Revealing the mystery of Kings Day
What is Kings Day? Every year on April the 27th everyone in the Netherlands has the day off work to celebrate King Willem-Alexander’s birthday.
We spoke to one of our Dutch interpreters to find out what goes on during the biggest celebration of the year…
Day to night festivities- King’s Day festivities start around midnight and last throughout the early morning with an early rise for some …
At 6am the Vrijmarkt, ‘free market’ begins. This nationwide flea market is where half the population sells their used clothes and crafts for next to nothing. This is possible as 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.
Previously known as Queens Day- held on 30th April in honour of the former monarch Queen Beatrix. Beatrix decided to keep Queen’s Day as 30th April in honour of her mother – no doubt much to the delight of the Dutch people, since Beatrix’s real birthday falls on a wintry 31st January.
Canals –There is nothing like the sea of orange that fills the world famous canals on King’s Day in Amsterdam! People dance on boats and on the shore, if you know someone with a boat this is a great way to experience King’s Day.
Street performers- Throughout the city, professional street performers vie for attention. There are pick-up bands, aspiring opera singers, teenage rappers and street discos. Rio-style drum bands have been very popular the past few years. In the past, huge concerts were organised at various locations in the city, such as Dam square where as many as 800,000 people may gather.
Everyone wears orange- Orange is the colour of the Dutch Royal Family, which hails from the House of Orange. The vibrant
orange is unmissable amongst the excited crowds.
Finally, you even get to feast like a king!
At Vandu we have over 1500 interpreters and translators in over 100 different languages, including Dutch. For your free quote please call 01273 473986 or email info@vlslanguages.com
