The Amsterdam Light Festival (Edition Seven) is a favorite of thousands around the world. This city lights up during the darkest period of the year and brightens your spirits. You will find yourself right in the historical heart of Amsterdam, Netherlands, where it turns into an open-air light gallery. While it is family friendly, it is also a perfect holiday for singles or couples. So hurry to get your reservations because this year the festival will take place Nov. 29, 2018, through Jan. 20, 2019.
Amsterdam Light Festival • Bright Artistic Designs
On your tours, you will find projections on large historical buildings with interactive light works and street installation art put up in every direction. To acquaint you a little more with this amazing festival of designing light art, below you will see ways to tour the city. We’ve also included some past and present images of the light show, and some helpful information.
“Amsterdam Light Festival brings people from different backgrounds together in the dark winter times. We aim to involve, inspire and enlighten visitors, creators and partners with light art,” – Lennart Booij, Amsterdam Light Festival Artistic Director.
Canal Cruises
There are lots of tours from which to select so do your research thoroughly before you make reservations. The most popular tour of this event is the Water Colors Cruise where you get to see an exceptionally brilliant selection of colors throughout the festival while you cruise along the canals. But, please keep in mind, this is only one of many of canal and other types of tours available.
Bike Tours
Your bicycle tour guide will take you along a path filled with breath-taking lighting designs. Or, if you want to take off by yourself to take as much time as you like to explore the Amsterdam Light Festival, take yourself and your family on a leisurely bicycle ride around the canals and the land displays. Clearly, the advantage of the bicycle tours is you get to view both the land and water artwork in one tour.
Illuminade Walking Route
An interesting point for this year’s light show is that the Illuminade display will be in a new location in the city known as the Marineterrein. This land show of lights shows interactive, cutting-edge artistic light work that includes a new generation of up and coming designers. If your family likes museums, the Marineterrein is also home to the National Maritime Museum for a unique and educational day-time activity.
Amsterdam Christmas Village
If you visit the Amsterdam Light Festival during the days of Dec. 17th – 30th, you’ll also get to shop for Christmas. The Amsterdam Museum Square (Museumplein) is a large square that transforms into the charming Amsterdam Christmas Village.
Here you will find the most delicious and popular seasonal treats from not only the Netherlands, but also Holland, Germany, and Belgium. Of course, you will also fill your shopping bags with Christmas presents and souvenirs. For those who love ice skating, the pond in this square becomes a winter ice rink complete with rental skates.
Amsterdam is clearly a very gezellige adventure and it’s even better when you combine the light festival with some of the other attractions of this city. For December destinations, the beautiful and popular Amsterdam Light Festival is at the top of our list.
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