By Harry Nara · Last updated
- Koningsnacht, the night beforeMonday 26 April 2027
- KoningsdagTuesday 27 April 2027
- Where
- Citywide, busiest in the canal belt, the Jordaan and the Vondelpark
- Tickets
- Free
- Time of year
- April
- Dates
- Around the same dates every year
The City of Amsterdam confirms Koningsdag on Tuesday 27 April 2027 and Koningsnacht on Monday 26 April. The holiday is the king’s birthday and has been held on 27 April since 2014. The city publishes its practical rules for the day, including the vrijmarkt hours, closer to the date, so check its page in the spring.
Koningsdag is the national holiday held on the king’s birthday, and in Amsterdam it is two events sharing one day: a street party that packs the canal belt, and the day each year when anyone may sell their own belongings on the pavement without a permit. Go early for the market and late for the party, and treat the centre as walking only.
What Koningsdag actually is
The holiday is a birthday, and it has moved with the throne. It began as Princess Wilhelmina’s in the 1880s, moved to Queen Juliana’s after 1948, and stayed on Juliana’s date through Beatrix’s reign out of respect for her mother. When Willem-Alexander succeeded in 2014 it was renamed Koningsdag and moved to his own birthday.
What made it an Amsterdam institution was a single freedom. On the holiday, residents were allowed to sell things on the street without a permit, and the vrijmarkt, the free market, grew out of that exemption. The night before became Koningsnacht for the simplest of reasons: a day off tomorrow means a night out tonight.
The scale is the other thing to understand. The city counted 600,000 people in 2004 and 800,000 by 2010, and from 2011 it moved the largest organised parties out to its edges to keep the centre manageable.
Where to watch Koningsdag
- For the market, the residential streets of the canal belt and the Jordaan, because the sellers are mostly people clearing out their own homes and they sell where they live.
- The Vondelpark has for years been kept for children selling their own toys, books and drawings, which makes it the gentlest place to see the tradition at work.
- For the party, the canals: boats full of people in orange fill the water from late morning, and every bridge becomes a grandstand.
- If crowds are not what you came for, go early. The market is at its best in the first hours, before the party moves into the same streets and the walking stops being easy.
Tickets and what it costs
Taking part is free: the streets, the canals and the parks are open to everyone, and the only spending is at the stalls.
The organised parties are the exception. The biggest of them once took over the Museumplein and was moved out to Zuid when the city pushed large events to its edges, and those parties run on their own terms.
Official information and booking: www.amsterdam.nl/nieuws/evenementen-herdenkingen/koningsdag-2027
Getting there
Walk. The centre is compact, and by midday the streets that matter are packed shoulder to shoulder, which is the condition trams cope with worst.
Public transport runs, but expect routes through the centre to be diverted or cut short, and check the GVB planner on the morning itself.
Arriving by train is the easiest way in. The station area is also the pinch point at the end of the day, so leave before the evening rush or well after it.
Mistakes worth avoiding
Wearing anything but orange
Nobody will stop you, but you will be the only one. Orange is the royal house’s colour, and for one day the city wears it head to toe.
Arriving at noon for the market
By then the best of it has been picked over and the party has started to take over the same streets. Early morning is when the stalls are full and walking is still possible.
Planning to cross the city by tram
Routes through the centre are disrupted and the stops are mobbed. Choose one area, arrive on foot and stay in it.
Carrying a bag of beer
The city has limited how much alcohol people may carry during the holiday before now, and it sets the rules again each year. Read them before you pack a bag.
Booking a hotel late
Hundreds of thousands of people come into the city for this one day. Rooms for the night before, and for the night itself, go early and at a price that shows it.
Other Amsterdam events
Frequently asked questions
When is Koningsdag?
On the king’s birthday, which is why the date moved when the throne changed hands in 2014. The evening before is Koningsnacht, which has become a night out of its own. The exact dates are on the dates card above.
What is the vrijmarkt?
The free market. On Koningsdag people may sell their own belongings on the street without a permit, so pavements, doorsteps and parks fill with stalls. It grew out of that one exemption and is the part of the day that is specific to the Netherlands.
Do I need a ticket?
No. The streets, the market and the canals are open to everyone. Only the organised parties at the edges of the city sell entry.
Is Koningsdag good for children?
In the parks and in the morning, yes. The Vondelpark has long been kept for children selling their own things. The canal belt in the afternoon is a crowded street party and a much harder place to keep hold of a small hand.
Is it safe?
It is crowded more than it is dangerous, and the city has spent years managing the numbers, including moving the biggest parties out of the centre. Watch your pockets in the packed streets and plan a way home that avoids the station at the evening peak.
Should I plan an Amsterdam trip around it?
If you want the city at its most exuberant, yes. If you came for museums and a quiet walk by the water, move your dates by a few days, because this is when the centre is handed over entirely to the crowd.
Sources
- City of Amsterdam, this year’s Koningsdag page
- City of Amsterdam, from Prinsessedag to Koningsdag
- GVB, Amsterdam public transport
Dates on this page are checked against the organiser’s own listing and confirmed through 2027. Written and maintained by Harry Nara.