On this page you can read everything about Dutch public holidays in 2023. And of course we also have a whole row of unofficial holidays. For example, Valentine’s Day , Ramadan and Sinterklaas . Scroll quickly for the handy overview of Jaarkalender.nl.

The public holidays in the Netherlands, as Wikipedia teaches us, can be divided into national holidays, generally recognized holidays and other holidays. King’s Day (Thursday, April 27, 2023) and Liberation Day (Friday, May 5, 2023) are the only two public holidays in 2023 that will be labeled national holidays. Did you know that Liberation Day has only been an annual national holiday since 1990? Before that it was only once every five years.

Generally Recognized Holidays 2023

New Year’s Day , Good Friday , Easter Monday and Easter Monday , King’s Day , Liberation Day , Ascension Day , Whit Monday and Whit Monday and Boxing Day. These are the generally recognized public holidays 2023 in the Netherlands. Schools are closed on these days and children are therefore free! This also applies to a large part of the working population of the Netherlands. But Good Friday and Liberation Day are often exceptions… Do you want to know exactly when you are free? Then check your collective labor agreement or employment contract. In the Netherlands there are no legal rules about compulsory days off on public holidays. Do you have to work on a generally recognized public holiday in 2023? This most likely applies to the Sunday surcharge.

Other holidays 2023

The other holidays of 2023 are very diverse. Three Kings (January 6, 2023), Carnival (from February 19 to Sunday, February 21, 2023) and Sint Maarten (November 11, 2023) are not equally celebrated everywhere. While New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day, Valentine’s Day , Mother’s and Father’s Day and of course Sinterklaas are very popular almost everywhere. Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr ( sugar fest ) are also playing an increasingly important role in our country. Of the other holidays 2023, there will still be: Remembrance Day (May 4, 2023), Animal Day (October 4, 2023) and Halloween(October 31, 2023). We would like to tell you more about that.

Remembrance Day on May 4

On May 4 at 8 p.m., the whole of the Netherlands will be silent for two minutes. Fortunately, almost everyone knows and does that! But who exactly do we commemorate during the National Remembrance Day? The National Committee 4 and 5 May has drawn up a memorandum for this. This is an official text and it reads: “During the National Remembrance Day, we commemorate all – civilians and military – who were killed or murdered in the Kingdom of the Netherlands or anywhere else in the world; during the Second World War and the colonial war in Indonesia, as well as in war situations and peacekeeping operations afterwards.” The National Remembrance Day takes place at the National Monument on Dam Square in Amsterdam. The king and queen will then lay a wreath on behalf of all residents of the Netherlands. The meeting will be broadcasted by NOS from 6:45 PM on NPO1.

Animal Day on October 4

On 4 October we will spoil our pets and animals extra! Because then it is of course animal day. But why is that actually on October 4? We find the answer on Willem Wever’s website. There is written about a large meeting that was held in Vienna in 1929 by animal protectors from all over the world. During this meeting all kinds of ideas were discussed to stop animal cruelty. The organization of the meeting also received a letter from Mrs. Winter from the Czech Republic. In that letter, which was read at the meeting, she asked if a day could also be set up to remember all the animals on earth. The animal protectors thought that was a very good idea! They chose the date October 4: the anniversary of Saint Francis of Assisi, the saint of plants and animals. So since 1929 it’s animal day every October 4th!