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Where do the dutch go on holiday in the Netherlands?

Angelique / 20 May 2022

Every country has its customs regarding how and where we spend our holidays. Of course, this depends on the number of vacation days and the public holidays you are entitled to. As new residents of the Netherlands, I can imagine that you would like to know how the Dutch celebrate their holiday in the Netherlands and where they will go. Because moving to a new country does not mean that we no longer need a wonderful holiday. During this process of getting used to a new country, those moments of doing nothing are even more precious. I totally get you, and I have some great tips for finding your perfect holiday in the Netherlands. Holidays in the Netherlands Compared to other European countries, the Netherlands does not have that many vacation days on average, and it is not legally determined that you are free on our public holidays. Always check your holidays with your employer before booking. If you want to take days off, you must request this in writing to your employer. Your employer has two weeks to approve your application. Your employer may also allow you to take some compulsory days off each year. A mandatory day off often falls between a national holiday and the weekend. Think of the Friday after Ascension Day. On such a day you have to take compulsory leave. They will deduct the number of hours you usually work from your vacation days. The employer must indicate these days well in advance. Your collective labor agreement or contract states how many days your employer may designate as mandatory days. Popular weekends to go on holiday in the Netherlands We usually plan our vacations roughly in January to see how we will turn out with the holidays we have at our disposal. This way, we can spread the days over the whole year so that the periods you have to work in succession are not too long. Most Dutch families plan 2 to 3 weeks off for their summer leave. Furthermore, Easter weekend, Ascension weekend, and Whitsun weekend are popular weekends. These are the times that many people use to get out in the Netherlands. Types of accommodations Now you know how to ask for days off and the most popular holidays in the Netherlands. Time to start with the different types of accommodations that the Netherlands offers. I immediately think of Hotels, Bungalow Parks, and Campsites. What you choose depends entirely on your needs and expectations. For romantic and more luxury trips, you can choose an overnight stay in a hotel, and if you plan to go out with the whole family, you can choose a bungalow park or a campsite. Although there are also plenty of family-friendly hotels in the Netherlands, you will find many great ones if you prefer a hotel. In recent years, slightly more special accommodations have also become very popular. Think of sleeping in a Treehouse, Pipowagen, Houseboats, or houses hidden in nature. I will tell you more about this later. Hotels A hotel is an excellent option if you like luxury or want to go out together on a romantic trip. Whether you choose a city, the sea, a bicycle, or a wellness weekend, there is so much choice in hotels in various price ranges and locations that it is almost impossible not to find something you like. Even as a family, you will find great hotels with family rooms where you are more than welcome with your kids. You only need to bring some clothes, and your breakfast will be ready when you wake up. Hotels.nl is a good website for finding a hotel in the Netherlands. Here you can search for great deals or by destination. But you will also easily find what you are looking for via Booking.com. Bungalow Parks Bungalow Parks are popular in the Netherlands. They are perfect to go all year round. Many holiday parks have an indoor center where you can find restaurants and shops and many play options for the children. You can often do all kinds of indoor activities such as swimming, bowling, and tennis. You are guaranteed a successful weekend, even with rainy weather. Determine what you would like to do during your vacation and choose your location based on that. There are holiday parks with a large indoor center, where you don’t even have to leave the park. Often these parks also have a large indoor swimming pool where you can enjoy yourself for many hours. But there are also parks close to a beach or popular attractions or a large city or zoo that you would like to visit. The fewer facilities at the park, the better the price, so take a good look at what you plan to use before you book your accommodation. There is enough choice to suit everyone’s needs and budget. CenterParcs is one of our favorite organizations for a weekend getaway. Most parks have a fantastic tropical swimming pool and an indoor area where you will find restaurants, shops, entertainment, and many fun activities. There is always plenty to do and experience, both in good weather and on rainy days. Something essential in this country where we can never be sure of the weather. If you enter this search into Google, you will undoubtedly find many Holiday parks in the Netherlands! – BUNGALOWPARKEN IN NEDERLAND – Campsites Despite our rainy weather, there are still many people who choose to camp in the Netherlands. The great thing about camping is the contact with other people. It’s so easy for kids to make friends and play outside the whole day. The Netherlands has large campsites with fantastic water parks, playgrounds, and children’s entertainment. Here you are assured of a dream holiday for your children. And if your children are having a good time, so are we as parents, aren’t we? If you don’t like the larger campsites, there is also plenty of choice in smaller ones. You can check the camps’ websites

Dutch Culture, Going Outdoors, Netherlands

How to make your visit to Keukenhof gardens an amazing day

Angelique / 14 April 2022

I must honestly confess to you that my recent visit to Keukenhof gardens and tulip fields was the very first time for me. When I was looking for the necessary information for my trip, I came across that only 25% of the visitors to Keukenhof gardens are Dutch. So I am probably not the only Dutch person who has never been there (feel a little less shame now). The advantage for you is that I can now share all the information I have looked up. That saves you a lot of time that you can put back into other fun things. I will give you the best travel tips for Keukenhof gardens and tulip fields to ensure that your visit is a success. Keukenhof gardens in the Netherlands is famous worldwide and you should definitely visit this place now that you live here in the Netherlands. If it’s not for this year then go next year but don’t wait as long as I did, it’s well worth a visit. Is Keukenhof Gardens open all year? Keukenhof gardens is only open for several weeks every year. In 2022 this is from Thursday 24 March to Sunday 15 May. The park is open from 8:00 AM – 7:30 PM. Best time to visit Keukenhof Gardens? It doesn’t really matter whether you go in the first weeks after the opening or only during the last weeks. There are always plenty of flowering species to see. In the beginning, you mainly see the early flowering species such as crocuses, daffodils, hyacinths, and the early tulips. During the last weeks, these are mainly the later bloomers such as the larger tulips. During the early hours and after 16:00 it is quieter in the Park. Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays are also a bit quieter than the other days. And if you have the option to avoid the weekends, I would definitely recommend that. There are often long traffic jams to Keukenhof gardens. Where is Keukenhof Gardens located? Keukenhof gardens can be found in the province of Noord-Holland in the town of Lisse, which lies between Haarlem and Leiden and not so far from Amsterdam. Lisse is located in the center of the beautiful region that we call Bollenstreek. Amsterdam is about a half-hour drive. Can you picnic in Keukenhof Gardens? Yes, you can just bring your own food and drinks to Keukenhof gardens. Then you can enjoy your brought snacks and drinks outside on the grass fields or on a bench. You are not allowed to take them into the restaurants, but that seems logical to me. Of course, you can also buy something in the restaurants and then go for a picnic. History of Keukenhof Gardens Its history goes back to the 15th century. Countess Jacoba van Beieren brought vegetables and fruit from the kitchen dune for the kitchen of Castle Teylingen. Keukenhof Castle was built in 1641 and the landscape expanded to an area of over 200 hectares. Two landscape architects, later also the designers of the Vondelpark in Amsterdam, redesigned the garden around the castle in 1857. This park in English landscape style still forms the basis of Keukenhof. In 1949, a group of flower bulb growers and exporters devised a plan to create an exhibition of spring-blooming flower bulbs on the estate. The park first opened in 1950. The Keukenhof was a resounding success from the start. Source: Keukenhof.nl The Keukenhof Gardens of today Nowadays, 100 flower bulb companies and growers show their finest range of spring-flowering bulbous plants. Every year, in consultation with the growers, the Keukenhof garden designers put on a fantastic colorful show. These are beautiful ‘showrooms’ of flowers for the growers. Keukenhof gardens look different every year. The designers of this beautiful flower park always make it a unique experience. I am definitely a fan. How long to spend in Keukenhof Gardens To get the most out of your day, I would advise you to leave early so that you can reach Keukenhof gardens before the big crowds. Buy your tickets in advance so that you can also skip that possible line. Upon entering the park, there are maps of the park for you on which you can determine your route and have a bit of an idea about the size of the park. There are beautiful paths to follow and along the way, you will pass some pavilions with flower shows. You can also take a trip with a whisper boat at the windmill in the park. Enjoy the quiet, typical Dutch landscape around Keukenhof gardens in an electrically powered whisper boat. The boat trip lasts 45 minutes and you can listen to an explanation about the Bollenstreek during the trip! It is best to buy tickets for this in advance so that you are sure of a place. Tickets for this trip are available via this link. On average you will need 4 hours to see the entire park. If you go early, this gives you the opportunity to do another activity in the afternoon. You can rent a bicycle or, for example, pick fresh tulips yourself on the field. (Read further for more information). Rent a bike to cycle around the Tulip fields At the parking lot at the main entrance of Keukenhof gardens, you can rent a bicycle with which you can cycle around the flower fields that surround Keukenhof gardens. You can rent a bike for 3 hours or for the whole day and there are routes of various distances. Check the website of the Bollenstreek for prices and more information. Pick your own tulips If you like to take home a bunch of tulips that you picked yourself, visit one of the nice picking gardens before you drive back. In the village of Hillegom, you will find Annemieke’s Pluktuin. Self-picking is also possible at Tulip Experience Amsterdam in their indoor picking garden. At Tulip experience Amsterdam you have to order tickets online via their website. Instagrammable places at Keukenhof Gardens and

Dutch Culture, Expat Life

Useful apps for Expats in the Netherlands

Angelique / 12 March 2022

If you’ve just moved to the Netherlands and your bags are unpacked, it’s time to get to know your new country a little better. But before we set off, it is helpful to start this new adventure well prepared, and these handy apps on your phone will undoubtedly help you with this. So check out these useful apps for expats in the Netherlands, and you are good to go. 1. Buienradar With Buienradar, you can see where and when it will rain. Buienradar has a handy radar that shows the location of the rain showers over the Netherlands. With this app, you can look 24 hours ahead and see the weather forecast for the next two weeks. Buienradar has a lot to offer and is almost essential for a good start to the day. 2. 9292 With the 9292 app, you can plan a trip by tram, train, bus, and metro. Enter ‘from’ and ‘to’ and ‘when’ you want to leave on the home screen. Choose if you’re going to start from an address, a station, or choose a zip code. The travel advice from public transport is automatically displayed. Make it more personal by indicating how you want to travel, for example by bus and train. You also have the choice of your current location via GPS. You can view the map to see your route when selecting’ travel advice. Scroll from left to right to know the route step by step. 3. NS (Dutch train network) Where you use the app 9292 for all kinds of public transport, this NS app is for train tickets and information. You can buy your train tickets online via this app, and the app lets you access your train ticket on your phone. You can use your phone to scan through the gates and access the platforms. The app also shows you which platform your train will leave and when you will arrive. 4. DigiD With your DigiD, you show who you are when you arrange something on the internet, whether to set things with the government, education, healthcare, or your pension fund. Your DigiD account is linked to your BSN, and it comes in the form of a username and password. Thanks to your DigiD, you can log in easily and securely anywhere. Your personal data remains well protected. 5. WhatsApp WhatsApp is the chat service we use most in the Netherlands. With this app, you can send messages and make voice calls and video calls. All you need is a working internet connection and a linked phone number. 6. Tikkie Did you go out with friends and pay the bill at the restaurant? Tikkie is an app with which you can send someone a payment request via WhatsApp, SMS, or however you want. With this app, you will have your money back in no time. 7. Too Good To Go With this app, you can easily contribute to the fight against food waste. If you enter your location, you will see shops in your area that offer ‘magic boxes’ for a few euros with products that would otherwise be thrown away. In this way, you contribute to saving the planet and having good food at an affordable price. 8. Thuisbezorgd With this app, you can order food online from various restaurants in your area, and for a small extra fee, they will deliver everything to your home. Very handy if you don’t feel like going out. 9. Stocard This app is especially useful if you hate all those different cards in your wallet. You can add your loyalty cards to this app so that you can leave all those cards at home from now on. For example, when you visit Albert Heijn, you open the AH card on your app, and you can simply scan it from your phone. So very handy! 10. Stadsparkeren If you own a car, this app is easy for paying for your parking ticket. When you use the app for the first time, you add your car’s license plate. There are blue signs with an x-digit zone number in the parking lot or along the road. You enter this zone number after selecting your car and press start. Just don’t forget to stop your parking action when you return to your vehicle. Once a month, the invoice is automatically debited from your bank account. 11. Google Maps Everyone probably knows this app and has it on their phone, but I would like to add it to this list. I find it especially useful for sharing interesting locations with friends. If we meet somewhere, we are sure we are both at the exact location. I also use this app to mark the locations that I want to visit soon and throw them out again when we have seen them. 12. Party of 4 Party of 4 is for finding friendship, (totally platonic), and for couples only. This app is designed by an expat and helps you find your future best friends. Whether you are a young couple, you have children, or your children have already left the parental home, you will always find a couple that suits you. Check out a couple’s bio to see what they enjoy doing. Then say hello to your new brewery friends, or new golf friends, or new foodie friends. Whatever you 2 enjoy doing, find another couple to do it with. It’s a great way to get to know people after moving to a new country. 13. Google Translate This app is gold when you move to a country where you don’t speak the language. We have used this app a lot during our adventures. The translation isn’t always perfect, but it does get you a long way. 14. Social Deal This app offers the best deals for attractions in the Netherlands, cafes, restaurants, and even hotels and wellness. You will find new offers every day. If you’re planning a romantic date or a nice family outing and love

Dutch Culture, Expat Life

How to celebrate Sinterklaas

Angelique / 7 December 2021

Sinterklaas is a famous annual festival celebrated in the Netherlands on December 5. The Sinterklaas season starts in mid-November with the arrival of Sinterklaas on the first Saturday after November 11 (Sint Maarten), followed by a period of putting a shoe in front of the fireplace until the party itself. When we talk about Dutch culture and specific things that belong to this country, we think directly of Sinterklaas. It’s not Santa Claus but Sinterklaas. The figure of Santa Claus is largely based on the Dutch Sinterklaas. There are some differences, however. I will try to help you understand Dutch culture a little bit better, that’s why I especially want to tell you about how the Dutch celebrate Sinterklaas and how you can prepare your children for all the festivities that this party entails. Who is Sinterklaas? Saint Nicholas is the main character of the Sinterklaas party, which is celebrated in the Netherlands on December 5. Saint Nicholas is based on the bishop Nicholas of Myra, a Greek saint who lived in Lycia in the third century AD in modern-day Turkey. He died on December 6, 342. Later this day became his name day. The current celebration of the Sinterklaas party stems from the picture book ‘Sint Nikolaas en zijn knecht’ from 1850 by teacher Jan Schenkman, who lived from 1806-1863. He was the first to send Saint Nicholas from Spain. According to him, Saint Nicholas was the bishop of Spain. This teacher also introduced the servant who would later be called ‘Piet’ and the steamboat with which he came to the Netherlands. Saint Nicholas is usually presented as a stately old man with a white beard and white hair, wearing a red miter and cloak. He rides on a white horse called ‘Ozosnel’ and has several helpers who we call ‘Pieten.’ If we briefly summarize this, Saint Nicholas comes by boat from Spain together with his Pieten and his horse and brings presents. What do we celebrate during Sinterklaas? The best answer to this is that we commemorate the anniversary of the death of Saint Nicholas, who has his name day on December 6. However, the children are told that Saint Nicholas celebrates his birthday on December 6, giving all the children presents. Which countries celebrate Sinterklaas? Sinterklaas is also celebrated outside the Netherlands in: Belgium Germany Aruba Some small things are different about how these countries celebrate Sinterklaas. Traditions that belong to Sinterklaas! Intocht (arrival) van Sinterklaas The national arrival of Saint Nicholas is broadcast on national television. This is always on the first Saturday after November 11. Saint Nicholas and his helpers arrive by boat from Spain and often continue on horse or foot. The local arrivals are usually the same weekend as the national arrivals. Where possible, Saint Nicholas also arrives here by boat and continues his way by horse or walking past all the children and their parents. During this parade, traditional candy is distributed by all the ‘Pieten’, and children are singing Sinterklaas songs. This is the official signal for children that they can put their shoes ready from that moment on. Putting your shoe in front of the fireplace The oldest Sinterklaas custom is to put your shoe in front of the fireplace. In the Netherlands, this has been done since at least the 15th century when the poor put their shoes in the church, and wealthy citizens put money in it, distributed among the poor. It is believed that they started placing the shoe in living rooms in the 16th century. The children fill their shoes with oats and straw. The parents replace this with apples, biscuits, raisins, or money late at night. Later, this was replaced for toys, candy, gingerbread nuts, spice nuts, marzipan, or speculaas. The story goes that naughty children were beaten with the rod or even taken to Spain in the sack of Saint Nicholas. A sweet tradition Sinterklaas is a feast with many sweets. Especially for the period around Sinterklaas, some typical candy that we call ‘strooigoed’ is handed out on the street or is scattered inside by the pieten. ‘Strooigoed’ contains gingerbread nuts, spice nuts, little meringues, and sugar confections and looks like the picture. Singing Sinterklaas songs Singing to Saint Nicholas is one of the most important customs associated with this celebration. Kids will sing songs during the arrival of Saint Nicholas in the Netherlands, when kids put their shoes at the fireplace and at the start of ‘Pakjesavond,’ which is on December 5. Sinterklaas evening or ‘Pakjesavond’ Sinterklaas evening, also known as ‘Pakjesavond,’ is held on or around December 5th and is often celebrated with the family. Sinterklaas songs are played and sung this evening while Saint Nicholas and his helpers visit the children at home with a bag full of presents or deliver the gifts to the door. When children are still very young, they put their shoes in front of the fireplace and find the gifts when they wake up in the morning. Wishlist In the run-up to Sinterklaas, you will find magazines with gift ideas in the various toy stores. These books are ideal for making wish lists. Let the children cut out their wishes and stick them on to a piece of paper. These lists are put in the shoe so Piet can take the wishlist and give it to Saint Nicholas. December 6 According to the story, Saint Nicholas will return to Spain on December 6 early in the morning. Most elementary schools will give the children a day off if December 6 is on a weekday. Some helpful Tips There are companies where you can hire Saint Nicholas and Piets to come to your home. It is also very common to ask an acquaintance or neighbor to put the bag of gifts at the door and then knock on the door loudly. Make sure they are gone before the children open the door. At Albert Heijn, you can get the