Celebrating Christmas in Amsterdam When You're Single

Amsterdam may not be the most famously romantic city in the world but it still has its charms. There is still a lot you can do here that can help strengthen your relationship with your significant other. Even more so during Christmas, when it gets so cold here, you have a good excuse to snuggle up and stay cozy with that special someone. But what if you're single? What if you don't have a special someone this year? Does this mean celebrating Christmas in Amsterdam would be sad? Not necessarily! Here are a few fun ways to spend the holiday season in Amsterdam when you're single!

Take a Biking Tour of Amsterdam

There's nothing like a good bike ride to help you forget all about your relationship troubles (or simply the fact that you're single this year). Although cycling with your partner all throughout the many beautiful neighborhoods of Amsterdam is pretty romantic, doing it on your own can also feel freeing, calming, and even cathartic. It's even more so during the holiday season, what with the cooler temperature, the beautiful snow-ladened scenes, and the overall more festive attitude of the city. At least, when you're riding your bike in Amsterdam on your own, you can cycle at your own pace and visit the places only you like. Talk about freedom, right? Source: Wikimedia Commons

Have Fun Ice Skating

Apart from cycling, you can also go ice skating in Amsterdam during the holiday season too! This is a great way to have fun in the city at this time of the year, even when you're on your own. Though you'll likely see couples skating around you, holding hands and looking all lovey-dovey, you don't have to focus on them. If you're a beginner, you'll be too busy trying to get it right the first time anyway. If you went to the rink with your friends, you can play a game with them too. Who knows? You might even get to skate on the frozen canals if they'll allow you (they occasionally do!). Source: Wikimedia Commons

Get Lost in Dam Square

Sometimes, when you're consumed with feelings of loneliness just because you don't have a significant other this year, the best thing to do is to get lost. Not 'get lost' in the sense of actually going somewhere you've never been to and not finding your way back, but rather, losing yourself in all the amusement and entertainment that a certain place offers. And here in Amsterdam, that can only mean Dam Square, the biggest public plaza in the city. Around this time of the year, this usually spacious area is filled with people going Christmas shopping, friends hanging out, and pedestrians zooming through like they're the only people out there. You definitely won't feel lonely in this environment! Source: Wikimedia Commons

See The Amsterdam Light Festival

If you thought Amsterdam's canals were already beautiful to begin with, wait until you see the Amsterdam Light Festival! Every December, just in time for the holiday season, the Dutch capital's iconic waterways hosts one of the most beautiful, dazzling, and enchanting light shows in the country. Imagine glowing butterflies floating on the canals, looking as magical as ever. Or stunning light shows that twinkle at every beat of EDM music. This is a spectacle you'll want to see yourself. It's so mesmerizing that you'll instantly forget that you were sad about being single during the holidays this year! Source: Amsterdam Light Festival YouTube Channel

Indulge in Hot Chocolate and Dutch Pastries

Sometimes, all you need is some self-love and self-care so that you won't get caught up with your feeling about being single on Christmas this year. And what's a better form of holiday self-love than indulging in some delicious hot chocolate paired with sweet Dutch pastries? Picture it: you're staying cozy in a charming cafe in Amsterdam, drinking freshly-made hot chocolate and dipping a pastry in it every so often. You're all alone, sure, but you're having a peaceful and calm afternoon. You're either reading a book, watching something on your phone, or simply watching as people pass you by. Doesn't that sound like a relaxing way to celebrate Christmas as a singleton? Source: Wikimedia Commons

Go to a Pub

Of course, there's always drinking your love troubles away at a local pub! As long as you don't end up drunk and causing trouble for the people around you, you're all good! Warming up in a pub in Amsterdam during the holiday season is a great way to accept the fact that, yes, you don't have someone special this year. Instead of wallowing in your own misery at home, having a pint of craft beer or even a cocktail or two will give you the buzz you need. If you invite your fellow single friends over for a drink, that's even better! Source: Wikimedia Commons

If you're here in Amsterdam, spending the holiday season single and all alone, there's no need to fret! You'd be surprised how much you can do to celebrate Christmas in the Dutch capital even when you're flying solo this year!

Nothing's stopping you from simply saying in your luxury home in Amsterdam during Christmas if you feel like it!