King’s Day (which used to be called Queen’s day) is all about the people that live in and visit Amsterdam to enjoy fun in the open air. During the “biggest street party of the year”, the color orange can be seen everywhere. The activities during this event are live music, DJs, parties, and a citywide street market.
Citywide Street Market: Since this city is built on trade, Amsterdammers love to bargain and haggle. The vrijmarkt (free market) gives everyone that wants to have the opportunity to sell their second-hand items in the parks and on the streets of Amsterdam, therefore creating one of the world’s largest flea markets. Along with all of the items for sale, there are a variety of food items to try.
Family Fun: There are many family-friendly activities on King’s Day as well. They include rides, storytellers, face painters, craft workshops, performance artists, games, and sporting events.
Another family fun event during this festival is the King’s Day breakfast/games. These activities take place at individual schools. Every school gets to decide what form their games will take and they can be as creative as they want to be Prior to the sporting events, every school has a King’s breakfast. The breakfast is healthy and festive and is designed to give the children enough energy to make it through the day. The children are also taught how important it is to drink water on a daily basis.
King’s Night and Day Parties: Many people find their way to Amsterdam for the day of celebration that is also a big part of King’s Day. The fun typically starts on the night before King’s Day with the carnival-like environment continuing on throughout the next day. DJ’s play music, brightly decorated boats The museum’s canals, and live music is played on the patios of cafes.
Museum’s on King’s Day: Even though a lot of attractions in Amsterdam are closed for King’s Day, some of them do stay open. The ones that are usually open on King’s Day include The Anne Frank House, the Van Gogh Museum, the Stedelijk Museum and the Rijksmuseum.
