6 Tips on How to Celebrate Sinterklaas Like Dutch People
Wow, can you believe it’s November already? Time flies when you’re having fun (or having children, haha)! For parents in the Netherlands, November is one of the busiest months of the year. Why, you ask? Well, November 11th is the day of Sint Maarten, and you must be ready to welcome the children with their beautiful lanterns, singing and knocking on your door for candies. And if you have children of your own, you are probably busy making lanterns with them already!
But that’s not all – the Sinterklaasjounaal also starts in the first week of November, and this year, it’s starting on November 13th. Can you feel the excitement building up? Sinterklaas will arrive in the Netherlands on November 18th, and you want to ensure you have everything ready for your children. That means getting Sinterklaas or Piet’s costume for them and, of course, buying gifts and decorating your home for the big day. Don’t worry, though. I’ve got you covered! Check out my previous blogs (click the links), where I explain everything you need to know about Sinterklaasavond and Sint Maarten traditions. In addition, today, I will share my top tips for gifts and decorations that will make your Sinterklaasavond unforgettable!
(Disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliate links, meaning that at no additional cost to you, I will receive a commission if you click through and make a purchase – Click here to learn more.)
How to celebrate Sinterklaas like Dutch People
Tip 1. Get a small gift throughout the year
When you go to the mall with your children, and they come across a lovely toy, they may ask you to buy it. As I mentioned in my previous blog post, you can tell them that perhaps Sinterklaas will bring the gift for them and make a note for yourself for Sinterklaasavond. Personally, I have learned that purchasing every toy that my children ask for is not feasible as it becomes quite a task to find the desired toys, and it also weighs heavily on my wallet. Therefore, I take photos or make notes of the toys that my children want and look for deals to see if I can find them at a reasonable price. Just an additional tip: usually, sales and discounts are listed in ‘pepper,’ so check on the ‘Speelgoed’ category.
P.S. Discover amazing gift ideas that your kids will love and use for a long time! Click here to find inspiration from gifts I have tried with my children.
Tip 2. Get small gifts for Shoen Zetten (shoe setting)
To celebrate Sinterklaas, the Dutch holiday, you must set up a shoe with your child at night. Fill the shoe with carrots and snacks like papernoten (Amazon affiliate link). It’s common for children to make a small gift or letter for Sinterklaas and Pieten to show their appreciation for bringing gifts. The night before, children set out their shoes, awaiting a surprise the following day. These gifts don’t have to be extravagant. A small hair clip, colored pencil, or chocolate piece will do the trick. Make sure you have a collection of small goodies for these occasions. You can set up the shoe when Sinterklaas arrives in the Netherlands, usually two or three times a week.
Tip 3. Get yourself a zakje
As I mentioned earlier, since you will be buying gifts for your children throughout the year, it is essential to keep them organized. One valuable and enjoyable way to do this is by getting yourself a Sinterklaas Jute zak (bag). You can keep all the gifts in this large jute zak and present them to your children on Sinterklaasavond. You can easily find them in the local stores or click here to buy them from Amazon (affiliate link). This zak is not only for organizing gifts but also is very useful on Sinterklaasavond. Last year, we hid the zak in the attic, and the children were thrilled when they found the zaks on Sinterklaasvond. They saw the same zaks were carried by Pieten on the Sinterklaasjounaal. They believed that Pieten brought the zaks to our house to bring the gifts for them. This made the occasion even more joyful for the family.
Tip 4. Get Sinterklaas and Pieten costumed stuffed animal toys
I always bring out my Sinterklaas and Pieten hamsters when it comes to sweet Sinterklaas decorations. Last year, I bought them from Albert Heijn right after Sinterklaasavond (when the price of Sinterklaas hamsters went down about 80%). I got three hamsters to create excitement in the house. Of course, you can use any other toys dressed in Sinterklaas and Pieten costumes to create a festive atmosphere.
How do I use them? When the children set their shoes out at night, I put a small gift for them and have the hamster hold the gifts. In the morning, when the children check their shoes and find the hamster holding the present, I tell them that the hamster is guarding their gift and that it’s from Sinterklaas! The excitement on their faces is unforgettable. In addition, on Sinterklaasavond, you can create a game that involves the hamsters holding hints that children need to use to find their gifts (I will explain the fun below!).
Tip 5. Decorate your house with Sinterklaas Theme
As the festive season approaches, daycares and schools are busy preparing for the arrival of Sinterklaas. Children are getting increasingly excited as they participate in decorating their schools and daycares. The old story goes that Piet delivers presents to children through the chimney. It is a great idea to decorate your fireplace to welcome Sinterklaas and Pieten. But if you don’t have a fireplace like I do, don’t worry. You can easily make a DIY chimney with a paper box. These DIY chimneys were made by the teachers at my son’s daycare.
How to DIY a paper fireplace?
On Sunday, after Sint Maarten, my family DIY the fireplace for Sinterklaas! It was so much fun to make it together with the children, bringing the festive spirit into your home!
Here is a YouTube video for DIY paper fireplace inspiration for you if you need one!
Decoration tips!
Also, you can click here to buy some decorations for your house :
Sinterklaas and Pieten flags (I), Sinterklaas and Pieten flags (II),
Sinterklaas and Pieten window stickers
Tip 6. Game to find the gifts from Sinterklaas
Today is the big day, and you want to make it more exciting for the children in your family, right? One tradition in my family is to hide notes/hints from Sinterklaas for the children to find where the gifts are. For example, an adult can sneak out and ring the doorbell (you can also ask your neighbor to help). When the children open the door, they’ll find a letter from Sinterklaas, which hints at where to find the gifts. Following the directions, the children will find more tips along the way until they discover where the gifts are hidden. It’s like searching for treasure, and the children get really excited in the process. This is a lovely way to make children excited about the gifts!
Tip 6. Make a video from Sinterklaas or Invite Sinterklaas to visit
In my neighborhood, people pool their money together to invite Sinterklaas and Pieten to visit their house for Sinterklaasavond. However, since my child’s school had already organized a visit from Sinterklaas, we decided not to follow this tradition and instead created a lovely video message from Sinterklaas. It was a lot of fun making it and watching it. We even included a personalized message from Sinterklaas for my daughter, where he asked her to drink more water as she tends to forget to drink throughout the day. It was adorable that this message encouraged my daughter to drink more water, and she proudly shared that with me. You can make your personalized video here – it is my absolute favorite!
Bonus tip for Sinterklaas video: If you are using ING, in the ING points shop, you can exchange your ING points for a discount of 14.95 euros on a Video of Sint Download or DVD.
Now, Sinterklaas is Almost Here!
Are you ready to celebrate 2023 Sinterklaas like Dutch? If you want to get more insight into Sinterklaas tradition, click here to get all the essential information you need to know, including how Sinterklaas became a tradition in the Netherlands. With the ultimate tips shared in the last blog and this article, I bet you have all the information you need to know. Have a ‘gezellig’ Sinterklaas!
Hope you have the best ‘gezellig’ Sinterklaas!
