{"id":8884,"date":"2014-04-29T08:06:56","date_gmt":"2014-04-29T08:06:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/localhost\/wordpress72\/?p=25506"},"modified":"2025-12-19T11:22:28","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T10:22:28","slug":"rotterdam-celebrates-koningsdag","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2014\/04\/29\/rotterdam-celebrates-koningsdag\/","title":{"rendered":"Rotterdam celebrates Koningsdag"},"content":{"rendered":"

Koningsdag or \u2018King\u2019s day\u2019, is a day where people come out to enjoy drinks, wear lots of orange and soak in the sunlight. The entire country celebrates the head of the Dutch Royal family\u2019s birthday but Rotterdam emerges as a particularly special place to be.<\/p>\n

In\u00a0 2013, the Netherlands celebrated the very last Queen\u2019s day with the inauguration of King Willem-Alexander on the 30th of April. The queen\u2019s birthday fell on the 30th (tomorrow) but with the new King and new birthday, King\u2019s day would henceforth be celebrated on the 27th. Typically, one thinks of Amsterdam as the destination for this but Rotterdam has attracted quite a lot of people for 2014\u2019s King\u2019s Day as well.<\/p>\n

Koningsnacht<\/b><\/p>\n

You can\u2019t have a King\u2019s Day without a proper King\u2019s Night. With a nightlife as infamous as Rotterdam\u2019s, people flocked to the city. A couple from Breda said, \u201cWe first went to the Hague for the night, Amsterdam on the day and Rotterdam for the final party because we love the music here.\u201d Anne de Boar from Hogeschool Rotterdam said, \u201cI joined Hollywood for the day since they were open from the early morning till around 11 PM.\u201d Madeline Franken, from Hogeschool Rotterdam explained, \u201cAs a Mormon, I don\u2019t drink but the event isn\u2019t just about drinking. King\u2019s day has become part of a cultural tradition with dancing, almost perfect weather, lots of good food and fun people.\u201d<\/p>\n

Shopping, food and a lot of orange<\/b><\/p>\n

The Vrijmarkt of Rotterdam opened up on King\u2019s Day across neighborhoods like Coolsingel, Hofplein, Hoogstraat and Blaak, which was a lot of fun but unbelievably packed. Shop owners set up all sorts of orange souvenirs for those who hadn\u2019t prepared the day before, which people very appreciatively bought. There\u2019s also the space to sit and watch where party-boats blasted music and carried people who danced as they navigated between the canals. Rotterdam also held outdoors events like Oranjebitter during the day along with several of its famous clubs including Club Vie, Thalia Lounge and Corso.<\/p>\n

Koningsdag parties<\/b><\/p>\n

Kralingse Bos proved to be a very popular destination to spend the day. Live music was set up featuring Nina Kraviz, Henrik Schwarz and other acts. Across the area, people danced under the bright sunshine, they picnicked and drank a lot of alcohol \u2013 something which is normally not allowed to do in public. Give Soul, an events-organization set up their first King\u2019s Day beneath the Erasmus Bridge, which also attracted a lot of King\u2019s Day celebrators. Bars around Beurs and the Centre of Rotterdam were filled with families and groups who cheered to the King and life in general while singing songs that everyone seemed to know. NAH<\/p>\n\n\t

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