How to Celebrate Your Home Country’s Holidays in the Netherlands (Without Feeling Too Homesick)

Moving to the Netherlands can mean thrilling new adventures that bring the opportunity to see a new culture and explore new cities and landscapes. However, if you’re an expat during a big holiday, the distance can feel just that little bit greater. Celebrating your home country’s holidays while abroad can bring about waves of nostalgia and feelings of homesickness. There are ways to keep your traditions alive while you celebrate, no matter how far away from home they may be.

Recreate Traditions at Home

The easiest way to celebrate your home country’s holidays in the Netherlands is to invite the spirit of your favorite holiday into your home. This way, even if you are away from family, friends, and familiar locations, you can still see, taste, and feel your culture. Here’s some ways to do so:

Cook Traditional Dishes

Food is most often at the center of holiday celebrations. Search the internet for recipes or ask family members to provide their favorites. Most international grocery stores in Dutch cities sell ingredients from around the world, so you can make your favorite dishes or treats. If you cannot find the particular item, just make do with a local alternative or get creative with what is available. Could be fun.

Decorate

Small touches—like hanging flags, stringing up lights, or displaying traditional ornaments—can make your home feel festive. Playing the music of your country, lighting candles, or watching certain holiday movies will also set the mood.

Share With Others

Invite friends, neighbors, and fellow expats to celebrate with you. The more they learn about your traditions, the more fun the experience will be. Plus, it’s a great way to make new friends.

Connect With Community Groups

There is a lively and diverse community of expats in the Netherlands. Cultural organizations and expat groups are present in all important hubs of the country to celebrate holidays from various parts of the world.

Join Cultural Associations

Most countries have one or more cultural or social clubs in the Netherlands. Such associations may organize celebrations of national holidays with typical food, music, and activities. To learn about celebrations, look on social media, your country’s embassy, or our website!

Participate in Expat Events

Expat organizations usually have gatherings on major holiday occasions. These events provide opportunities to mingle with people from your own background as well as those interested in your culture.

Visit Embassies and Consulates

Some embassies are known to hold official receptions to mark certain festivals or cultural evenings celebrating key holidays. These may be formal or less so; either way, they allow you to meet the community of your country abroad.

Celebrate Online

No in person event, No problem. Nowadays, it’s so easy to stay in touch—thanks to technology, everyone is just a message or video call away from loved ones.

A Virtual Gathering

Why not schedule a Facetime with friends and family? You can even have virtual dinner together, wave at each other from the other side of the world, or play games. You can also cook dishes together simultaneously or light candles or other decorations at the same time.

Online Communities

Online forums, Facebook groups, and WhatsApp chats connect expats all over. Groups organize virtual celebrations, swap recipes, and have holiday-themed discussions.

Sharing on social media

Go ahead and post your photos, stories, and videos. Let people know what you’ve been doing. This can spark conversations and help to connect you with others. You’d be surprised how much it can be a positive link to staying attached to your roots while enjoying your new culture.

Blend with Dutch Festivities

Blend Netherlands traditions with other cultures. Participating in Dutch national holidays may create a memorable experience that helps to make you feel at home over time.

Celebrate Dutch Holidays

Join the local celebrations on Dutch national holidays such as King’s Day (Koningsdag), Sinterklaas, or Christmas markets. These vibrant and community-driven activities provide an opportunity to mingle with locals and your fellow internationals.

Combine Traditions

Initiate hybrid festivities combining customs from your home country with those of the Netherlands. You could, for example, prepare native Dutch foods but do your house up with Dutch-style décor, or hold your celebration simultaneously with the local one.

For a lot of expats in the Netherlands, observing your home country’s holidays in the Netherlands can become a lonely experience if you allow it . With some creativity and community involvement, you could keep your culture alive and well in your mind and have fun celebrations in your home away from home.