In 2025, Amsterdam marks a historic milestone: its 750th birthday. A city of canals and contradictions, where Golden Age architecture rubs shoulders with cutting-edge design, Amsterdam has always been a crowd-drawing destination. But this year, the Dutch capital is pulling out all the stops to honour its long and layered past with a vibrant year’s celebration of art, culture, heritage, and innovation.
Founded in 1275, Amsterdam began as a humble fishing village along the Amstel River. Over the centuries, it blossomed into a global trading hub, a crucible of creative freedom, and a bastion of social progress. Today, it remains all of those things — and more. This year, the city is embracing its roots while opening its doors to a new generation of travellers, with a dynamic calendar of special events, exhibitions, and local festivities that celebrate its 750 years of resilience and reinvention.
Museums across the city are mounting special exhibitions that explore its storied past — from its medieval beginnings to the modern metropolis it is today. Community festivals, open-air concerts, and pop-up cultural installations are transforming neighbourhoods from Noord to De Pijp.
SAIL Amsterdam 2025
One of the most anticipated events is SAIL Amsterdam 2025, a spectacular nautical festival that only takes place once every five years. Taking place this month (20-24 August 2025), SAIL brings a majestic parade of tall ships, naval vessels, and yachts from around the world into the city’s harbour. For history lovers, design enthusiasts, and nautical enthusiasts alike, the event is a visual and cultural marvel — and this year, it’s perfectly aligned with Amsterdam’s 750th birthday festivities.
Quick-hit Amsterdam 750 museum guide
Special Exhibition: ‘Amsterdam through the Ages’
The Rijksmuseum delves into the city’s transformation from a medieval settlement to a cultural powerhouse. Expect rarely seen artefacts, paintings, and maps from 1275 to present.
Core Event: ‘750 Years of Amsterdam: The City, Its People, Its Stories’
A powerful, interactive journey through time, spotlighting diverse voices that shaped the capital — now housed in the museum’s new permanent location on Amstel.
Exhibition: ‘Designing the City: 750 Years of Innovation’
Focused on Amsterdam as a design-driven metropolis, this show brings together urban planning, architecture, and contemporary art to explore the city’s future.
- Het Scheepvaartmuseum (National Maritime Museum)
‘Amsterdam & the Sea: 750 Years of Trade and Travel’
Maritime history takes centre stage with exhibits on the city’s seafaring past, tied closely to its rise as a global port.
Anniversary Edition: ‘Amsterdam Now’
A curated series of contemporary photography projects capturing life in the city today — its neighbourhoods, its faces, and its ongoing evolution.
“I Am Jo!” (27 June – 31 August 2025)
A multisensory exhibition celebrating over 100 remarkable women of Amsterdam, seen through the lens of Jo van Gogh‑Bonger, the visionary sister-in-law of Vincent who helped build his legacy.
Where to stay
Pillows Grand Boutique Hotel Maurits at the Park... When the day winds down, the champagne has been poured, and the sun sinks behind the spires, there’s no better place to retreat than Pillows Grand Boutique Hotel Maurits at the Park. Wrapped up within the leafy serenity of Oosterpark and housed in a former university building next to the Tropenmuseum, this boutique hotel is a refreshingly slow-paced stay away from all the bustle. The scent of fresh flowers lingers in the marble lobby, light dances across oak floors in the park-facing rooms, and butterflies flit across the gardens onto Spring Café Brasserie’s down-to-earth terrace. Service is warm, never fussy, and there’s a stylish sauna which can be reserved for private sessions.
Pillows celebrates Amsterdam 750... To celebrate Amsterdam’s milestone, the hotel has crafted a trio of thoughtful guest offerings. The Ultimate Amsterdam 750 Experience pairs park-side accommodation with curated city immersion — think private tours, priority museum access, and insider touches that make you feel like you’ve peeled back the curtain on the canal houses. The SAIL 2025 Package puts you in prime position for the maritime festivities, including private boat access and riverfront views. And for those who prefer to feel the city underfoot, the 750 Years Walking Tour, designed by Pillows, is a gentle wander through centuries of history, from a beloved brewery beside the iconic De Gooyer windmill to De Oude Kerk, Amsterdam’s oldest building, consecrated in 1306.
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