What are your plans during the Christmas holiday?
Things to do during the christmas holiday
Ahhh... Christmas holidays! Two whole weeks off! Maybe you have some christmas-obligations, but hopefully there’s also some extra time for the following Christmas-holiday-activities:
Of course, we have to start off this list by mentioning a Christmas market. I will only highlight a couple in this article, but one I had to mention is the Christmas market in Maastricht. It’s so cosy and fun, you can’t miss it! There’s a skating rink and lots of great stands to shop. Besides that, Maastricht is a beautiful city that deserves a visit.
The Amsterdam Lights festival is a beautiful open-air art exhibition. All of the artworks have a light-up element. This year is the 8th edition of the festival and the theme is DISRUPT! 22 artists from all over the world have translated this theme into artworks that work perfectly together with the beauty of the city around it. With ISIC and Tiqets you can get 8% off your tickets, so book them now!
Haven’t visited this iconic Dutch theme park yet? Do it during the holidays! The Efteling is transformed into the Winter Efteling until February 2nd. There’s koek & zopie stands, beautiful holiday decorations and there are special winter-themed shows and entertainment. Walking around a theme park in the cold might not sound appealing, but the Efteling makes it worth it (and you can always warm up next to one of the many fires burning around the park).
Leiden floating Christmas market
In Leiden you will find a floating Christmas market. The stands are constructed on top of the water of the Nieuwe Rijn, which gives the whole market a unique Dutch feel. There’s a Christmas fair, as well as a boat tour to complete the festive experience. Go easy on the glühwein or you might get seasick!
Who says festivals are only for the summer? There are many great winter festivals happening during the Christmas holiday, like Valhalla or the Foute Kerstparty XXL! Check out this page on Festicket and get a 5% discount with your ISIC card. (Festicket also has tickets for a lot of great NYE parties, so make sure to take a look if you don’t have any plans for Oudejaarsavond yet!)
The Christmas holidays are the perfect time to get to know the lowlands. Put on your best shoes and warmest winter coat and take a tour in a city you haven’t been to before. ISIC offers discounts to various tours, including WithLocals or Arnhem life.
Go Ice skating
We can’t have a Christmas-holiday-activity list without mentioning the ultimate Dutch winter activity: ice skating! You can go to a ‘true’ skating rink, like de Jaap Edenbaan in Amsterdam or the Vechtsebanen in Utrecht, but there’s also a bunch of fun seasonal skating rinks. You could go to ICE in Amsterdam, which besides a skating rink also has a fun bistro and tiny Christmas market (again, get an 8% discount with ISIC and Tiqets).
*(a Dutch tradition that stems from ice skating, koek & zopie stands used to pop up all across natural ice-skating routes, selling Dutch staples like snert and gevulde koeken, but also glühwein and hot chocolate)
Get your ISIC card
EUR 12