Events for internationals in Amsterdam this month
Climate House at Hortus Botanicus
Amsterdam’s famous botanical gardens are among the oldest in the world. Created in 1638 as the city’s apothecary, they are home to a striking (and enormous!) greenhouse, which has just undergone a much-celebrated renovation. Don’t miss visiting this and breathing in the smell of its lush array of tropical plants.
Festival on the Ring
What do you do for your 750th birthday? You find a huge venue to get as many guests to as possible to come and celebrate with you, of course. In Amsterdam’s case, this is 15 kilometres of car-free motorway, which will host a huge range of activities, performances and parties on the longest day of the year. One of the highlights of the city’s anniversary celebrations.
FutureFest
Share your thoughts on what the best possible future for Amsterdam looks like. FutureFest features inspiring talks, sustainable fashion shows, VR installations, hackathons and much, much more, all about ideas for what Amsterdam should be in 2050.
Serve the City Action Day
Volunteering is a great way to give back to your community, get to know your city and meet plenty of new people. And Serve the City, a not-for-profit organisation that aims to enable flexible and easy volunteering, offers a perfect way in for newbies: on their monthly Action Day, you can choose a project from a wide range of activities.
Boom Chicago Comedy Festival
Boom Chicago is a real stalwart on the Amsterdam comedy scene, and it’s the city’s major venue for English-language comedy, with alumni including Seth Meyers, Jason Sudeikis and Jordan Peele. At its fifth annual Comedy Festival, expect stand-up, improv, sketch comedy and LGBTQ+ shows, plus interactive workshops for all skill levels and an after-party every night.
Aalsmeer Flower Festival
Travel to Aalsmeer for a beautiful weekend of flowers, arts and culture, as the village, home to the Netherland’s biggest flower auction, hosts its annual Flower Festival. The programme includes floristry demonstrations, workshops and special exhibitions.
This long-running and popular annual event celebrates Japanese culture in all its facets, from culinary specialities and stalls selling arts and crafts to performances of music with classical Japanese instruments, traditional dance and martial arts such as kendo and aikido.
Keti Koti
Keti Koti, the national commemoration and celebration of the abolishment of slavery in the Dutch colonies in 1863, is marked with several events each year. The day begins with a procession from Waterlooplein to Oosterpark, where the commemoration ceremony takes place. Simultaneously, a day-long festival takes over Museumplein with music, dance and food.
Julidans
The renowned annual festival for international contemporary dance festival returns, bringing more than 40 performances to 14 locations across the city, with International Theater Amsterdam as the heart of the festival.
Indian Summer
This festival in Almere celebrates Indian culture with lots of amazing food from stalls and food trucks and a varied cultural programme on the stage. It’s free and accessible for all ages.
Drinks after Work
Does what it says on the tin: Amsterdam International Community hosts this after-work drinks event at the lovely College Hotel in Oud Zuid. Get together with internationals and locals to toast to the end of the working day.
Artzuid
At this biannual four-month event, awe-inspiring contemporary sculptures are installed in Amsterdam Zuid’s avenues. The ninth edition is themed ‘Enlightenment’.
Amsterdam Zuid and Zuidas districts, until 21 September
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Whether you’re new to the Amsterdam Area or have been living here for years, our newsletter is designed to help internationals make the most of life in this vibrant region.
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