Sail Amsterdam: admire one of the world's largest sailing ships

Sail Amsterdam is a huge draw for Amsterdamers and visitors alike.

A piece of history celebrating Amsterdam's birthday.

The nautical event takes place every five years and began in 1975.

So you can expect Sail Amsterdam 2025 to be an incredibly popular and poignant celebration.

Today, I'm going to tell you all about the next edition.

Sail Amsterdam: article summary

When will Sail take place in Amsterdam?

Sail to Amsterdam drops anchor August 20-24, 2025.

If you happen to be in the area at that time of year, I advise you to come along and discover this unique event.

River transport disrupted

Sail Amsterdam is incredibly popular. Obviously focused on the waterways, there are plenty of land-based activities on offer too.

These are often concentrated around the city center and can therefore have a certain impact on the public transport offer on certain days. If you're staying outside the city center or want to follow the itinerary, you can use Amsterdam's public transport to help you get around the city, or you can walk/ride bike.

Sail Amsterdam: a celebration featuring hundreds of ships

Although it hasn't yet been announced, you can expect a large number of ships to take part in Sail Amsterdam, including a submarine.

The 2015 event ended with over 600 ships involved, but you can expect that the 2025 edition will attract even more.

An ever-increasing number of visitors

Sail Amsterdam is expected to attract over 1.5 million visitors to Amsterdam. Everyone will come to see this show like no other, with the chance to climb aboard historic ships and take part in the many festivities along the river and in the city center. downtown. It's a riot of color and history, and for the most part.., totally free of charge.

Sail in Amsterdam: discover the sailboat parade

The sailboat parade marks the opening of the nautical event.

This isn't a small parade of ships, it's a 12 km parade with over 50 tall ships escorted by naval vessels, as well as probably thousands of smaller ships of all classes.

You'll probably never see the river as full as during the sailboat parade.

Discover the different oceans

The main event is big. So big that they've divided it into oceans, each with its own theme. In 2015, there were five themes (oceans) and downtown itself was one of these "oceans", with many linked events between attractions.

IJhaven hosts what is considered to be the main event with music, fireworks and the best opportunity to climb aboard the tall ships, see them on the quay or to take a small boat trip around them.

Where to stay during Sail Amsterdam 2025

The event is only a few years away, but it takes place in summer and promises to be incredibly popular. In 2015, 1.5 million visitors descended on Amsterdam.

You can stay anywhere in Amsterdam and easily get around the city by streetcar, foot, metro, bus or bike. Amsterdam is a compact city, so it's not at all difficult to get around.

However, I advise you to book well in advance. Indeed, most of the best-placed hotels could quickly fill up.

Choosing the best place to stay

If you want to be close to the festivities, a downtown hotel is an excellent option, but you could also consider one of the many hotels overlooking the IJ River.

You can wake up in the morning to see the sailboats from your hotel room.

On-site hotels include the Doubletree by Hilton Amsterdam Centraal Station on the IJ River behind the main railway station, and for the Eric Vokel Boutique Apartments.

The Sail event in Amsterdam is a celebration that will once again attract many people. If you happen to be in the area at the time, I suggest you make a detour and join in the festivities. You'll spend a great time and take many souvenirs home with you.

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