Dutch School Holidays
Dutch school holidays and term breaks differ slightly across the Netherlands depending on the region a school is located. The Ministry of Education, Culture & Science establishes school term dates. Private international schools vacation calendars may vary…
Summer holidays (zomervakantie) generally run from early/mid July through mid/late August. In addition to various public holidays (including Good Friday, Easter Monday, Ascension Thursday and Pentecost Monday), there are three full-week school breaks: mid-October (herftsvakantie), late-February (voorjaarvakantie) and late-April/early-May (Meivakantie). The Christmas-New Year school break is two weeks.
NETHERLANDS SCHOOL REGIONS
Schools in Holland are broken into 3 geographic regions (north, central and south) for the purpose of setting school term dates and breaks. Staggering dates helps alleviate some of the overcrowding that occurs at attractions geared toward children. The regions are primarily set at the provincial level with a few exceptions.
- NORTH: North Holland (including Amsterdam), Groningen, Friesland, Drenthe, Overijssel, Flevoland (except Zeewolde)
- CENTRAL: South Holland (including The Hague, Rotterdam, Delft and Leiden), Gelderland (North), Utrecht (except Eemnes), plus the municipalities of Werkendam, Woudrichem and Zeewolde
- SOUTH: Gelderland (South), Limburg, Zeeland and North Brabant (except Werkendam and Woudrichem)
DUTCH SCHOOL HOLIDAYS SCHEDULE
Here are the Dutch school holidays dates by region for the 2025-2026 and 2026-2027 school years…
SCHOOL YEAR 2025-2026
| SCHOOL BREAKS | NORTH REGION SCHOOLS | CENTRAL REGION SCHOOLS | SOUTH REGION SCHOOLS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Start of School Year | 24 Aug 2025 | 31 Aug 2025 | 17 Aug 2025 |
| Fall Break (Herfsvakantie) | 18-26 Oct 2025 | 18-26 Oct 2025 | 11-19 Oct 2025 |
| Christmas Break (Kerstvakantie) | 20 Dec 2025-04 Jan 2026 | 20 Dec 2025-04 Jan 2026 | 20 Dec 2025-04 Jan 2026 |
| Spring Break (Voorjaarsvakantie) | 21 Feb-01 Mar 2025 | 14-22 Feb 2026 | 14-22 Feb 2026 |
| May Break (Meivakantie)1 | 25 Apr-03 May 2026 + 18-26 Apr 2026 | 25 Apr-03 May 2026 + 18-26 Apr 2026 | 25 Apr-03 May 2026 + 18-26 Apr 2026 |
| End of School Year | 04 July 2026 | 18 July 2026 | 11 July 2026 |
1 The OCW recommends extending Meivakantie by 1 week (adding 21-25 April 2025).
SCHOOL YEAR 2026-2027
| SCHOOL BREAKS | NORTH REGION SCHOOLS | CENTRAL REGION SCHOOLS | SOUTH REGION SCHOOLS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Start of School Year | 17 Aug 2026 | 31 Aug 2026 | 24 Aug 2026 |
| Fall Break (Herfsvakantie) | 10-18 Oct 2026 | 17-25 Oct 2026 | 17-25 Oct 2025 |
| Christmas Break (Kerstvakantie) | 19 Dec 2026 – 03 Jan 2027 | 19 Dec 2026 – 03 Jan 2027 | 19 Dec 2026 – 03 Jan 2027 |
| Spring Break (Voorjaarsvakantie) | 20-28 Feb 2027 | 20-28 Feb 2027 | 13-21 Feb 2027 |
| May Break (Meivakantie) | 24 Apr-02 May 2027 | 24 Apr-02 May 2027 | 24 Apr-02 May 2027 |
| End of School Year | 10 July 2027 | 17 July 2027 | 24 July 2027 |
Note: The holiday schedule for private international schools (which are not part of the Dutch school system) may vary slightly from the dates listed above. Consult the relevant school’s website for school holiday dates…
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