Dutch Royal Visit to the Caribbean

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King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima of the Netherlands have joined the Princess of Orange on an extensive introductory Tour of the Caribbean Territories of the Kingdom of The Netherlands from January 27th to February 9th, beginning in Bonaire, Aruba and Curaçao before moving on Sint Maarten, Sint Eustatius and Saba. Culture, nature, colonial past, defense deployment, sports, and interactions with local residents are central themes of the Tour. 

Bonaire

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The King, Queen and the Princess of Orange arrive on Bonaire on the afternoon of January 27th, but were only officially welcomed the next morning morning, by the Lieutenant Governor at his official residence, where the members of the Island Council and deputies were also present.

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Afterwards, they visited the ‘slave huts’ at Witte Pan, which symbolise Bonaire’s slavery past, before a tour along the west coast and a visit to the Nos Zjilea in Cultural Park Mangazina di Rei, where the cultural-historical heritage of Bonaire is displayed. A lunch took place in Arawak with residents of Bonaire about current themes, such as climate change, agricultural development and poverty reduction, before a visit to the Bay of Sorobon, where a windsurfing demonstration took place, and a meeting with to junior rangers from the Bonaire National Parks Foundation about nature conservation of the coastal area followed by a boat trip through the Bay and the mangrove area.

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In the evening, the King, Queen and the Princess of Orange were in Kralendijk for a visit to ‘Taste of Bonaire ‘, a cultural market with local products, gastronomy and musical performances.

Aruba

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On January 30th, the King, Queen Máxima and the Princess of Orange arrived in Oranjestad on Aruba, where a welcome ceremony took place on Wilhelminaplein. After an audience with Governor Alfonso Boekhoudt, a walk to Parliament was followed by a meeting with the chairmen of the political groups. The Royal Group then walked to the Cocolishi, the residence of the Council of Ministers, where a luncheon was held with the Prime Minister and ministers.

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In the afternoon, the King, Queen Máxima and the Princess of Orange visited San Nicolas beginning at Filomena College with a performance about Boy Ecury, an Aruban-Dutch resistance hero, followed by a walk through the city, while viewing colourful murals created during the Aruba Art Fair by international and local artists. The Royal Group also paid a short visit to the Museum of Industry and watched a street performance including breakdance, spoken word and a carnival performance by young people.

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The following morning, the King, Queen and Princess of Orange visited the Arikok National Park, which covers 20% of Aruba. They hiked through the park, met the makers of a nature film about the six islands and talked to junior rangers about maintenance and management in the centre of cultivation, followed by a visit to Royal Aruba Aloe, where they saw how the company cultivates and produces aloe vera into care products and talked to employees.

In the afternoon the King, Queen, and Princess of Orange visited the University of Aruba, attending part of a lecture on Caribbean law before the King and the Princess visited the football academy in the Compleho Deportivo Frans Figaroa, who Queen Máxima paid a field visit to a vegetable grower, who is a participant in the business academy of lender Qredits.

In the evening, the Royal Family attended the Bon Bini Festival at Fort Zoutman. After a tour of the Plaza Padú, with a presentation of local products and musical performances, the King, Queen Máxima and the Princess attended an exploration of the culture and history of Aruba, with Caribbean music and dance.

Curaçao

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Following their visit to Aruba, King Willem-Alexander, Queen Máxima, and the Princess of Orange sailed in the Zr.Ms. Holland to Willemstad in Curaçao, where they were welcomed by an Official Welcome Ceremony. On the ship, the Royal Family learned about the deployment of the Ministry of Defense in the Caribbean.

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On their second day, the King, Queen, and Princess of Orange walked across the Pontjesbrug to Brionplein, where the King gave the starting signal for the registration of the King’s Games, before a visit to the Otrobanda district, where they talked to residents, artists and watched musical performances. Afterwards, a lunch took place with the Curaçao authorities in the Governor’s Palace.

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In the afternoon, the King, Queen, and Princess of Orange visited the Punda district, where the King minted a coin to mark 25 years of Willemstad as a UNESCO World Heritage city before they painted a Chichi, a typical Curaçao sculpture that symbolizes the responsible older sister in the family. The Royal Family then walked through the Scharloo district, with street art, music and sports projects for young people, ending on the Princess Amalia Bridge, where the group listened to the Waltz Amalia composed for the Princess.

In the evening, King Willem-Alexander, Queen Máxima, and the Princess of Orange attended a dinner at the Cathedral of Doornen, with twenty-one prominent Curaçaoans, which symbolised the 21st wedding anniversary of the King and Queen.

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On their final day, the King, Queen, and Princess of Orange visited the Landhuis Knip, on the former plantation where Tula started the slave revolt in 1795, before visiting Hofi Mango, a former sugar plantation that is now a nature park. Later, they attended a presentation on the beach of Cas Abao by the Sea Turtle Conservation and Dutch Caribbean Nature Alliance (DCNA) about marine protected areas and the conservation of the turtle population.

To conclude the visit to Curaçao in the evening, King Willem-Alexander, Queen Máxima, and the Princess of Orange attended a ‘Tumba Music Concert’ with carnival performances on Brionplein.

Sint Maarten

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After a two day break, the King, Queen Máxima and the Princess of Orange were welcomed by Governor Ajamu Baly as they arrived in Sint Maarten, seeing the reconstruction of the island after the devastation of Hurricane Irma in 2017, visiting the emergency and disaster relief services and the SXM Medical Center before a visit to the Color Me SXM mural route in Philipsburg as well as a walk with a concert on the Boardwalk of Philipsburg.

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The following day, the King Willem-Alexander, Queen Máxima, and the Princess of Orange visited Fort Amsterdam before meeting members of the parliament and youth parliament of Sint Maarten and visiting the White and Yellow Cross residential facility and a science fair. In the afternoon, the King, Queen and the Princess of Orange visited Resources for Community Resilience (R4CR) before going to a school garden project where they talk to students about the work in the garden and about the importance of gardening for their mental health, as well as the Emilio Wilson Park. The King, Queen Máxima and the Princess of Orange then visited St. Peters Hillwhere they get an explanation about nature conservation on Sint Maarten ahead of a youth baseball tournament.

In the evening, King Willem-Alexander, Queen Máxima, and the Princess of Orange attended a Reception hosted by Governor Ajamu Baly and met various residents of Sint Maarten.

St. Eustatius

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King Willem-Alexander, Queen Máxima, and the Princess of Orange were next on St. Eustatius, where they walked through the historic centere of Oranjestad, meeting several Statians and also addressing the past of slavery while joining a debate with young people to will discuss their future. Afterwards, the King, Queen Máxima and the Princess of Orange visited Zeelandia Beach before a visit to a community garden where they talked to farmers about the food supply on St. Eustatius ahead of a basketball training with students before the visit to St. Eustatius was concluded with a manifestation in Fort Oranje dedicated to the cultural heritage of St. Eustatius.

Saba

King Willem-Alexander, Queen Máxima, and the Princess of Orange ended their Tour on Saba, where they were received by Lieutenant Governor Jonathan Johnson before receiving an explanation about the energy supply on Saba. They visited the villages of Zion’s Hill and Windwardside before a visit to the Harry L. Johnson Museum ahead of the visit the Expertise Education Center Saba (EC2 ) in St. Johns. 

The Royal Family then visited the harbour where they received an explanation of the construction plans for the new harbour on the island, before the King, Queen Máxima and the Princess of Orange went to the village of The Bottom where they played sports with children on the largest Cruijff Court in the world ahead of their return to The Netherlands.

The Princess of Orange said:

“Thank you so much for the warm welcome. I couldn’t have wished for a better introduction to the Caribbean part of the Kingdom. Getting to know all the islands was a wonderful experience and I look forward to returning. On behalf of myself and my parents, I’d like to say: masha danki!” – the Princess of Orange

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