December is a great month to visit Amsterdam. Sample the Christmas spirit in the historic heart of the city, enjoy special holiday productions and shop to your hearts content. The city is sparkling with atmosphere, with festive lights lining the streets and decked-out Christmas trees towering over the Dam square and Leidseplein. When the sun goes down, the bridges over the canals and several historic buildings are illuminated. The festive scent of pine is in the air at the traditional Christmas tree market on the Singel between the Muntplein and Koningsplein. The flower market has a separate section just for wreathes, holly, mistletoe and Christmas bouquets. The stalls and barges are illuminated with lamps and lanterns.

Shops and department stores in the centre are open late every Thursday evening until 21:00. During the holiday season, shops will extend their hours on 3 and 4 December and 20 and 21 December 2007. Many Amsterdam shops and department stores are decorated in the holiday spirit during this period. A fantastic example of this is the Magna Plaza shopping centre and the Bijenkorf department store. The pièce de resistance in the Bijenkorf is the twelve-metre high Christmas tree in the atrium, graced with ten thousand Swarovski crystals. This is on view after 6 December, when the famous climbing Piets and Sinterklaas return to Spain.