When are the school holidays in the Netherlands in 2025/2026 and how the Dutch school holiday (schoolvakanties) system works? Here is everything you need to know.
The Netherlands are divided into 3 school holiday regions:
- North
- Central
- South.
Here you can check the overview of these regions, with their provinces and municipalities, and find out where your school belongs to. Spreading the school holidays across the regions helps control peaks in holiday traffic.
The holiday dates below are in 2025/2026 for primary, special and secondary education. Please note that all dates are inclusive.
School holidays in the Netherlands in the 2025/2026 school year
| North region | Central region | South region | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Autumn holidays* (Herfstvakantie 2025) Visit Disneyland Paris >> |
18 – 26 October 2025 | 18 – 26 October 2025 | 11 – 19 October 2025 |
| Christmas holidays (Kerstvakantie 2025-2026) Tip! Experience an extraordinary New Year’s Eve at Efteling |
20 December 2025 to 4 January 2026 | 20 December 2025 to 4 January 2026 | 20 December 2025 to 4 January 2026 |
| Spring holidays* (Voorjaarsvakantie 2026) What about visiting the Rotterdam Zoo? |
21 February to 1 March 2026 | 14 – 22 February 2026 | 14 – 22 February 2026 |
| May vacations* (Meivakantie 2026) | 25 April to 3 May 2026 | 25 April to 3 May 2026 | 25 April to 3 May 2026 |
| Summer vacations (Zomervakantie 2026) | 4 July to 16 August 2026 | 18 July to 30 August 2026 | 11 July to 23 August 2026 |
* These dates are advisory. For the exact dates please check your school’s agenda.
Please note! In the Netherlands children start school at the age of 4. Until they become 5, you can take them out of school for extra days off. But when children reach the age of 5, they must go to school every school day. It is not allowed to them out of school to go on holiday.
Looking for ideas for the Christmas school break?
Visit Disneyland Paris! The Christmas Season in Disneyland Paris is from 9 November 2024 to 6 January 2025. Explore its magic atmosphere with your family!
Dutch school holidays are just around the corner? Here are the cool things to do in the Netherlands with kids.
Best things to do with children in Amsterdam
1. Artis Royal Zoo
2. NEMO Science museum
3. Treasure hunt at the Van Gogh museum
4. OBA Amsterdam public library
5. LEGO Store Amsterdam
Things to do with kids in the Netherlands
1. Madurodam
2. Efteling
3. Sprookjeswonderland
4. Blijdorp Zoo in Rotterdam
5. Julianatoren
6. Linnaeushof
7. Corpus Experience
8. Railway museum
9. Dutch open air museum
10. Space Expo in Noordwijk
11. Adventure Farm Molenwaard
13. LEGOLAND® Discovery Centre Scheveningen
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