Winter holiday season in the Netherlands

In this article we are sharing rituals, traditions and counsel for everyone to have the most wonderful holiday season and start the best year ever Dutch-style!

Overall, Christmas days (December 25-26) are spent around the family, while New Year’s Eve is a party time. Many businesses, institutions and transport services have reduced working hours during the holidays, pay attention.

The Christmas Tree is to be put up right after Sinterklaas* eve (5^th of December). There are traditional options here: to buy an artificial or a natural cut one. And there are more sustainable ones too. A living Christmas tree in a pot will stay with you regardless the season. Might as well be the best option for those with a balcony or a garden to expose it to more light and air. Christmas tree can also be rented! There are quite a few companies across the country offering this service.  A tree will be picked for you from a nursery and put in a pot with all the root system intact. Then, at home one is supposed to follow temperature and care guideline to keep the tree happy and return it before an agreed date. The renting period is normally around 3 weeks (mid-December – mid-January), and there is a security deposit in case the tree does not survive all the fun, or one gets too attached to it and decides to keep.

Okay, but when do you take your tree down? …. well, right after Christmas you will already start seeing discarded Xmas trees everywhere. In case one lives on a tight budget or is simply cheap, they can of course pick the prettiest tree from the discarded pile. Also, on the New Year’s Eve tree merchants are giving out the unsold trees for free. Thus, there’s always room to bring your economies onto the next level.

Some will go out throwing theirs first thing on the 1^st of January (sometimes as early as 10 o’clock).  Retired Christmas trees are to be left in designated areas and will be collected by the municipality. The deadline to bring your tree to a collection point is January, 7-15, check the dates for your municipality.

Fun fact: traditionally in Haarlem everybody under the age of 15 is getting 50 cents for every tree they bring to a collection point and then gets a chance to participate in a draw with bigger prizes (up to EUR 500). Encouragement to young entrepreneurs!

*Sinterklaas is celebrating St. Nicholas, a patron saint of children. He symbolically arrives into each city on a steamboat on the 1^st weekend after November, 11 and parades around the city center on a white horse named Ozosnel.

Markets are the most magical thing to do during the holiday season! Often, however they are only there for a very short moment, so be quick. Here are some of the markets happening this holiday season.

Bisschopswijn (or glühwein, or mulled wine), a paramount part of winter festivities, makes all sparkles brighter, goods prettier and cold afternoons outside warmer.

Oliebollen, (very) deep-fried round pieces of dough, are an essential part of the holiday season. They are sold by supermarkets, bakeries, special oliebollen stands and trucks that are starting to appear mid-October. The varieties are countless, the main ones are: classic (plain), krentenbollen (with black currants) and rozijnbollen (with raisins). Powdered sugar melting on a hot oliebol is holiday spirit itself in a bite. There are a few theories about the origin of the delicacy. Some say it goes back to Germanic tribes and their gods and evil spirits. Others, that oliebollen, being the ultimate comfort food, simply symbolise warmth, coziness and togetherness. Just to ensure the most successful new year one is suggested to eat an oliebol. Those more advanced in the kitchen are welcome to make their own.

Fireworks in the Netherlands have been taken to another level. Record EUR 110 million have been spent on fireworks in the country for last year’s New Year’s Eve. The use of fireworks is only allowed between December, 31 18:00 and January, 1 02:00. They are heavily restricted all throughout the year though. One just knows: it’s going to be spectacular.  But it’s also going to be loud, smoky and dangerous. Brace yourselves, people. Look out for your pets when fireworks are going off, some need extra attention. Watch out for your bikes and cars too.