FESTIVALS

Cannabis Cup
Amsterdam, The Netherlands - July 14 - 4 days
As if Amsterdam weren’t depraved enough, High Times magazine dreamed up the annual Cannabis Cup (www.cannabiscup.com/ht/cancup) fourteen years ago and it's since grown into a major international event. For.

North Sea Jazz Festival
Rotterdam, The Netherlands - July - 3 days
Held over a weekend in the middle of July, the North Sea Jazz Festival (www.northseajazz.nl) has attracted high-level names to its multiple stages since 1976. Now held in Rotterdam

Pink Pop Festival
Landgraaf, The Netherlands - May - 3 days
One of Europe’s biggies as far as rock festivals go, Pinkpop (www.pinkpop.nl), as it’s known, has been going since 1970 and always attracts the biggest names. Held over the.

Queen's Day
Amsterdam, The Netherlands - April 30, unless this falls on a Sunday, in which case April 29 - 1 day
If you’re going to pick any European capital for a major 24-hour sleaze, drugs and alcohol binge, it may as well be Amsterdam. And Queen’s Day is the wildest possible time.

HOLIDAYS

January 1 New Year's Day

March 21 Good Friday*

March 23 Easter Sunday

March 24 Easter Monday

April 30 Queen's Day (Koninginnedag)

May 1 Ascension

May 1 Labour Day

May 5 Liberation Day1

May 12 Whit Monday

December 25 Christmas Day

December 26 Boxing Day

1Liberation day, though celebrated every year, is a public holiday only every 5 years, occurring in 2000, then 2005 and so on.

*Shops remain open on Good Friday.

Weekend: Saturday, Sunday