Info about PLUK

This year we kick off in Utrecht, then head to Amsterdam. Pluk de Nacht Utrecht runs from 6 to 15 August 2026 at Basecamp, Nijverheidsweg 16. Pluk Amsterdam runs from 19 to 29 August 2026 at our home on the IJ waterfront: the Stenen Hoofd.

Nope, you’re always welcome to just wander in, no ticket required. Drop by for a drink, a bite and the festival vibe. You can watch the film from the terrace or from your own chair or blanket; you’ll be a bit further from the screen, but you won’t miss a thing.

Want a comfy spot right in front of the screen, in a beach chair? For that you’ll need a ticket. Buying one also helps us out: Pluk used to be free, but putting on the festival has become much more expensive over the years. As a non-profit, we keep things as affordable as we can, thanks to the grants, sponsors and many volunteers who support us. Whatever you spend on a ticket or at the bar helps keep Pluk going, and keeps it open to everyone.

You’ll find ticket prices and how to buy them further down, under “How much does a film screening cost?”

A ticket for the open-air programme costs €9.50. In Amsterdam, a €1.50 city entertainment tax is added on top, a levy charged by the City of Amsterdam that we pass on to them in full. So in Amsterdam you pay €11.00 in total. Buy during the presale (24 June to 21 July) and you’ll pay €1.00 less per ticket.

A ticket gets you a beach chair right in front of the screen. You can also watch the film for free from the terrace or from your own chair or blanket; you’ll be a bit further back, but you won’t miss a thing.

The film nights in the Pluktent (21, 22, 28 and 29 August) cost €6.00 per ticket, including headphones and the €1.50 city tax. The presale discount doesn’t apply to the tent nights. Pluk MINI on Sunday 23 August is free, no ticket needed.

You can buy tickets in advance online on our website, up until 8.30 pm on the day itself. After that, you can still get one on site. At the Plukbar and the blanket rental, it’s card or contactless only, no cash.

Once you’ve bought a ticket, we can’t refund it. We’re a small non-profit, and we rely on this income to put the festival on.

And don’t worry about the weather, we’ve got it covered. Pluk is all-weather: the film always goes ahead, rain or shine. If it starts pouring, we move the screening into the tent and hand out ponchos. We’d only ever cancel in genuinely dangerous conditions, and in all our years, that’s never happened.

Bought during the presale? You’ll get a voucher code to redeem for any screening you like, so you’re not locked into a date.

At both locations, the grounds and the bar open at 6 pm. Come early, grab a drink and a bite, and claim a good spot under the evening sky.

As dusk sets in, we kick off the interactive pre-show: join in with games on the big screen straight from your phone. It’s a fun way to break the ice with the people around you before the film begins.

The film programme starts as it gets dark, around 9.15 pm in Amsterdam and 9.30 pm in Utrecht. We open with a few trailers and a short film before the main feature, with a short break partway through.

After that, all that’s left to do is sit back and enjoy the film under the stars.

We reveal it step by step. Over on the 2026 film programme page you’ll already find a handful of films coming to Pluk de Nacht this summer. Which film plays on which night, though, we’re keeping under wraps for now.

There’s a good reason for that: many of our films come straight from international festivals and sometimes only become available shortly before summer. So we’re still piecing together the best possible line-up.

Can’t wait? The presale runs from 24 June to 21 July. You’ll pay €1.00 less per ticket and get a voucher code to redeem later for any screening you like.

We announce the full line-up at the end of July. From then on you’ll see exactly which films play on which days, and you can swap your voucher code for a ticket to a specific screening. Keep an eye on the programme page, new titles keep dropping in the meantime.

We’re an all-weather festival, so the show always goes on. If it looks like rain, bring an umbrella; we hand out ponchos too, and we can move the film under cover if needed. Rain or shine, your evening goes ahead.

Whether you come by bike, public transport or car, both locations are easy to reach.

Amsterdam
Since our very first edition, Pluk de Nacht Amsterdam has called the Stenen Hoofd home, an old pier on the IJ in Amsterdam-West. It’s 8 minutes by bike or 5 by car from Amsterdam Central. Coming by public transport? Take bus 48 towards Houthavens and get off at Barentszplein; from there it’s about a 2-minute walk onto the grounds.

By car, you can park around the Stenen Hoofd at the City of Amsterdam’s standard parking rates. Coming from within the city? We’d recommend the bike or public transport.

Utrecht
Pluk de Nacht Utrecht takes place at Basecamp, Nijverheidsweg 16. It’s about 15 minutes by bike or 10 by car from Utrecht Central. By train, Utrecht Zuilen station is often quickest; from there it’s roughly a 10-minute walk. Travelling by public transport? Plan your route via U-OV or 9292.

The entrance isn’t visible from the road. You’ll find it at the entrance to Basecamp, marked by the sign with number 16, opposite Nijverheidsweg 21. Head onto the grounds and follow the road to the left, past the boom barriers. At the end of that road you’ll reach the festival site.



Coming by car? On entering, follow the road to the right towards the car park. From there, walk back to the entrance and take that same route to the left, past the boom barriers. You can also park on the public roads nearby, at the City of Utrecht’s standard parking rates.

By bike?
Both locations have free bike parking right by the grounds. In Amsterdam, the racks are by the fence on the street side of the Stenen Hoofd. In Utrecht, you’ll find the parking just before the festival site. We ask that you park your bike there and don’t bring it onto the grounds.

For up-to-date travel info, check: U-OV, NS Reisplanner, 9292, GVB of utrecht.nl/bereikbaar.

See you soon under the stars. 🌙🍿

You don’t have to, but you’re welcome to.

Want a comfy spot in front of the screen? Rent a beach chair, either in advance or on the night itself. You’ll find the how and where under “Can I rent a beach chair?”

Prefer your own seat? Feel free to bring a camping chair, folding chair or blanket. Or settle in on the terrace, drink in hand, and soak up the film and the festival vibe. You’ll be a bit further from the screen, but you’ll still catch all of it.

Yes! You can book one online in advance, or grab one on the night at the festival site. We have plenty of beach chairs, so even on busy nights there’s often still room. We can’t guarantee it, though, so if you want to be sure of a chair, book ahead online.

You collect your beach chair at the chair pick-up point between 6.30 and 9 pm: in Amsterdam to the left of the screen, in Utrecht by the chair container next to the bar. If you don’t collect your reserved chair in time, it’s back up for grabs for other visitors. Blankets are available to rent there too.

Didn’t manage to get a chair? You can still watch the film from the terrace, or from your own chair or blanket.

Yes. The bar has a wide range of drinks, including beer from Oedipus. To eat, there’s a food truck serving hot and cold snacks. We don’t do full meals, so if you fancy a proper dinner, it’s best to eat before you come.

A bottle of water or a small snack is no problem. We just hope you’ll get your drinks and bites from the bar and the food truck. That helps us keep Pluk going and entry affordable.

The films at Pluk de Nacht often do well at the big international festivals, but rarely make it to Dutch cinemas. We show striking features, documentaries, animations and shorts that haven’t been seen in the Netherlands before, or only reached a small audience. You never quite know what you’ll get: from animation to road movie, from bleak rural documentary to absurd rom-com.

We don’t just press play. Once, a twelve-piece orchestra performed the score live to a series of shorts, and another time we ran a crying contest, a tongue-in-cheek nod to tearjerker TV.

Definitely! Pluk has grown into a meeting place where films mix with art, interactive projects, food, drinks and parties.

We give young talent a stage, so there’s plenty to discover beyond the films. We also experiment with interactive screenings where the audience joins in, last year for instance with a live AI dialogue you could influence from your phone. This year, there’s another audience experiment in the works.

And in between films: a bowling lane, giant Mikado and a ping-pong table. Let us surprise you!

The open-air films are in English or subtitled in English, with no Dutch subtitles. So you can always follow them in English, whatever the original language. The afternoon matinees in the Pluktent are usually in English, but always with Dutch subtitles.

Every film description lists the spoken language and subtitles, so you’ll know what to expect in advance.

The exception is Pluk MINI, our afternoon for little ones. The films are in Dutch or with no dialogue, but there’s so much more to enjoy, games, crafts and a closing disco, that every child has a blast, whatever language they speak.

Absolutely, children are very welcome! But there’s one thing worth knowing: we put together the open-air programme, both the shorts and the main features, with an adult audience in mind, not with children. The films come with descriptions, but we don’t include content warnings or age ratings. Want to bring your child to an open-air screening? Of course you can, but whether a film is suitable is a call we leave to you as a parent.

We’ve also got a programme just for kids, both in Amsterdam:

Pluk MINI is a free afternoon of films for children aged 2 and up, on Sunday 23 August from 2 to 5.30 pm. All children and their parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles are welcome, and no ticket is needed.

In the Pluktent we show (modern) classics for slightly older children, on Friday 21, Saturday 22, Friday 28 and Saturday 29 August. These early screenings start at 7.15 pm, earlier in the evening, before the open-air film. A spot in the tent costs €6.00, headphones included.

We’d love to see you at Pluk MINI or in the Pluktent!

Pluk MINI is the most fun kids’ party of the summer: a free festival afternoon for children aged 2 to 12 and their parents, grandparents, neighbours and babysitters. On Sunday 23 August we open the Stenen Hoofd in Amsterdam during the day, just for the little ones.

There’s loads to do: games and play on the grounds, films on the big screen in the Pluktent, arts and crafts and face painting, and the one and only Pluk MINI disco to finish. There are treats too, and a drink at the bar helps support Pluk.

Bring a blanket, a chair or a beanbag, and most of all, a good mood. No ticket needed, just come along and join in.

As soon as the film programme and theme are announced, you’ll find them on our website and socials.

Sure, you can. We just ask that your dog isn’t too big, stays on a lead, and doesn’t disrupt the film. And if your dog poops on or around the grounds, clean it up. That way everyone, owner and dog alike, can enjoy the evening.

This year, young students are creating the art programme, so expect a fresh, original take on what you’ll come across around the grounds.

And we’re going all out with the silent disco: every night this year. We’re also experimenting with special effects to take the dancefloor to the next level, the start of something we want to build on in the years ahead.

Pluk de Nacht began in 2003, founded by a few friends with a deep love of film. They fell for films they’d discovered at festivals, but which were nowhere to be seen in the Netherlands. Their goal back then is still ours today: to let as many people as possible enjoy films that never got a release here, or only reached a small audience.

Essential. Without volunteers, there’s no festival. From the very beginning, Pluk has been carried by countless volunteers who pour their creativity and energy into it. In the week before we open, they transform a bare site into a festival full of atmosphere, and once we’re up and running, they keep everything going.

Fancy helping to build Pluk? We’d love your help. Have a look at Volunteers wanted to see what you can do.

Glad you asked!

The easiest way: book a chair or grab something nice at the bar. That keeps Pluk running, and you’re in for a great evening yourself.

Want to do more? Become a volunteer and help build the festival with us, or just drag your friends along.

And stay in the loop on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook or through our newsletter.

Not much, really, mostly: use your common sense and be kind to each other.

A few things we do ask: keep the emergency exits clear and put your rubbish in the bins on site. That keeps it safe and welcoming for everyone.

Happy to help! Don’t hesitate to drop us an email or a message on WhatsApp. You can also call us on +31 85 0041645. We hope to see you at Pluk this summer!