Following another wild King’s Day in 2025, Amsterdam Mayor Femke Halsema announced significant changes to the restrictions and rules for this outrageously orange celebration.
Don’t worry, you’ll still be able to party it up come April 27. But thanks to the new rules, courtesy of Halsema, a few things will be changing.
So here’s what to expect!
Don’t rock the boat
First of all, the 12+1 rule, which denotes that a maximum of 12 people plus a skipper are allowed on a party boat, will be much more strictly enforced, reports Het Parool.
Anyone caught breaking the rule faces a fine: the gemeente has set penalties at €160 for private skippers aged 16 and over, and €800 for commercial operators.
And hey, maybe that’s a good thing. No more sardine-style packed parties, and more room to dance!
Expect party police (the good kind?)
In addition, there’ll be more rigorous street enforcement.
Illegal alcohol sales and street parties will receive an additional crackdown as well. Anyone violating the new rules or caught hosting illegal parties could face steep fines.
So, your neighbor DJing out of his window? He might have to pack things up. These rules are in place to avoid overcrowding and dangerous situations in the city centre.
Festivals outside the city centre will also be allowed to run longer to avoid densely packed streets, which create the most unsafe conditions.
These will be permitted to run until 10 PM, according to the gemeente. The party must go on!
Look out for special emergency services (Amsterdam style!)
In true Dutch fashion, there will also be additional emergency services on bikes. This fiets-ambulance is actually ingenious — it allows help to get where it needs to go faster and with greater agility.
According to AT5, Westerstraat and Noordermarkt are set to become official event venues from 2027. Whether the streets will be fully closed off has not yet been decided. In the meantime, private supervisors will already be deployed there this year.
This area, called Jordaan, is a neighbourhood that desperately needs change and better management on the craziest day of the year.
Reactions and reasoning
Plenty of residents are overjoyed at the stricter measures, as King’s Day has become more of a hassle than a celebration for city-centre dwellers.
@ivona1908 King‘s Day oder Apokalypse 😂 #kingsday #amsterdam #netherlands #trash #viral #fyp #tiktok ♬ Originalton – Ivona
From public urination to tourists in the water, some people feel… less than joyous about this day of partying.
One thing is for sure, though: the Dutch have partying in their (orange) blood, and King’s Day is sure to be a (safer) blast this year too.
What do you think of the new King’s Day changes? Let us know in the comments!
