Amsterdam, Netherlands – one of the most beautiful places to visit on Earth. It was ranked as the 2^nd most liveable city of Earth by Economist Intelligence Unit on it’s merit of environment, living & infrastructure. The city emerged as a small port back in the 12^th century and began to flourish. Later in the 17^th century, it emerged as a major diamond and finance capital of Netherlands.

Amsterdam has in it’s presence many beautiful sights for the traveller in you to visit. The 17^th century canals and the 20^th century defence line of Amsterdam are both sights that have been noted by UNESCO in it’s world heritage list.

The Amsterdam stock exchange is the oldest stock exchange in the world, the location of which is at the city center. The Amsterdam sea port is the 5^th largest in Europe and was pivotal to Amsterdam emerging as one of the most prominent ports in the world during Dutch Golden Age (17^th century).

Amsterdam on an average draws more than 5 million visitors on an annual basis. The tourist attraction takes a massive spike during the month of April. Why, you ask! The reason is the Koningsdag festival as the Dutch call it or King’s Day as it’s known across the world.

What is King’s Day in Amsterdam?

The festival is celebrated as a national holiday in the memory of King’sWillem – Alexander’s birthday. The festival has been celebrated since 1885 but before 2014, the day was referred to as Queen’s Day – in memory of Queen Wilhelmina.

Queen Wilhelmina’s daughter got the throne in 1949 and she was born on the 30^th of April – the Queen’s day was therefore then shifted from 31 August (Queen Wilhelmina’s birthdate) to 30^th of April.

As on 2014, the King’s Day is now celebrated on the 27^th of April – on the birthdate of King Willem. The festival has had name changes in the past, it has also had changes in it’s date of celebration but the mood and the passion among the Dutch people to celebrate the day as a tribute to their royal family, the house of Orange-Nassau has only grown stronger with the time.

How is King’s Day celebrated?

King’s day is essentially about people and their pets dressing in orange and therefore covering the city of Amsterdam in pure orange.

The city turns into a flea market on the day, wherein people literarily put up their ownstalls and sell food items and second-hand things, which adds to the festive feeling of the day.

Families have the opportunity to indulge themselves in awesome food – that is sold on the streets, as well as try their hand at face-painting, sports events and games.

King’s day – a tourist’s delight

The King’s Day festivities start to take place on the eve of the big day as the DJ’s start to rock public squares with music & decorated boats are on display at the famous Amsterdam canal.

On the King’s Day – while most of the museums are closed in the city, 2 top museums that you can visit to get up close & personal with this beautiful city’s rich history; one can visit Stedelijk & House Botanicus museum, opening at 10:00 and closing at 6PM&5PM in the evening respectively.

How to visit Amsterdam via India.

Well, we know that this article has got you intrigued about all that Amsterdam has to offer the traveller in you. In order to reach Amsterdam, you can opt for any one of the following flights:-

• Mumbai > Amsterdam NON-STOP (9H05M via SpiceJet)
• Delhi > Amsterdam NON-STOP (8H55M via SpiceJet)