Every five years, Amsterdam welcomes one of its most spectacular events: SAIL, a maritime festival. For a few days, the city’s harbour transforms into a stage where tall ships from all over the world gather, surrounded by a sea of smaller boats and buzzing crowds. It’s a celebration of maritime history and culture, where people have the chance to see tall ships up-close and even get aboard some of them.
I’d been waiting for this edition of SAIL for ten years, since the 2020 one was canceled, and it turned out to be even more magical than I expected. Walking along the IJ, seeing and touching the majestic ships, and soaking in the festive atmosphere felt like stepping into another world. I spent hours wandering, photographing, and simply enjoying the energy around me. I didn’t mind the crowds, except for the part where I had to wait in long lines to get on the ships, and eventually gave up on many of them. I left with a heart full of excitement and a camera full of memories.
There were two ways of experiencing the festival: on land, walking along the SAIL “boulevard”, from one ship to the other, and on the water, on a boat. I had the chance to do both, and I can’t decide which one I liked most. If you want to avoid the crowds, then the boat is the best option.
There were also all kinds of concerts, a crew parade, kids’ activities, and fireworks every night. The event closed with the SAIL-Out parade, which unfortunately I couldn’t attend. I’m already looking forward to the next one in 2030!
Here are some photos from my visit “on land”. I will come back soon with photos I took from the boat.
If you want to see the SAIL-In Parade, check out this article: The Spectacular Sail-In Parade on Opening Day. And here is SAIL 2015.
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