Hundreds of historic tall ships heading to Amsterdam for maritime festival

A puff of orange smoke erupted into the sky and ships’ horns sounded as the replica three-masted clipper Stad Amsterdam passed through a lock to mark the official start of the event

Orange smoke signals the start of the parade. Picture: Peter Dejong/AP

A flotilla of hundreds of historic ships is heading into Amsterdam, kicking off a five-day festival celebrating the Dutch capital’s maritime history.

Vessels from all over the world, their masts and rigging decorated with flags, left the North Sea coastal town of Ijmuiden to begin their hours-long journey up the North Sea Canal and into Amsterdam’s Ij waterway for Sail 2025, the first edition in a decade.