Queen’s Day will once again be celebrated on April 20 this year. Amsterdam is internationally reputed for the lavish manner in which Queen’s Day is celebrated. Visitors from abroad experience it as the Amsterdam alternative to carnival, with the main event being the open street markets. It is the one day of the year that everyone is permitted to sell their wares and make music on the open streets and sidewalks. The combination of amateur street vendors, market stalls, musicians, street performers and the aroma of roasted satés and Vietnamese spring rolls help create an extraordinary atmosphere throughout the city.

Queen’s Night festivities commence the evening before, on April 29. The city pulsates until the early hours with special Queen’s Night parties in most bars and nightclubs.