Amsterdam's Christmas experience begins earlier than most European cities, with Sinterklaas — the feast of St. Nicholas on December 5th — being the Dutch gift-giving tradition from which Christmas itself partly derives. The arrival of Sinterklaas by steamboat from Spain, celebrated in a nationwide event in mid-November, is followed by Pakjesavond (Gifts Evening) on December 5th, when Dutch families exchange presents. Hotels near the Centraal Station see the Sinterklaas parade route, which is extraordinary to witness if you're arriving in mid-November.
The Christmas market at Museumplein, in the open square between the Rijksmuseum, Van Gogh Museum, and Stedelijk Museum, is Amsterdam's most culturally embedded seasonal market — a location that situates the festive stalls within sight of three of the world's great art museums. The backdrop of the Rijksmuseum's neo-Renaissance facade, illuminated at night, creates a Christmas market setting that rivals any in Europe. An ice rink is installed on the square each year.
The canal ring (Grachtengordel) is particularly beautiful at Christmas. The city's 17th-century canal bridges, some 1,500 of them, are strung with lights throughout December in what Amsterdam calls the 'light festival'. In some years, the Amsterdam Light Festival adds specially commissioned large-scale light art installations along the main canals, adding contemporary visual interest to the historic illuminations. A canal boat tour during the festival is one of Amsterdam's great seasonal experiences.
Amsterdam's Jordaan neighborhood — the city's most characterful quarter, a dense web of narrow streets, independent shops, and traditional brown cafés — is at its most atmospheric in December. Brown cafés (bruine kroegen) are the Dutch answer to the Irish pub: dark, wood-paneled, candle-lit, serving local beers and jenever (Dutch gin) to a neighborhood crowd with no concession to tourism. Sitting in a Jordaan bruine kroog on a winter evening, snow falling past the frosted window, is the quintessential Amsterdam Christmas experience.
Amsterdam's museums have shorter queues in December than in summer — the Rijksmuseum's magnificent 17th-century Dutch master collection, the Van Gogh Museum, and the Anne Frank House are all significantly more manageable visits in winter. The Anne Frank House in particular gains additional emotional resonance in winter, when the narrow canal house's dark interiors and the fading light outside create an atmosphere very close to the wartime experience described in the diary.
