Current time in Amsterdam

Current Date and Time in Amsterdam, Netherlands

The Netherlands is on Central European Times (CET), which is GMT +1 hour.

It is 6 hours ahead of the U.S. Eastern timezone, and 9 hours ahead of the U.S. Pacific timezone.

Example:
• When it is 6 am in New York (and thus 3 am in Los Angeles), it is 12 noon in Amsterdam.

• At 9 pm in New York (6 pm in Los Angeles), it is 3 am the next day in Amsterdam.

Daylight Savings Time starts at 2:00AM on the last Sunday in March, and ends at 3:00AM on the last Sunday in October. (Remember: the clock springs forward in the spring, and falls backward in the fall).

In writing times are express in a 24-hour format. Thus, say,

11 am = 11:00
12 noon = 12:00
1 pm = 13:00
11 pm = 23:00

The time in Dutch

The Dutch have an amusing way of telling time, at least when it comes to reporting the time anywhere between quarter past the hour and quarter to the hour.

The most potentially damaging problem is on the half hour. While “half eight” means 8:30 in England, to the Dutch it means 7:30. [...]

When relating minutes before or after the half hour — that is between :15 and :45 — the time twisting increases. In such instances, the minutes are related to the half hour:

7:20 is tien voor half acht, ten before 7:30 — or for beginners, ten minutes before half an hour before 8:00.

8:35 is vijf over half negen, five past half-past eight or or for beginners, five minutes past half an hours before 9:00.

The 24-hour clock is commonly used in written form for train schedules and the like. For 17:20, vijf uur twintig or tien voor half zes are uttered instead of tien voor half achttien.
- Source: The Undutchables, Page 216

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