

To warm up to the Dutch partying ways, we share eight things you should know before King’s Day.

1. King’s Day celebrates the ruling Dutch monarch

If you’ve just moved to the Netherlands, it’s good to know that this is a national holiday. This might be a strange concept to expats and internationals, but it means you most likely get the day off to sit in the sun, drink and be merry.

Thanks for being born, King Willem-Alexander! 👑 As suggested by the oh-so-subtle name, King’s Day is King Willem-Alexander’s birthday. It’s a bit of an adjustment for everyone since it used to be called Queen’s Day for decades.

Before that, we used to celebrate the birthday of our queen mother, Beatrix. But now she has retired, we’ve switched things up and put the onus on King’s Day.

Why? Because in-laws are always ignored and should be happy to be there. Right, post-mortem Prince Claus? (R.I.P)

Our Willem Alexander is the proper heir to the throne because of genetics. So Maxima’s queen title is just there for the fun of it. She is as much a queen as Rupaul is. Yas queen, slay 💅.

Nonetheless, King’s Day is upon us. Maxima’s birthday is actually on January 31. But for decades, it has been celebrated as Queen’s Day, even though it isn’t Maxima’s birthday.

After Queen Juliana’s rule, ending in 1980, whose birthday was on April 30, Queen Beatrix decided to keep celebrations around that time of year.

Before Juliana’s rule, Queen’s Day was held on Queen Wilhelmina’s birthday on August 31, the holiday originating in her younger years when she was still a Princess.

The day was given the apt title: Princess’ Day. Looking at a photo of her from back in the day it becomes clear why — who doesn’t want to throw that sexy little minx a party? 💃

2. You can celebrate King’s Day everywhere in the Netherlands

So you have something orange, you’ve been saving up your beer, and you’re ready to go all out on King’s Day.

We know there will be something happening everywhere in the country, but what events should be on your radar? Don’t worry; there are plenty of places you can check out!

The Randstad cities have the biggest celebrations, Amsterdam, The Hague, Rotterdam, and Utrecht — but you’ll find that every city, town, and village has its way of celebrating.

Celebrating King’s Day in Amsterdam

Amsterdam is by far the most popular city to celebrate King’s Day — and it’s no surprise. Over a million visitors come to the city to haggle and drink beer. No public transport, cars, or taxis are allowed in the city, so a bike or a boat are your best friends. 🚤

You can find plenty of street performances and music around different neighbourhoods, particularly the Jordaan and Amsterdam Zuid. Leidseplein, Rembrandtplein, and the Jordaan are a must-see if you’re into the party scenes. 🍾

Celebrating King’s Day in The Hague

Although smaller and less chaotic than Amsterdam, The Hague throws a lively celebration for King’s Day. They celebrate Koningsnacht the night before King’s Day with lots of drinking and music, especially with the free, open-air festival they host in the city centre. 🎊

You can also check out markets and parties around Statenkwartier and Noordeinde. The Hague also sets up a huge kermis (fair) in Malieveld with plenty of fun rides, attractions, and games to play. 🎠

Celebrating King’s Day in Rotterdam

Rotterdam is a little more subtle than the other cities. You can relax on a terrace far away from all the noise and chaos (or nearby if that’s your thing too).

You can also check out plenty of markets and parties along Coolsingel, the Binnerotte, and Stadhuisplein.

Celebrating King’s Day in Utrecht

Utrecht is best known for its massive flea market, which runs for 24 hours beginning on April 26. 🛍

You can catch kids’ markets (flea markets for children to sell their things) around Park Lepelenburg and Nijntje Pleintje, and even more partying around Domplein, Lucasbolwerk, Mariaplaats, Neude, and Jankerkshof.

3. The Dutch Royal family visit one lucky city each year

Since Beatrix started the tradition, the royals have gone out on the town and celebrated with “the people”. So you, too can catch a glimpse of the King and Queen. 🤴🏼👸🏼

Every year the royals go to a different region to show how connected they are to the commoner. They usually play silly games, enjoying old Dutch traditions involving clogs and swamp monster re-enactments (oh, how I’d wish that were true).

They small talk with the locals and do the rounds of kissing babies (in non-pandemic times, of course). 💋

So want to catch a glimpse of the royals this year? The royal family will visit the city of Maastricht for King’s Day 2022 in the Netherlands.

The whole city will be celebrating the event, with live music and bands around the city, speeches, and plenty of street parties, house parties, and clubs (as long as some new super-corona-mutation doesn’t decide it wants to join the fun.)

If you’re not feeling the loud parties, you can still enjoy a cup of tea or coffee on a terrace. ☕️

4. Dutchies have plenty of fun traditions

It isn’t King’s Day in the Netherlands without a special set of traditions. Dutchies will sell old belongings, music, and entertainment for a little extra cash! 💶

It’s such a popular thing to do, in fact, young children even take part in it too — many kids like to set up fun party games for people to play for a small fee. Spijkerpoepen, koekhappen, and tombola might sound like nonsense, but they’re very near and dear to the heart.

Nail poops?

Spijkerpoepen translates to nail poop, which should already point you to how wacky this game is. You tie a long piece of string around your waist, and dangling at the bottom of the string is a nail.

Your goal is to try and get the nail inside the tiny opening of a beer bottle or similar:

Seems easy enough, right? 😅

Snack central

If you’re into Dutch snacks, koekhappen is for you. Koekhappen translates into the very cute-sounding “biscuit bites”, and it means what you think it does with a little twist.

Someone hangs several pieces of Dutch cookies to a string. Players have to try and bite a piece of the cookie as quickly as possible with hands tied behind their back (and sometimes even blindfolded). The first person to pull the piece of cookie from the string wins the game!

Quite the wholesome and family-friendly game, if you ask us. 🍪

Dutchies’ version of bingo

And finally, you’ll probably find many Dutchies playing a game of tombola. A combination of a gift raffle and bingo, it’s a fun game to play to win presents. Especially if you want to sit down and relax during King’s Day. 😌

5. Flea markets dominate King’s Day

King’s Day is also known for the flea markets that descend themselves in most cities. The ban on free trade is lifted for this holiday. Days, and sometimes weeks, people mark their territory with crayons and tags in advance. 🖍

Curbs, sidewalks, bridges, every patch and centimetre become a potential reason for dispute and conflict. I wouldn’t be surprised if some people mark their territory like dogs (the streets certainly smell like it 🤧 ).

Want to get rid of some of your old junk? Put it on display, and you might sell some of it (obviously depending on how crappy your stuff is).

Half of the Netherlands has fond childhood memories (and trauma) of saving up for that special toy by selling their old stuff during Kongingsdag.

This is also the day you can make some spare change by selling any unwanted booze, drinks, food, refreshments or just providing plain silly entertainment.

It doesn’t matter how, but you can make money. Drunks are easy targets. 🎯

Speaking of alcohol…

6. Drinking beer and passing out is one of the biggest attractions of King’s Day

The Netherlands loves its booze. After decades of smart marketing by Heineken, a product of national pride, we’re all hooked on the foamy sweet nectar of the gods on King’s Day.

And oh, how we love it.

No beer glass is left full, no mind is left clear. If there’s ever a day to enjoy a drink, it’s this one.

It’s not just the day itself, the night before is half the fun. It’s usually as busy as King’s Day, minus the kids and families. That means more opportunities to spill your beer, pee your pants, and slur your words. (Don’t we love drunk people?). 😁

7. Everything will be orange

For your safety and sanity, please, for the love of God, wear orange! Yes, the colour of Dutch pride is used for any occasion. Whether it’s the World Cup, the Olympics, or national holidays like Koningsdag.

Wear orange, and you confirm your place as a Dutchie. Whether you were born in the Netherlands or not, it doesn’t matter. Everyone is united in a sea of Orange. 🧡

Especially when you combine it by shouting some classic phrases at strangers like “Leve de Koning“. Even shouting nonsense will create a ripple of shouting, laughter, and high fives.

Plenty of brands use the Dutch love of the colour orange to their advantage.

To show their patriotic (highly corporate) streak you’ll come across: orange shaving razors, headphones, grills, barbies, and lube can all be purchased in the name of national pride. 🍊

Brands tap into our Dutch sense of belonging to exploit it to the full. And so, the cycle continues.

8. Drink a herstelbiertje to survive the festivities

Unfortunately, you still have to go to work the next day. Not to worry, have a herstelbiertje (recovery beer)! The English call it “hair of the dog”, and according to the Dutch, it’s the best way to get over your hangover in the morning. 😵‍💫

Just keep drinking so you can never be hungover, simple! And who in their right mind would argue with that? So ignore the desperate cries of your liver, and go for that good old Dutch beer! The real breakfast of champions. 🍻

Well, that completes the King’s Day survival kit. Now, have a blast and let’s nostalgically commemorate a time when the monarchy still mattered within our tiny imaged community!

What do you like best about Kingsday? Let us know in the comments.

Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in March 2020 and was fully updated in April 2022 for your reading pleasure.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Koningsdag
People dressed in orange on the canals of Amsterdam in 2010
Observed by	Kingdom of the Netherlands (Netherlands, Aruba, Curaçao, Sint Maarten)
Type	National holiday
Significance	Birthday of King Willem-Alexander
Celebrations	Partying, wearing orange costumes, flea markets, concerts and traditional local gatherings
Date	27 April (26 April if 27 April is a Sunday)
Frequency	annual

Koningsdag (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈkoːnɪŋzdɑx] (listen)) or King’s Day is a national holiday in the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Celebrated on 27 April (26 April if the 27th is a Sunday), the date marks the birth of King Willem-Alexander.^[1] When the Dutch monarch is female, the holiday is known as Koninginnedag (Dutch pronunciation: [ˌkoːnɪŋˈɪnədɑx] (listen)) or Queen’s Day and, under Queen Beatrix until 2013, was celebrated on 30 April.

The holiday was initially observed on 31 August 1885 as Prinsessedag or Princess’s Day, the fifth birthday of Princess Wilhelmina, then heir presumptive to the Dutch throne. On her accession in November 1890 the holiday acquired the name Koninginnedag, first celebrated on 31 August 1891. In September 1948, Wilhelmina’s daughter Juliana ascended to the throne and the holiday was moved to her birthday, 30 April. The holiday was celebrated on this date from 1949.

Juliana’s daughter, Beatrix, retained the celebration on 30 April after she ascended the throne in 1980, though her birthday was on 31 January.^[2] Beatrix altered her mother’s custom of receiving a floral parade at Soestdijk Palace, instead choosing to visit different Dutch towns each year and join in the festivities with her children.

In 2009, the Queen was celebrating Queen’s Day in the city of Apeldoorn when a man attempted to attack her by trying to ram the royal family’s bus with his car; instead he drove into a crowd of people and crashed into a monument: seven people in the crowd were killed, as was the driver.

Queen Beatrix abdicated on Koninginnedag 2013, and her son, Willem-Alexander, ascended the throne (the first king since the observance of the national holiday). As a result, the holiday became known as Koningsdag from 2014 on, and the celebration was moved three days ahead to 27 April, his actual birthday.

Koningsdag is known for its nationwide vrijmarkt («free market»), at which the Dutch sell their used items. It is also an opportunity for «orange madness» or oranjegekte, a kind of frenzy named for the national colour.

History[edit]

Wilhelmina (1885–1948)[edit]

Faced with an unpopular monarchy, in the 1880s the liberals in Dutch government sought a means of promoting national unity.^[3] King William III was disliked, but his four-year-old daughter Princess Wilhelmina was not.^[4] A holiday honouring King William had been intermittently held on his birthday, and J. W. R. Gerlach, editor of the newspaper Utrechts Provinciaal en Stedelijk Dagblad, proposed that the princess’s birthday be observed as an opportunity for patriotic celebration and national reconciliation.^[5] Prinsessedag or Princess’s Day was first celebrated in the Netherlands on 31 August 1885, Wilhelmina’s fifth birthday. The young princess was paraded through the streets, waving to the crowds.^[4] The first observance occurred only in Utrecht, but other municipalities quickly began to observe it, organizing activities for children.^[5] Further processions were held in the following years, and when Wilhelmina inherited the throne in 1890, Prinsessedag was renamed Koninginnedag, or Queen’s Day.^[4] By then almost every Dutch town and city was marking the holiday.^[5]

The celebration proved popular, and when the Queen came of age in 1898, her inauguration was postponed six days to 6 September so as not to interfere with Koninginnedag.^[6] The annual holiday fell on the final day of school summer vacation, which made it popular among schoolchildren.^[4] It is uncertain how much Wilhelmina enjoyed the festivities; although writer Mike Peek, in a 2011 magazine article about Koninginnedag, suggests she was enthusiastic,^[4] there is a story of Wilhelmina, after a tired return from one of these birthday processions, making her doll bow until the toy’s hair was dishevelled, and telling it, «Now you shall sit in a carriage and bow until your back aches, and see how much you like being a Queen!»^[7]

Koninginnedag 1902 not only honoured the Queen’s birthday, but was celebrated with increased enthusiasm as it marked her recovery from serious illness.^[3] Wilhelmina rarely attended Koninginnedag festivities after reaching adulthood.^[8] She attended ceremonies for her silver jubilee in 1923, which included massive festivities in Amsterdam and The Hague, despite the Queen’s request that large sums not be spent because economic conditions at the time were difficult. To ensure that even the poorer parts of the city were included, bands played simultaneously at 28 locations across The Hague.^[9] Wilhelmina made further exceptions for such events as her fiftieth birthday in 1930.^[8] During the German occupation of the Netherlands during World War II, Koninginnedag celebrations were banned, and members of the Orange Committees, which organize the holiday events, destroyed their records for fear of German reprisals.^[6]

Juliana (1948–1980)[edit]

Another summertime birthday celebration in the Netherlands was that of Wilhelmina’s mother, Queen-Regent Emma, who after Wilhelmina attained adulthood generally spent her own birthday, 2 August, at Soestdijk Palace in Baarn. Until her death in 1934, Emma received an annual floral tribute from the townsfolk on her birthday. In 1937 Wilhelmina’s daughter and heiress, Princess Juliana, took up residence at Soestdijk Palace following her marriage, and the townsfolk made their floral presentation to her, moving the date to Juliana’s birthday, 30 April.^[8] In September 1948 Juliana ascended to the Dutch throne and from 1949 onwards Koninginnedag was on her birthday.^[10] The change in date attracted immediate approval from Dutch children, who gained an extra day of holiday. The first observance of the holiday on the new date included a huge circus at the Amsterdam Olympic Stadium—one not attended by the royal family, who remained at Soestdijk Palace.^[11] Queen Juliana retained the floral tribute, staying each year on Koninginnedag at Soestdijk Palace to receive it. The parade became televised in the 1950s, and Koninginnedag increasingly became a national holiday, with workers given the day off.^[3] Juliana had a reputation as a «queen of the people», and according to Peek, «it felt as if she invited her subjects to the royal home».^[4]

In early 1966 Juliana’s eldest daughter, Princess Beatrix, married Klaus-Georg von Amsberg. The marriage was controversial because the new Prince Claus (as he was dubbed) was a German, and Claus himself had served in the German Army during the war. Anti-German riots in Amsterdam marred the wedding day and the following observances of Koninginnedag. Fearing further demonstrations on the holiday, government officials decided to open Amsterdam city centre to the vrijmarkt («free market») that had long been held on Koninginnedag in the outskirts of town, principally for children. The vrijmarkt occupied the space where demonstrations might have been held, and began a new custom.^[4]

Beatrix (1980–2013)[edit]

When Queen Beatrix succeeded her mother Juliana on the latter’s abdication on 30 April 1980, the new queen decided to keep the holiday on 30 April as a tribute to her mother.^[2][3] (If 30 April fell on a Sunday, Koninginnedag was observed the previous day—this occurred most recently in 2006.^[12]) The reason was practical as well—Beatrix’s actual birthday on 31 January would have been less conducive to the traditional outdoor activities.^[10] Rather than remaining at the palace and letting the Dutch people come to her, Beatrix instead usually visited two towns each year for Koninginnedag celebrations.^[3] Local crafts and customs were demonstrated for the royal family, who had the opportunity to join in.^[13][14]

Koninginnedag celebrations have sometimes been affected or disrupted. In 1988 three British servicemen stationed in Germany who were in the Netherlands for Koninginnedag were killed in Irish Republican Army attacks.^[15] In 1996 the celebrations in Rotterdam were dampened by an alcohol ban, put in place following riots earlier in the week after local football club Feyenoord won the Dutch league championship.^[16] The Queen’s scheduled 2001 visits to Hoogeveen and Meppel were postponed for one year owing to an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease.^[17]

On 30 April 2009, Beatrix and other members of the royal family were at the town of Apeldoorn when a 38-year-old man, Karst Tates, drove his Suzuki Swift automobile into the crowd, narrowly missing the open-top bus the royal family members were riding on.^[4][18] Seven people were killed and further celebrations were cancelled.^[18] Tates died of injuries sustained in the attack soon afterwards and his exact motives remain unclear, though it appears his target was the royal family.^[4] The incident provoked questions about whether the royal family should continue to participate in the celebrations. However, Beatrix indicated that the tragedy would not stop her from meeting her people.^[13] In 2010, Beatrix and her family visited Wemeldinge and Middelburg, in Zeeland province. There were no incidents, and afterwards, the Queen thanked Zeeland for giving Koninginnedag back to her family, and to her country.^[4]

Queen Beatrix visited the following towns and cities over the years on Koninginnedag:^[19]

On 28 January 2013 Queen Beatrix announced her abdication on 30 April 2013 in favour of her son, Willem-Alexander.^[22] Since this date coincided with Koninginnedag the royal family’s planned visit to De Rijp and Amstelveen was cancelled,^[21] although Koninginnedag 2013 was still celebrated throughout the country.^[23][24][25]

Willem-Alexander[edit]

On 30 April 2013, Queen’s Day, Willem-Alexander succeeded his mother Beatrix and became the first King of the Netherlands in 123 years. Consequently, from 2014 onwards the name has been changed from Queen’s Day to King’s Day. The date has also changed from 30 to 27 April, which is the actual birthday of Willem-Alexander.^[1] On the first King’s Day – held on 26 April 2014 because 27 April 2014 was a Sunday – the king visited De Rijp and Amstelveen (originally planned to be visited by Queen Beatrix in 2013, but postponed due to her abdication).^[26]

King Willem-Alexander has visited the following towns and cities over the years on Koningsdag:

• 2014: De Rijp and Amstelveen^[27]
• 2015: Dordrecht^[28]
• 2016: Zwolle^[29]
• 2017: Tilburg^[30]
• 2018: Groningen^[31]
• 2019: Amersfoort^[32]
• 2020: visit cancelled
• 2021: Eindhoven
• 2022: Maastricht^[33]
• 2023: Rotterdam

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, many King’s day celebrations were cancelled in 2020, including the royal family’s planned visit to Maastricht.^[34][35] An alternative stay-at-home program was issued instead, featuring a simultaneous national anthem sing-along and a national toast moment. The King addressed the Dutch people from his home.^[36]

Activities[edit]

The festivities on Koningsdag are often organised by Orange Committees (Dutch: Oranjecomité), local associations^[3] that seek sponsorship and donations for their activities. In recent years some committees have had difficulty in recruiting new members from among the younger Dutch.^[37]

Flea market[edit]

The vrijmarkt (literally ‘free market’) is a nationwide flea market, at which many people sell their used goods. Koningsdag is the one day of the year that the Dutch government permits sales on the street without a permit and without the payment of value added tax.^[38] ING Bank found in 2011 that one in five Dutch residents planned to sell at the vrijmarkt and estimated they would earn €100 per person for a total turnover of €290 million. Over half of the Dutch people buy at the vrijmarkt; ING Bank predicted they would spend €28 each at the 2011 vrijmarkt.^[39] Queen Beatrix has been known to buy at the vrijmarkt; in 1995 she purchased a floor lamp.^[40] The bank also forecast that the lowest level of sales at the vrijmarkt in 2011 would be in the province of Limburg, site of Queen Beatrix’s visit.^[39]

Among the most popular areas for the vrijmarkt in Amsterdam is the Jordaan quarter, but the wide Apollolaan in front of the Hilton hotel in southern Amsterdam is gaining in popularity. Children sell their cast-off toys or garments at the Vondelpark, also in southern Amsterdam, and in a spirit of fun passers-by often offer the young sellers more than they are asking for the goods.^[41] Until 1996, the vrijmarkt began the evening before and continued for 24 hours. This was ended in the hope of gaining a pause in the celebrations so preparations could be made for the daytime activities.^[4] Utrecht, uniquely among Dutch municipalities, retains the overnight vrijmarkt.^[20] In 2020, people could sell their goods on an online platform to avoid physical contact with customers.^[36]

Festivities[edit]

Koningsdag now sees large-scale celebrations, with many concerts and special events in public spaces, particularly in Amsterdam. An outdoor concert is held on Amsterdam’s Museumplein, where as many as 800,000 people may gather. To aid visitors in returning home by train after the festivities, outdoor events must end by 20:00, and the Museumplein show by 21:00.^[20] The city centre is closed to cars, and no trams ride in the heart of the city; people are urged to avoid Amsterdam Centraal railway station and use other stations if possible from their direction. International trains that normally depart or terminate at Amsterdam Centraal are instead directed to a suburban stop.^[42]

In recent years parties and concerts have been held the evening before Koningsdag. Until 2013, nightclubs across the Netherlands organised special events for what became known as Koninginnenacht (Queen’s Night).^[43] Many young people celebrate in the streets and squares (and in Amsterdam, the canals as well) throughout the night, and after all-night partying join the crowds at the vrijmarkt.^[13]

While King’s Day celebrations take place throughout the Netherlands, Amsterdam is a popular destination for many revellers. Often the city’s 850,000 residents are joined by up to 1 million visitors. In recent years Amsterdam authorities have taken some measures to try to stem the flow of visitors as the city became too crowded.^[44]

Those taking part in Koningsdag commonly dye their hair orange or wear orange clothing in honour of the House of Orange-Nassau, which rules over the Netherlands. Orange-coloured drinks are also popular.^[45] This colour choice is sometimes dubbed «orange madness», or in Dutch, oranjegekte.^[13] A local Orange Committee member said of Koninginnedag in 2011:

Friendships—and community—will be formed. For me that’s really what Queen’s Day is all about. It’s not an outburst of patriotism, it’s not even about the popularity of the royal family. It’s about a sense of belonging. For one day, everybody is the same in Holland. Bright orange and barmy.^[6]

Children celebrate with a variety of games including koekhappen (in which they catch spice cake dangling from a string in their mouths) and spijker poepen (in which they tie string around their waist with a nail dangling at one end, which they attempt to lower into a glass bottle).^[46]

Honours[edit]

Koningsdag is an opportunity for the monarch to honour citizens for their service to the Netherlands. In 2011, Queen Beatrix issued an honours list noting the work of 3,357 people, most of whom became members of the Order of Orange-Nassau.^[47]

Observance in Dutch territories outside Europe[edit]

Koningsdag is also celebrated in Aruba, Curaçao, and Sint Maarten, constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.^[13] It is less widely celebrated on the Caribbean island of Bonaire, also a part of the Kingdom, where the local celebration of Dia di Rincon (held on 30 April) is more popular.^[48]

See also[edit]

• King’s Official Birthday in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth Realms
• Grand Duke’s Official Birthday in Luxembourg
• The Emperor’s Birthday in Japan
• King’s Feast in Belgium

References[edit]

External links[edit]

King’s Day may well just be the best party in Holland! On 27 April, the Netherlands turns orange in honour of King’s Day as the country celebrates King Willem-Alexander’s birthday with music, street parties, flea markets, and funfairs. Traditionally, the Dutch share in these festivities by dressing in orange and partying along streets and canals. This year, King Willem-Alexander, Queen Maxima and several members of the Dutch royal family are set to attend the festivities and celebrate in Maastrict.

Expat Explore has put together a guide to King’s Day in the Netherlands. Can’t make it to one of the big cities to celebrate? No problem! We also share a few tips on how to celebrate at home. Read on to find out everything you need to know about this unique Dutch holiday.  

What is King’s Day?

In the Netherlands, King’s Day (Koningsdag) is a national holiday to celebrate the monarch King Willem-Alexander’s birthday which falls on 27 April. The country gets the day off work and various events take place across the country. In past years, celebrations were different. Major cities usually host big celebrations but you can also find cosy events taking place in smaller towns. On the day, people can browse numerous flea markets that pop up, toast to the king’s birthday at lively parties and eat and drink to their heart’s content! Traditionally, the King will visit a selected city and meet with locals who are celebrating.

Amsterdam is usually the centre of celebrations of course! Over one million people flock to the city to enjoy the street parties, browse the city-wide markets and experience the festivities on boat parties floating along the canals! In many places, the celebrations begin the night before, on King’s Night (Koningsnacht), and carry on all through the next day!

A brief history of King’s Day

The Netherlands has been celebrating King’s Day on 27 April since 2014 after King Willem-Alexander ascended the throne in 2013. King Willem-Alexander is the first male monarch of the Netherlands in 123 years as various queens have reigned from 1890 until 2013. The date changes inline with the monarchs birthday. The holiday was first celebrated on 31 August 1891 as Queen’s Day in honour of Queen Wilhelmina. She was followed by her daughter Queen Juliana who celebrated on 30 April (this day eventually became a public holiday under Queen Juliana). Although she was born in January, the next monarch, Queen Beatrix, continued to hold the celebrations on 30 April due to the weather being better for outdoor parties at this time of year.

King’s Day celebration traditions in the Netherlands

• The Dutch dress up in orange!
  

  Wondering why places like Amsterdam turn into a sea of orange on King’s Day? The Dutch Royal family are known as the “House of Orange-Nassau” so orange has become the Netherlands’ national colour. It’s now a tradition to wear orange on King’s Day and people go all out! Full orange outfits, hats, wigs and makeup – the wackier, the better!

  

• People flock to flea markets

  On King’s Day, everyone is allowed to sell things on the street without a permit. This has led to tons of flea markets (vrijmarkten) popping up across different cities! Amsterdam boasts an almost city-wide market as the streets are filled with people peddling their wares! Browse for bargains and enjoy the street performers and musicians as you go. Vondelpark in Amsterdam is the place to go to look for kids stuff. It’s also the only place in the city exclusive to vendors under the age of 16 – the perfect place for kids to practice their bargaining and selling skills!

  

• Revellers dance the day away at King’s Day parties

  Celebrating the king’s birthday is the perfect excuse for a party! There are traditionally numerous events across the Netherlands – some are free and some you will have to buy tickets for. The four best places to go for big King’s Day celebrations are Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague and Utrecht. 

• People make a toast to the king with Oranjebitter
  

  This orange liqueur was created hundreds of years ago to honour a Dutch prince. That makes it the perfect drink to toast the King’s birthday! Grab a glass of orange bitter and say “proost!”

• And they indulge in a tompouce

  There will be many street vendors selling food in major cities. The one thing that you can’t miss out on is tompouce! This is a sweet pastry filled with cream (similar to a napoleon or mille-feuille).

King’s Day 2022: Tips to celebrate at home

The two previous King’s Days were small celebrations due to Covis-19. While celebrations will take place as usual in larger cities, many may feel more comfortable in a less crowded setting. This is the perfect opportunity to celebrate all things Dutch at home! Here are a few ways to bring the joy of King’s Day into your own home.

Throw on your best orange outfit:

Whether you live with family, roommates or stay alone, you’ll definitely feel the vibe of King’s Day by putting on your best orange outfit! It’s almost impossible not to smile while wearing bright orange! It will also put a smile on other people’s faces. 

Have a virtual party:

Gather a few friends and family for a virtual party! Have a group video call, put on some music, play some games, grab some snacks and refreshments and make the most of this untraditional King’s Day!

Eat like a king for the day:

Since people will be staying at home, why not take the party to the kitchen and try out some traditional Dutch recipes? Indulge in your favourite treats, sip on delicious drinks and make a toast to the king’s birthday. Definitely not a bad way to spend the day! 

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The Netherlands is an incredible destination to visit. Planning a trip during King’s Day will definitely make your Dutch holiday one to remember! Take a look at our tours that visit the Netherlands and start planning your future trip! 

• The Netherlands
• Netherlands travel
• King’s Day
• Celebrations