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Dutch School Holidays - Schoolvakanties per Region

All official school holiday dates for the Netherlands (schoolvakanties) by region for the 2026-2027 and 2027-2028 school years, with a countdown to the next break. Free, browser-based, data from Rijksoverheid.nl.

Region (regio)

e.g. Utrecht, Den Haag, Rotterdam. Not sure which region your school is in? Check your school's website or the Rijksoverheid region map.

School year

HolidayFromToDays until
HerfstvakantieAutumn break (advisory)17 Oct 202625 Oct 2026
KerstvakantieChristmas break19 Dec 20263 Jan 2027
VoorjaarsvakantieSpring break (advisory)20 Feb 202728 Feb 2027
MeivakantieMay break (advisory)24 Apr 20272 May 2027
ZomervakantieSummer break17 Jul 202729 Aug 2027

Kerstvakantie and zomervakantie are set by the Ministry of Education (OCW). Herfst-, voorjaars- and meivakantie are advisory dates: most schools follow them, but they may deviate, and many schools extend the meivakantie to two weeks. Always confirm with your own school.

How School Holidays Work in the Netherlands

The Netherlands staggers its school holidays across three regions, Noord, Midden, and Zuid, mainly to spread out holiday traffic and tourism peaks. The region split follows municipal borders, not provinces exactly: regio Noord covers roughly Noord-Holland, Groningen, Friesland, Drenthe, and parts of Flevoland and Overijssel; regio Midden includes Utrecht, Zuid-Holland, and parts of Gelderland; regio Zuid covers Noord-Brabant, Limburg, Zeeland, and southern Gelderland. A school in Amersfoort and one in Eindhoven can therefore have summer breaks that are two weeks apart.

Only two holidays are legally fixed by the Ministry of Education: the kerstvakantie (two weeks around Christmas, nationwide identical) and the zomervakantie (six weeks in summer, rotating per region so no region always gets the earliest or latest slot). The herfstvakantie, voorjaarsvakantie, and meivakantie are advisory dates. In practice nearly all schools follow them, but secondary schools in particular often stretch the one-week meivakantie into two weeks by adding a margin week around Koningsdag and Bevrijdingsdag.

For the 2026-2027 school year the biggest regional differences are in autumn and summer: regio Noord starts its herfstvakantie on 10 October 2026, a week before Midden and Zuid, and its summer break runs 10 July to 22 August 2027, while regio Zuid does not start until 24 July and returns 6 September. If you are booking a family trip, traveling just outside your own region's dates usually means lower prices and quieter roads, since the other two regions are still in school.

Planning around these dates matters for more than vacations: exam schedules, childcare (BSO) contracts, and even Dutch labor law around parental leave often reference school holiday weeks. Combine this overview with the Dutch Working Days Calculator on ToolForte to count actual school or working days between two dates, or the Public Holidays tool for the national feestdagen like Koningsdag and Bevrijdingsdag that fall outside the school holiday blocks. Dates on this page come from Rijksoverheid.nl and were last verified in August 2026.

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How the Dutch School Holidays Tool Works

  1. 01Pick your region: noord, midden, or zuid. Your school's website tells you which region it belongs to.
  2. 02Choose the school year 2026-2027 or 2027-2028 to see all five holidays with exact dates.
  3. 03The countdown shows how many days until the next holiday starts in your region.
  4. 04Dates marked advisory can be shifted by individual schools; kerst- and zomervakantie are fixed by the ministry.

School Holiday Regions in the Netherlands

The Netherlands splits school holidays over three regions to spread traffic and tourism. Regio noord covers roughly Noord-Holland and the northern provinces, midden includes Utrecht and Zuid-Holland, and zuid covers Brabant, Limburg, and Zeeland. Only the christmas and summer breaks are legally fixed by the Ministry of Education; the autumn, spring, and may breaks are advisory dates that nearly all schools follow. The summer slot rotates yearly per region, so no region always starts first.

When to Use This Tool

Use it when booking family holidays, planning childcare around school weeks, scheduling work deadlines that depend on school terms, or checking when neighboring regions are off so you can travel outside the busiest weeks. Employers use the regional split to plan capacity, since teams spread across the country have different weeks off.

Common Use Cases

Tips

  • Traveling in another region's holiday week while yours is in school means quieter roads and cheaper stays.
  • Secondary schools often extend the meivakantie to two weeks; confirm before booking flights.
  • The summer start rotates per region each year, so do not assume last year's order holds.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which region does my school belong to?→
The split follows municipal borders, not exact province lines. Roughly: noord is Noord-Holland, Groningen, Friesland, Drenthe, and parts of Flevoland and Overijssel; midden is Utrecht, Zuid-Holland, and parts of Gelderland; zuid is Noord-Brabant, Limburg, Zeeland, and southern Gelderland. Your school's website or the Rijksoverheid region map gives the definitive answer.
Are these dates official?→
Yes, they come from the Rijksoverheid.nl overviews for 2026-2027 and 2027-2028. Kerstvakantie and zomervakantie are legally set; herfst-, voorjaars-, and meivakantie are official advisory dates that schools may deviate from, which in practice rarely happens by more than a week.
Why is the meivakantie sometimes two weeks?→
The ministry sets one advisory week (for example 24 April to 2 May 2027), but many secondary schools add a second week around Koningsdag and Bevrijdingsdag. That extra week differs per school, so always check your own school's calendar before booking.
How long is the summer holiday?→
Six weeks for primary and secondary schools in every region. The start rotates: in 2027 regio noord starts first on 10 July, and regio zuid runs latest, 24 July to 5 September. In 2028 the order shifts, with midden starting 8 July.
Do the regions ever share the same dates?→
Yes. The kerstvakantie is nationwide identical (19 December 2026 to 3 January 2027), the meivakantie advisory week is the same in all regions, and two regions often share herfst- or voorjaarsvakantie dates while the third differs by a week.

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