Every June, something lovely happens in Amsterdam. For one weekend, the hidden gardens behind the canal houses open their doors, and we get to wander into places that are normally closed to everyone but the people who live there. The event is called Open Tuinen Dagen, or Open Garden Days, and it’s one of my favourite weekends of the year.
I love this event because I love gardens and because I’m curious. Behind every one of those beautiful canal façades there is a green space: big or small, fancy or simple, depending on the owner and how much they love their plants. Most of the time you can only guess what’s back there. During Open Garden Days, you get to walk in and see for yourself. You buy one ticket, grab a map, and move from garden to garden at your own pace during those three days.
What Open Garden Days is
Open Garden Days is an event organised every year by Museum Van Loon, and the idea is simple: for three days in June, owners of private canal gardens, together with a few museums and institutions, open their gates to the public. The gardens are spread between the Brouwersgracht and the Amstel, in the middle of the canal ring, and there are usually more than thirty of them to visit.
These are real, lived-in gardens, and are quite varied. Some are formal and neat, others wild and modern. Each one tells you something about the person who made it, and that is a big part of the charm of this event.
Every year the event has a theme. This year it’s called Hof van Heden — Echoes of Eden: passion for the Canal Garden, referring to the passion and the dreams people pour into their canal gardens. A part of the money raised during the event goes to the Grachtentuinen Fonds (the Canal Gardens Fund), which helps keep Amsterdam’s green heritage open to everyone.
Which gardens, and where to start
Here’s the part that surprises a lot of first-timers: the addresses of the gardens are kept secret until the event itself. There’s no list published beforehand. You collect your passe-partout at one of the start addresses, and inside you’ll find all the addresses with a short description of each garden. Then you make your own route along the canals.
For this year, the five start addresses where you collect your passe-partout are:
- Museum Van Loon — Keizersgracht 672
- Huis Willet-Holthuysen — Herengracht 605
- Huis Marseille — Keizersgracht 401
- Amnesty International — Keizersgracht 177
- Luther Museum — Nieuwe Keizersgracht 570
The garden of Museum Van Loon is always on the route, and it’s a lovely place to begin, a restored eighteenth-century garden behind one of the grandest houses on the canal.
What to expect inside
Most of the private gardens are reached through the house itself. You walk through someone’s home as their guest, so do tread gently and be mindful of the people who live there. You can photograph the gardens, but not the interiors.
Don’t be surprised if you’re welcomed with tea, coffee and biscuits, or even a bowl of soup. In some gardens there are little concerts, and there are few nicer ways to spend a June afternoon than sitting among the flowers listening to music.
I love seeing all these gardens and get inspiration from them, for my current garden or for the dream garden in the future.
When it takes place
In 2026, Open Garden Days runs on Friday 19, Saturday 20 and Sunday 21 June, from 10:00 to 17:00 each day. It always falls on the third weekend of June, so it’s an easy one to plan around. Your ticket is good for all three days, and you can visit each garden once, except the garden of Museum Van Loon, where you’re welcome back as often as you like.
Tickets and how to visit
You buy a single ticket — a passe-partout — that lets you into every garden on the route. Bought in advance through the Museum Van Loon webshop it costs €25, with online sales running until 18 June. During the event you can pick one up at any of the start addresses, or online, for €27.50. Children under twelve come in free with an adult.
A nice local touch: if you have a Stadspas, your visit is free this year. You just show it at the desk of Museum Van Loon to get your passe-partout (it has to be there, not at the other start addresses).
One practical thing — at the start locations you can only pay by PIN, so don’t rely on cash.
Good to know before you go
A few rules keep these fragile old gardens and houses safe, so it’s worth a quick read before you set off:
- No dogs, prams, backpacks or wheeled suitcases are allowed. They recommend to bring only a small hand bag.
- It’s not wheelchair accessible; the stairs and the sidewalks of the canal houses make most gardens impossible to reach.
- Photograph the gardens, not the interiors — you’re walking through people’s homes, so be discreet.
- Gardens can fill up, and because some are small and delicate, you may be asked to wait outside. The easiest thing is to move on and come back later.
- PIN only at the start addresses.
Comfortable shoes help too. You’ll be doing plenty of walking along the canals (which is half the pleasure of this event).
Planning more of your summer in the city? Have a look at what to do in Amsterdam in summer and my guide to Amsterdam’s main events through the year.
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