On Thursday, April 27, 2023, the King and his family will celebrate King's Day in Rotterdam.
The Netherlands turns orange and celebrates King's Day. Throughout the country there are all kinds of activities such as free markets, festivals and King's Day parties. Some 200.000 revelers are expected in Amsterdam alone. In addition to Amsterdam, large crowds are also expected around Eindhoven, Breda, Alkmaar, Arnhem, Zwolle and Rotterdam, where the royal family will visit.
Rotterdam
Rotterdam turns orange on King's Day because of the visit from the royal family. The route of the Royal Family starts on Thursday 27 April at 11.00 a.m. at the Afrikaanderplein. The royal party is welcomed in a festive manner here. Accessibility and parking during King's Day are therefore under considerable pressure. Our advice is to use public transport. NS and RET are deploying extra trains and metros. The NS also stops at Blaak station. Some bus and tram lines are diverted due to King's Day.
On a large stage there are performances all day until 17 pm by well-known artists such as Davina Michelle, Lee Towers, Ronnie Flex and Broederliefde. On stage, the Royal Family bids farewell to the Rotterdam public around 13.00 p.m., where the party continues until 17.00 p.m. Are you coming by car from outside Rotterdam? Then you can park it at one of the P+R locations on the outskirts of the city and continue your journey by public transport. You can only park for free at a number of P+R areas if you continue your journey by public transport with an OV chip card or an RET day ticket with chip. On the page P+R areas read what they are and how they work.
free markets
A free market is a market where everyone, 'free', ie for free, can sell his merchandise. In the Netherlands, a large free market is traditionally held on King's Day in many cities. Wednesday evening is already celebrated in many places in our country. For example, the popular free market in Utrecht starts on Wednesday evening at 18 p.m. and continues all night and the next day. In addition, various music events take place in the city center, but other cities are also busy with revelers during King's Night, so wear warm clothes because the temperature can be around freezing.
This year, the 10-year reign in Rotterdam will be celebrated in a big way. The whole of Rotterdam is already decorated with orange decoration. The royal family visits Rotterdam, the place where Willem-Alexander celebrates his birthday and ten years of kingship.
It will be very busy in many places in our country during King's Night and King's Day and what is the best way to get from A to B? It is easiest to travel to the festivities by public transport, no one has to be the BOB and you do not have parking problems or traffic jams. In general, most public transport companies drive as on a Saturday. Arriva does use extra buses to safely transport partygoers to many festivities during King's Night and King's Day. RET deploys extra metros on this day. The Dutch Railways runs a special Orange timetable. Extra trains are running and the trains will also be longer than usual. Additional NS employees will also be deployed, for example to keep trains and stations clean and to help travelers on their way.
To keep it a pleasant day, there are a number of rules in the trains and at the stations. No alcohol is sold at the stations and no alcohol is allowed on the train. The luggage lockers at Breda and Amsterdam Central Station are closed. The Amsterdam RAI and Amsterdam Science Park stations are closed on King's Day to prevent unsafe and overcrowded situations. You can also just grab a bike or order a taxi. Keep in mind, for example, if you are going to celebrate in the center of Amsterdam that the center of Amsterdam is closed to motorized transport during King's Day. This also affects taxi transport. Being on the edge of the restricted area taxi ranks.
