Five years of occupation during World War II left an indelible imprint on the Netherlands, and the tangible memory of the war means National Remembrance Day is marked at a grand scale, with events and activities in villages, towns, cities and museums up and down the country.

This year, given it is 80 years since the end of the war, the May 4 and 5 events have extra relevance. According to a survey by the event organisers, eight in 10 people consider the May 4 remembrance event to be important or very important and at least half those questioned are worried about war in the future.

The Netherlands takes two days to mark the end of the war: a day to remember the fallen on the May 4, and then a day to celebrate and cherish the freedom they fought to protect, on the May 5.

Every year at 8 pm on May 4, a formal Remembrance Day ceremony, headed by the king and queen, takes place in the Nieuwe Kerk followed by a wreath laying and two minutes of silence by the peace monument on the Dam.

Last year numbers were restricted because of security concerns but this year everyone is welcome to attend. If you are not there in person, the ceremony is carried live on NPO 1 television, from 7.45 pm until 8.30 pm.

The two-minute silence is strictly observed all over the country. Public transport stops, cars pull over to the side of the road and there are no take-offs or landings at Schiphol airport.

While the main focus is on the Dam, smaller ceremonies take place in towns and villages across the Netherlands. Among the most moving are those in isolated places commemorating members of the resistance executed by the German occupiers.

You will also find simple ceremonies at war grave sites where foreign fighters were buried in carefully tended graves.

All 4,000 locations are listed on the website of the Nationaal Comité 4 en 5 Mei, which organises the events. You can also lay a digital wreath.

Then, on May 5, the Netherlands celebrates 80 years since the end of World War II with Liberation festivals and other events all over the country.

Freedom fire in Wageningen

The celebrations kick off in Wageningen, home to Hotel De Wereld, where the Germans signed the capitulation documents on May 5. The Freedom Flame will be lit at midnight and from there 2,500 runners will carry torches to light fires all over the country,  marking the transition from remembrance to celebration.

Liberation festivals

Around a million people each year visit one of the 14 Liberation Day Festivals across the country. Every year the organisers select a group of Ambassadors of Freedom, from the top performers of the moment. This year performing under the committee’s 2025 theme are Antoon, Rondé, Hannah Mae and Zoë Tauran.

Liberation meals

A relatively recent tradition is that of the Liberation meal, in which local communities get together to celebrate. You can find your nearest meal via the website. This year, 154 have been registered in Amsterdam and 118 in Rotterdam and its surroundings alone.

This year the Liberation soup recipe – from chef Jet van Nieuwekerk – is for a minestrone with cauliflower and white beans.

Amstel concert – Amsterdam

The traditional closing concert on the Amstel takes place on the evening of May 5 in the presence of the royals and local dignitaries and is open to the public.

Boat passes for the concert were given out by lottery some time ago; if you can’t get a decent view nearby, then the performance will be broadcast t live by NOS on NPO 1, coverage starts at 8.30 pm. The event always ends with a mass sing song of the Vera Lynn classic We’ll Meet Again.

More information about events up and down the country and the history of Remembrance and Liberation Day can be found on the Mei 4 en 5 website