Amsterdam Light Festival on a Boat

Every year the beautiful canals of Amsterdam light up for a brightening event when the nights get longer and the cold starts to settle in our days. It is then time for the Amsterdam Light Festival - a long route across the city full of art pieces and installations where light is the primary material. Its lack of materiality though, that of light that is, makes the challenge even more interesting for the artists participating. The solutions presented are often awe inspiring and talented at capturing such immaterial nature. 

In old pagan Northern Europe many traditions used fire in different ways during the dark and long months of the year as a reminder of the dorment life to be birth by the Winter, with the coming of Spring. The most obvious survivor of such traditions are city decorations during Christmas time. The Amsterdam Light Festival can be thought of as a contemporary take on it that mixes tradition, contemporary art and lightening techniques inviting us out of our winter burrows into the illuminated night.

Even though the route can be taken afoot there is no comparison to enjoying it during a boat ride. This is most certainly where you will have an immersive experience of the art installations as you pass them by and feel the light around you. It has become a tradition for us at “We are on a Boat” to organize a sustainable tour during this event, but this year we are even more invested in it as the festival theme, “Disrupt!” calls attention to the issues at the heart of our mission. It invites us to think not only about the dangerous aspects of sudden disturbances to our environment but also about ways of disrupting the status quo and changing ways of doing things. 

We are very excited to see what all the different artists have come up with inspired by this years’ theme and would love to welcome you on board to share the moment and reflect together. So come along on the 7th of December, 5pm and bring your friends and family! Tickets are available here and will have a surge in price soon, so be quick!  

Bring your gloves and Gluhwein and get on board!

Interested to list or book
a sustainable boat?

We are on a Boat organises an AI Design Sprint networking event on a boat during Amsterdam's World Summit AI

Artificial Intelligence is the word on the street. For good or for bad, it is here to stay. At We are on a Boat we believe that keeping up with technology advancement is half way walked towards making sure innovation serves humanity’s sustainable and fair development, as well as the future of the planet.

That’s why we didn’t want to miss this growing event happening at our step door. The World Summit AI Amsterdam is a young conference but already an established one in the field. In its third year, it presents itself as the world’s leading summit and offers a world class programme covering all the major and most interesting issues in the field. From education to space exploration you will definitely exponentially grow your AI knowledge during next week’s many events. Check the full menu here!

And because we are immensely excited and curious about the possible applications of AI for the sustainable boating and sustainable mobility fields, we are not only attending the summit but also promoting a networking event on a boat, that will transport participants from the location of the summit in Zaandam to the centre of Amsterdam.

During the ride there will also be a short introduction by the Human Future Design team to AI Design Sprints and the AI Card Deck Tool - developed by AI design firm 33A (33A.ai).

So don’t miss this opportunity to connect, pump up your sustainable travelling, and get acquainted with this innovative design tool.

There are limited places available. Book your ticket now!

Disclaimer: This is not an official event of World Summit AI.

Interested to list or book
a sustainable boat?

Join We are on a Boat for our closing summer, poetry boating event in the canals of Amsterdam! →

Lounging around on boats in the sun: relaxing.

Being read poetry on a Summer’s day: also very relaxing.

Combine the two and we’ve got ourselves a dreamscape of a day!

If you love poetry and the environment, join us on September 1st (Sunday), 4pm as we cruise the historic Amsterdam canals and read selected works of poetry spanning the last 200 years.

Poems being read will include works by: Shakespeare, Byron, Edgar Allen Poe, Carol Ann Duffy, Wiliam Blake, Walt Whitman, Oscar Wilde, Seamus Heaney, Sylvia Plath, and Maya Angelou.

This will all take place on an eco boat provided by weareonaboat.com. Reserve your ticket here.

Our poetry reader, Carmen Guillen, is a local writer and poet, originally from London. Having crossed the North sea on her houseboat four years ago, Carmen is fond of nautical works and poems that explore the natural world. Having worked for two national newspapers across three continents, she is interested in how literature is changing as globalisation blends cultures, languages, and geographical boundaries. In the daylight hours, Carmen is Editor in Chief for Unfold, an online magazine for professional communicators.

We look forward to seeing you there, poetry lovers!
For precise location and further details check We are on a Boat Facebook page.

And for a chance to win a free ride, get your inspiration juices going and show us your poems! You have until midnight on the 30th of August and you need to post them on the comments section of this promo post on the We are on a Boat Facebook page. The best two poems will get a free ticket!

Interested to list or book a sustainable boat? Please visit: www.weareonaboat.com