Watch Sint Arrive by Boat Along the Amstel
On Sunday 15 November 2026, Amsterdam turns out in force — an expected 300,000 to 350,000 people line the water and the streets — as Sinterklaas sails into the city and then walks it. The water route begins around 10:00, with the first sighting at the Omval at roughly 10:15, then the boat passes the Ceintuurbaan (about 10:40), the Sarphatistraat (about 10:50), and the Amstel and Nieuwe Herengracht (about 11:15). The route takes in the Berlagebrug, Nieuwe Amstelbrug, Hogesluis, Amstelsluizen, Walter Suskindbrug and Scharrebiersluis. At about 11:30 he reaches the National Maritime Museum (Scheepvaartmuseum), where the Mayor and the children's mayor receive him.
Claim a spot on a bridge or canal wall early. Sint travels with his white horse and his helpers, the Pieten, and along the route more than 5,000 kg of free candy is handed out to the crowds. Times are guidelines and the boats can run slightly early or late, so treat the schedule as a rough map rather than a promise.
Follow the Land Parade from Stopera to Leidseplein
The afternoon belongs to the procession on foot, with musicians, floats and Pieten. It sets off from Waterlooplein and threads through the centre: Stopera at about 13:00, Rembrandtplein around 13:15, Utrechtsestraat about 13:20, Frederiksplein about 13:35, Weteringcircuit about 13:55. The programme at Leidseplein starts around 14:00, where the Mayor welcomes Saint Nicholas, and the day closes on the steps of the Stadsschouwburg with a speech from Sinterklaas at about 15:30.
- Best for atmosphere: Leidseplein, where the parade ends and the official welcome takes place.
- Best for an early, less crushed view: the eastern end of the land route around Waterlooplein and the Blauwe Brug.
- Best for the water arrival: anywhere along the Amstel between the Hogesluis and the Scheepvaartmuseum.
- Check before you go: the official parade site is www.sintinamsterdam.nl, which carries the programme and any last-minute changes.
Eat Your Way Through the Sinterklaas Season
From 15 November, the sweets of the season appear in shops across the city, and they are the simplest way to join in. Buy kruidnoten and pepernoten — the small spiced cookies you will see spilling from paper bags on every street — along with speculaas, the spiced shortbread, and banketstaaf, the almond-paste pastry log. Marsepein and chocolate letters are the other fixtures of the shop windows, the letters traditionally given to children and adults alike.
On 5 December itself, families mark Pakjesavond — "package evening" — with gifts and with humorous poems written about each other, sung Sinterklaas songs and, for children, a shoe set by the chimney with an apple or carrot for the horse. If you are in the city that night, you will hear the songs in homes, on television and in the streets. Note that Sinterklaas is the Dutch gift-giving holiday; Christmas on 25 and 26 December is quieter and more focused on family meals, with most shops shut by 17:00 on Christmas Eve and almost everything closed on 25 December.
Fill the Weeks Around It: Lights, Ice and Markets
Sinterklaas decorations go up from mid-November, and on 6 December the city flips to Christmas trees and lights. That gives you a long, layered season to work with.
- Amsterdam Light Festival: 26 November 2026 – 17 January 2027, the 15th edition, with installations lit daily from 17:00 to 23:00. These dates are provisional, so confirm closer to the time; the theme is announced in October.
- Ice rinks: open mid-November through early February, including the rink on Museumplein and the Jaap Eden rink.
- Christmas markets: typically from late November through 30 December.
- Pure Markt: runs in December.
The combination is what makes late November and early December the sweet spot: you can watch Sint arrive, eat kruidnoten on a canal bridge, then come back after dark for the light installations along the water.
Plan Around the Fifth
If you want the full arc, arrive before mid-November so you catch the arrival parade, stay through the weeks of sweets and lights, and be in the city on 5 December 2026 for Pakjesavond. Book early for that window — the arrival draws hundreds of thousands, and the Light Festival keeps the city busy into January. Start with the parade programme at www.sintinamsterdam.nl, then build your days around the canals, the markets and the long, lit evenings.