Amsterdam’s mayor, Femke Halsema, has drawn up a new hospitality policy that will leave some partygoers very disappointed.
You might have to start keeping your post-bar snacks at home. If the mayor’s new policy passes, the capital’s catering establishments will have to close an hour earlier — at 2 AM on weekends and 1 AM on weekdays.
A uniform policy to prevent nuisance
Whether this will happen depends on if the municipal council approves Halsema’s plans.
If they do, the whole city will have a uniform approach to closing times, whereas rules currently differ per district.
According to Het Parool, Halsema intends to regulate crowds in the city with her new plan. In the city centre especially, snackbars attract a lot of visitors late at night, which can be a nuisance.
However, her new policy may seriously affect fast-food restaurants and snackbars that profit from the late-night crowd.
To still give us the heavenly experience of getting fries after a night out, though, fast food restaurants can apply for an exemption under certain circumstances.
There would also be an adjustment period for restaurants if the policy is approved, so new closing times would only come into effect in 2028. We suggest you party hard for the next three years.
More changes
Besides catering establishments, the new policy would also target the beloved Dutch terrasjes (terraces) — their impact will be more strictly assessed before they get a permit.
Furthermore, businesses that are not catering establishments but still offer food, such as shops, museums, and gyms, will have to be careful about ‘independent visitor flows’.
This means that they can still offer food, but their primary function can’t become being a cafe instead of a gym, for example. You actually have to go to the gym to work out, which takes all the fun out of it.
What do you think of the new hospitality plans? Let us know in the comments!
