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LOWLANDS
This is not just a festival but more of an
all-round experience! There are loads of
great, live performances varying from big
names to promising newcomers. Different
movies are shown, theatre sketches are
performed and visual arts are presented.
Wander around and experience it all! The
festival goes on for 3 days and you can
camp at the adjoining campsite. For daily
programmes and tickets check the
www.lowlands.nl site.

DANCE VALLEY
This is Holland's best dance festivity. Its
location is always close to Amsterdam.
So dance among the crazy, dressed up
Dutch gathered from all over Holland to
be there. Everyone parties until the early
morning hours. Todays Woodstock festival
means no guitars or ‘cumbaya my lord‘
but great beats with hot moves for peace,
love and happiness!

PHOTO FESTIVAL
Amsterdam is the starting point of the
Worldpress photo exhibition of 2004. You
can check out the impressive images in
the old church on the Oudekerksplein.
While there, don’t forget to take a look
around the church. It’s very old and completely
built out of wood.

year the entire island is transformed into
one big artistic arena for the Oerol festival.
Rent a bike and cycle from east to
west while passing different theatres,
strange arts and listen to music. Camp out
among the Dutchies and join them for a
beer in one of the typical brown cafés on
the island.

ROOTS FESTIVAL
This is my own personal favourite! It’s
located at the Oosterpark on the east side
of Amsterdam. It’s a festival with music
from all over the world, like from Suriname
and the Antilles but also from Turkey
and Morocco or from different African
countries like Ethiopia and Ghana. All the
live music is performed on different stages
around the park and there are worldly
dishes to tickle your senses. It’s not a
trendy, hip event but a great cultural festival.
It gives you a good view on what the
Dutch population looks like these days.
Dance together with small kids, students
and ‘old’ people and you’re guaranteed of
a good vibe. People of all colours and cultures
gather to share their food and music
traditions. All of which offers an energetic,
lively mix. Go and check it out, the
entrance is free!

KWAKOE FESTIVAL
Another multi-cultural festival is Kwakoe
Festival in the Bijlmer area. The Bijlmer is
a part of Amsterdam where many families
live that originate from Africa, Suriname
(former Dutch colony) and the Dutch
Antilles. This festival brings you five full

weeks of music, food and dancing. The weekends are the best time to go for a visit. These are just some of the festivals that Holland has to offer this summer. So much to see, lots of parties to go to! See you in Amsterdam? We’ll try to keep a good spot for you in the Park. I’ll bring the blanket, do you bring the wine? Who’s bringing the guitar again....

CITY BEACH
Alright, obviously the Vondelpark is the place to be in summertime! But low and behold there are more great places to check out. First of all there’s the city beach at Nemo, the big green building on the east side of the Central Station. You pay a small entrance fee but this enables you to spend the whole day and evening on this beach. There is sand, water, there are really nice huge sitting-bags and to top it off you will have a beautiful view of the city. No trees though, so remember to
bring a hat to provide you with some shade or to take some suncream with you to avoid getting fried in the Dutch sun (trust me it has been done!).

SHUTTLE SERVICE TO THE FLYING PIG BEACH HOSTEL Stuck in Amsterdam and dying to go to a real beach? We’ve got just the solution for you. The Flying Pig Beach Hostel offers a shuttle service between the Flying Pig Downtown/ Palace and the Beach Hostel. The service runs once a day on demand. We leave at the Beach Hostel at 7:00 pm and departure at the Downtown and the Palace hostel is between 8:00 and 8:30 pm. Please note that you’ll have to make a reservation for the shuttle service at our reception in the Downtown, the Palace or The Beach Hostel. Normally the shuttle service will cost you €2 one-way, but with a two day reservation at the Beach Hostel we’ll pick you up for FREE!

VONDELPARK OPENAIR
Every summer the Vondel Openair theatre
offers a long varied programme of theatre,
jazz, classical & pop music and stand-up
comedy. You can also participate in singing
and dancing lessons which are organized
on a regular basis. There’s something for
everyone! For a weekly programme you
can either look at the www.openluchttheater.
nl site or check the posters at the
entrances of the Vondelpark.

THE PARADE
One of the most friendly and bubbliest
festivals in Holland is the Parade. It’s a
theatre festival but is also known for its
delicious sangria and carousel. You can
take a Parade boat from the Waterlooplein
and stroll around all night, drink
sangria, dance in the silent disco with
headphones on (it looks really funny for
the people around not hearing the music
you’re dancing on) and see different live
bands.

OEROL FESTIVAL
A similar sort of festival is held on one of
Holland's most beautiful islands: Terschelling.
For two whole weeks of the

Beach Parties
What is sum sum summertime without the feeling of sand between your toes, beautiful
sunsets and great beach parties? Noordwijk is becoming more and more popular as a trendy beach destination, and lucky for you there are numerous beach parties scheduled for the 2004 season.

SUNSET DANCE will be the biggest dance event right on the beach of Noordwijk. Imagine a tropical evening, 15.000 beautiful scantily clad people gathered on the beach, bare feet in the cool sand, the sound of waves breaking in the background and the sound system spreading the dance music around the whole area. People are happy, there is a good vibe in the air; the perfect ingredients for a memorable night. Scattered around the dance floor are platforms where the visitors show off their extravaganza. The orange and yellow lights illuminating the dance floor blend in perfectly with the explosion of colour, painted by the actual sunset above the ocean. Of course Noordwijk would not be Noordwijk if we wouldn’t have International DJ’s spinning their beats into memories; they elevate the crowd and the evening to a higher level with their uplifting beach house.
Throughout the entire season several beach bars have scheduled smaller dance events and lounge nights for which they invite well known DJ’s and percussionists. Admission for all these events is free and for accommodation you can check out our Beach Hostel in Noordwijk. For more information about dates and events, see the list on this page.
If you don’t want to spend a night at the beach but you do want to go and dance on the beach; Bloemendaal is a good alternative for people with accommodation in Amsterdam.