On Saturday, 26 April, people across the Netherlands celebrated King’s Day, with spontaneous parties filling up the streets and canals of Amsterdam. Celebrations were held a day early from King Willem-Alexander’s real birthday, to keep the Sunday rest.

The day started with the traditional flea markets in the morning, where people bought and sold used items, as well as food and drink. As temperatures reached a sunny 17°C in the afternoon, large crowds dressed in orange flooded the city centre of Amsterdam to celebrate the national holiday. Orange-themed parties took place in the streets and canals of the capital.

‘I really liked just seeing all the boats on the water with the music,’ said 23-year-old Cece from the Netherlands. ‘It created a lot of atmosphere, really creating the Dutch culture of being together and celebrating. Everyone was so happy.’

The colourful event serves as an important part of the Dutch identity, and it typically generates a feeling of unity among the locals. ‘I’m really proud of this ambience and atmosphere,’ said Ellen, 59, an experienced festival-goer when it comes to the showpiece event of the year. ‘I’ve been to around 40 King’s Days in total, and it’s always the same.’

Others from around the globe had a chance to mingle with fellow enthusiasts as the day unfolded and the parties reached their crescendo throughout the capital. ‘Everyone’s having a great party,’ stated Rishikesh, a 19-year-old Indian student at his first time attending the event. ‘I want to buy a boat now.’

By the afternoon, the city centre was packed, and the municipality urged people to stay away from the city, saying that it was ‘too busy’ and that people should ‘celebrate King’s Day somewhere else.’

Overall, this year’s King’s Day was ‘reasonably peaceful and festive,’ according to the police. Still, authorities were facing an uphill battle by the early evening, when a rampant crowd of youngsters attacked a car while vigorously celebrating in one of the most touristy spots of the entire country. The riot police were reported to have intervened, and a police horse was injured in the process. Stabbings also occurred in several different cities, but not all perpetrators were successfully found.

Apart from the capital, there were wild celebrations in almost all towns and cities across the Netherlands. Following the annual tradition of visiting a different Dutch municipality each year, King Willem-Alexander himself celebrated his 58th birthday in the western province of Doetinchem alongside his family and thousands of spectators. The festivities started over an hour late due to the funeral of Pope Francis, from which the Dutch royal family was absent. The King described his own birthday as ‘a day with two faces’ and called the Pope ‘a source of inspiration.’

In Belgium, King’s Day continues to pass by without the same type of fervour, attracting a limited crowd and providing no such festive experiences. ‘It reminds me of the Gentse Feesten, actually,’ claimed Belgian Jan-Pieter, 25, who played as a DJ during the Dutch King’s Day, pointing to the similarities between the nine-day party in East Flanders and the atmosphere felt on Saturday.

While there are no public parties on the streets of Brussels at the annual King’s Day celebrations on 15 November (nay a public national holiday), there is evidence to suggest that it would attract thousands from within the country’s borders and beyond. As international buses flooded Amsterdam’s central station in the early hours of the night, plenty of Belgians flocked on site to complete a remarkable one-day journey.

City workers also started with the cleanup of the streets around 18:00 while parties were still ongoing. Works continued through the night, with more than 3,520 m3 of waste having been collected in Amsterdam alone by Sunday morning, according to the municipality.

Text: Jan Rehaag and Bence Horvath

Photos: ©Jan Rehaag