Have you ever experienced a 24 hour party? One that spills from every house onto every street in a city? One that is peaceful and enjoyable for all involved?  

Welcome to Koninginnegdag (Queens day) in Amsterdam.

Kevin and I booked a weekend away at the start of May and decided on Amsterdam as the destination. I had no idea when we booked the trip that this celebration was happening, and when I found out I was more than a little concerned that it may ruin the romantic weekend we had planned!

Interestingly Wikipedia describes the celebrations as the official birthday of Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands, with the customs of drinking heavily, partying, wearing orange, flea markets, concerts, and traditional local gatherings being the most important factors to note!

Needless to say, the day lived up to every one of those descriptions. We left our hotel at 10am to explore and already the party was in full swing! By mid day we were wearing silly inflatable orange crowns to blend in with the crowds and experiencing an amazing atmosphere. On the recommendation of our server at a restaurant the night before we managed to find an area of Amsterdam that was fairly quiet with its tiny streets and canals lined with flea market stalls rather than booming music, and we really felt we experienced something of Amsterdam that we may not have otherwise on any other date.

With sleepy heads (because we are no longer 18 yrs old) we left the party in full swing in the market place in front of our hotel at about 11pm, thankfully it had stopped by the time we woke up the next morning. Amazingly we saw NO violence, virtually no police presence and no trouble through the about of alcohol and alternative drugs that were obviously being consumed (judging by the haze!)

Enjoy these images, they capture the day as we experienced it. The fun, and the celebration that is Koninginnedag.