events (calendar) - RotterdamStyle.com

Festival De Achtertuin Bergschenhoek - date, location, lineup

Bryan van Putten events (calendar) 16 May 2023

Festival De Achtertuin is an electronic music festival with surreal and wonderful experiences in 'the backyard of Rotterdam' on the grounds of Outdoor Valley in Bergschenhoek.

On Saturday, 15 July 2023, Outdoor Valley Bergschenhoek will transform into a surreal experience where attendees can dance, lose themselves, and marvel at the wild meadow. The line-up, completed by headliners such as Mees Salomé, Benny Rodrigues, Olivier Weiter, Sandrien, and Secret Cinema, promises a day of diverse musical experiences.

Line-up De Achtertuin

The first line-up announcement already featured Benny Rodrigues, Olivier Weiter, and Mees Salomé. Now, Sandrien, Secret Cinema, and Hollt (live) also grace the festival poster. The festival caters to a variety of musical styles, with house tunes at the Bird's Nest stage, enchanting progressive house in the Magical Garden Hut, and disco and retro tunes at the Vinextuin stage. This year, Rotterdam label Sekora will host the Tipi Stage, featuring Deeparture and Huminal among others.

Experience, art and safari

Festival De Achtertuin is not solely about the music. Attendees can immerse themselves in a green and adventurous oasis surrounded by water, garden houses, tipis, and fireplaces, where art and experience intersect. The festival offers a safari, live performances, quirky games, and delightful massages. As with previous years, there will be a hunt for access to the secret stage, curated by 50:HERTZ.

Sustainability

Sustainability is of paramount importance at Festival De Achtertuin. Only vegetarian dishes will be served from the food trucks, reusable drinking cups and biodegradable tableware will be used, and waste will be minimised, separated, and recycled. The festival limits power usage, employing solar panels and green energy for generation. The stages and decorations are reused and are also made from recycled materials.

Sekora and Trees for All

This year, the Tipi stage will be hosted by Sekora, a record label founded by Wesley Verheij (UOAK), who commits to sustainability as a DJ. As a nature enthusiast, he fuses electronic music and nature. For each release, he plants two trees with Trees for All.

Hosting a stage at Festival De Achtertuin is thus a logical step for Wesley and Sekora: “It's an opportunity to show that sustainability and electronic music can go hand in hand. This is where De Achtertuin and Sekora find common ground. We really consider sustainability: the festival takes place on existing grounds. A climbing wall and outdoor park are transformed into a stage. They genuinely look at what can be done with existing materials instead of building everything anew.”

Festival De Achtertuin Bergschenhoek

From 250 to 4000 attendees

Festival De Achtertuin welcomes all ages and is aimed at music lovers with a fondness for creative festivals, where art installations are as prominent as the line-up. The festival began in 2020 with a slimmed-down edition due to COVID-19 restrictions, attended by only 250 people. The sold-out 2021 edition was cancelled a day before construction started due to new COVID-19 measures. Despite the challenges that De Achtertuin and other festivals faced, the festival managed to grow, welcoming 2000 attendees in 2022. This year, the festival aims to double the visitor count to 4000.

Ticket Sales

Tickets for Saturday, 15 July are now available at www.festivaldeachtertuin.nl. Festival De Achtertuin is for all ages and is aimed at the conscientious music lover with a fondness for creative festivals, where art installations hold equal prominence in the line-up.

Götheborg of Sweden: an 18th-century ship experience in Rotterdam

Bryan van Putten events (calendar) 11 May 2023

The Götheborg of Sweden, the world's largest ocean-going wooden sailing ship, has arrived in Rotterdam, as part of its European Tour 2023. The ship is moored at the Holland Amerikakade until 14th May, and during opening hours it can be visited by the public with a ticket. Scroll below for opening hours and ticket prices.

Götheborg of Sweden's arrival and festivities

On Thursday, May 11, 2023, at 12:00 pm, the Götheborg of Sweden, a replica of an 18th-century Swedish merchant ship, arrived in Rotterdam. In the morning, the ship was welcomed with a parade, and before docking in the afternoon, it saluted the city of Rotterdam with multiple cannon shots.

European Tour 2023

The Götheborg will embark from Barcelona on March 20, 2023, and sail to its home port of Gothenburg, Sweden, where it will play a central role in the city's 400th-anniversary celebrations in early June. During the 2023 expedition, the ship will make six stops, inviting visitors on board and offering the opportunity to sail and experience life on an 18th-century vessel.

Opportunity to sail as a deckhand

During the European Tour 2023, the public can sail as deckhands. The ship requires a crew of 70, consisting of about 20 professional crew members and 50 sailors from the public who join for the adventure, experience, and the opportunity to learn how to sail an 18th-century ship. Unfortunately, all of these vacancies are already taken.

About the Götheborg of Sweden

The Götheborg of Sweden is a unique replica of an 18th-century merchant ship belonging to the Swedish East India Company that sank off Gothenburg in 1745. Excavations of the original Götheborg ship began in 1984, and construction of the new Götheborg commenced in 1995. It took ten years to build the replica, which was launched 20 years ago, in 2003. Between 2005 and 2007, the ship followed the historic route to Asia and back. Various European expeditions were carried out afterward, with the latest in 2015. In 2021, the ship sailed from Gothenburg to Stockholm and back, and in 2022, it sailed throughout Europe.

Last year, the Götheborg of Sweden garnered attention during its expedition, including a highly successful stop in Nice at the end of September. The ship made 13 stops in 11 European countries, attracting over 60,000 visitors during the various stops, and 500 people sailed as deckhands.

Visiting Götheborg of Sweden in Rotterdam

Opening Hours for Rotterdam

Thursday, 11th May: 14:00–20:00 (last entry 19:15)
Friday, 12th May: 10:00–20:00 (last entry 19:15)
Saturday, 13th May: 10:00–17:00 (last entry 16:15)
Sunday, 14th May: 12:00–16:00 (last entry 15:15)

Ticket Prices

Adults: € 15.00
Children, ages 5-16: € 7.50
Children, ages 0-4: Free

Tickets: https://www.gotheborg.se/visit-us/

Location and directions

The Götheborg of Sweden will be docked at Holland Amerikakade in Rotterdam, a central and easily accessible location.

Rotterdam Rooftop Days - dates, locations, information

Bryan van Putten events (calendar) 07 May 2023

The Rotterdam Rooftop Days, better known in Dutch as 'Rotterdamse Dakendagen,' is an annual event that takes place on the first weekend of June. Reach new heights and stand tall among the skyscrapers as they open their roofs to the public.

The next annual Rotterdam Rooftop Days festival will be held from 1 to 4 June 2023. From 1 May, ticket sales have commenced for both the 2023 Rotterdam Rooftop Days, as well as the separate Bovenop Zuid art route on the roof of the Zuidplein Shopping Centre, which is new this year. Rotterdam Rooftop Days are part of Rotterdam Architecture Month.

Rotterdam Rooftop Days | 1-4 June 2023

The annual Rooftop Days weekend, taking place from Thursday 1 to Sunday 4 June, consists of around 60 roofs open for visitors, often accompanied by a guide or featuring music, theatre, or visual arts. During the Rotterdam Rooftop Days, you can visit 60 roofs throughout the city. As a visitor, you will access lofty spots, where you would normally only find air installations and solar panels, or locations (as on most roofs) where, usually, nothing is happening at all. The rooftop festival programme focuses on creative ways to use these spaces, as the city becomes increasingly crowded and congested. Artists and designers will demonstrate the potential of rooftops to make the city more enjoyable, sustainable, and sociable. Highlights of this edition include various theatre performances, specially created for the rooftop as a stage, with the skyline as a backdrop.

Bovenop Zuid (atop Zuidplein Shopping Centre) | 1-30 June 2023

The rooftop landscape at the shopping centre in Charlois spans an area equivalent to six football pitches. A striking yellow walking path, 850 metres in length, will be accessible via stairs. Artists from Zuid will transform walls, objects, and the roof itself into an elevated art park. Zuidplein is a major transport hub, boasting one of the Netherlands' largest bus stations. The eponymous shopping centre celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2022 and underwent extensive renovations. For decades, residents of Rotterdam and visitors from the region have come to shop and dine, but they have never been welcomed to the roof. With an area equivalent to six football pitches at various heights, an 850-metre walking route has been laid out, featuring objects and murals by artists from Zuid. The route is organised as part of the urban campaign Summer on Zuid. As a result, the summer of 2023 will see an abundance of additional activities on Zuid in Rotterdam's cultural calendar.

Tickets to Rotterdam Rooftop Days and Bovenop Zuid

For ticket sales and routes, visit rotterdamsedakendagen.nl and the special bovenopzuid website.

Rotterdamse Dakendagen 📷 Frank Hanswijk

Liberation Day in Rotterdam - history, date, location, info

Bryan van Putten events (calendar) 01 May 2023

Every year on the fifth of May, people in the Netherlands celebrate Bevrijdingsdag, marking the end of Nazi occupation during World War II. It is also a nice day to visit one of the 14 official festivals which take place all over the country.

Dodenherdenking, May 4th

The festive events on May fifth are always preceded by 'Dodenherdenking' on May fourth. On this day, at exactly 20:00, two minutes of silence are observed by media, offices, restaurants and stores in honour of the people who gave and lost their lives during World War II and War in general. Don't be surprised if they suddenly cut the music in a bar or stop tending tables in a café.

Bevrijdingsdag, May 5th (Liberation Day)

The Netherlands was liberated on May 5th, 1945 when German commander Johannes Blaskowitz agreed to surrender. The official capitulation document was signed the next day at the university auditorium in the city of the Wageningen. This was almost five years to the day after Rotterdam was levelled by Nazi bombers in 1940.

Liberation Day is a workday for most

Though nobody doubts the importance of the day, it's not a typical national holiday. It is only observed as a public holiday for everyone, including both public and private sectors, once every five years. The next time this will happen is in 2025 when the Netherlands will celebrate the 80th anniversary of its liberation. In between those five-year milestones, Liberation Day is not considered a public holiday for the general population. However, it is still a public holiday for schoolteachers, civil servants and government employees, meaning they will get a day off from work.

Government employees are free from work, but for those in the private sector, it's just a regular workday. Some collective labour agreements specify that employees get one free day every fifth Liberation Day. Schools are usually always closed on Liberation Day.

Bevrijdingsfestival Zuid Holland celebrated in Rotterdam

Liberation Festival (Bevrijdingsfestival) Rotterdam

To mark this day, there are various parades and 14 festivals all across the country. The Liberation Day festival in Rotterdam is actually the official festival for the entire province of South Holland. The event, named Bevrijdingsfestival Zuid-Holland is held at Euromast Park. The next one takes place on May 5th, 2023, from 12:30 PM to 11:00 PM in Het Park at the foot of the Euromast in Rotterdam.

This is the official timetable for 2023, featuring headliners David Vunk and the legendary hardcore DJ, Paul Elstak:

timetable liberation day festival south holland

For more information on the live performances and special events, be sure to check out the official website for Bevrijdingsfestival Zuid-Holland.

Eurovision 2023 live screening and cocktail night at KINO

Bryan van Putten events (calendar) 28 April 2023

Experience the excitement of the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 at KINO, a popular cinema situated in central Rotterdam. On 13 May, join Eurovision fans for an entertaining evening complete with an on-site bar, refreshing cocktails, and a Eurovision Bingo offering a variety of prizes.

Eurovision Song Contest screening at KINO

On 13 May 2023, KINO will be screening the Eurovision Song Contest 2023. The cinema is offering attendees a cocktail upon arrival and has made arrangements for a bar in the screening room to ensure that guests will not miss any part of the contest. Moreover, this year's event will feature a Eurovision Bingo, where participants have the chance to win various prizes.

A brief history of the Eurovision Song Contest

The Eurovision Song Contest, an annual event since 1956, has become a European cultural phenomenon. The contest showcases participating countries' musical talent and has launched the careers of many internationally renowned artists such as ABBA, Céline Dion, and Johnny Logan. The event takes place in the country of the previous year's winner, which allows for a unique and changing host city each year. Notable past locations include Dublin, Copenhagen, and Stockholm, among others.

KINO

KINO (bioscoop) is situated in a historic building on Gouvernestraat in the city centre of Rotterdam. The establishment boasts six cinema halls, a bar, a restaurant, and BURO, a creative workspace for the audiovisual industry. With a diverse film offering ranging from arthouse to blockbusters, from shorts to classics, KINO has something for everyone. The venue is open from early afternoon until late evening, catering to a wide range of activities such as dining, socialising, and enjoying films.

Getting to KINO

KINO is located on Gouvernestraat, a street with a rich history of over a hundred years as a gathering place for music, theatre, and film. The area is easily accessible by public transport, with several tram and metro stations nearby. The surrounding neighbourhood offers a vibrant mix of shops, bars, and restaurants.