Muiderslot Plum Weekend: P.C. Hooft’s 400-year-old invitation becomes a summer ritual

Muiderslot holds Pruimenweekend on 22 and 23 August. The orchard and grounds programme is free, while entering the castle still requires a valid ticket. It suits families and readers interested in literature and history. Decide whether you want the free outdoor programme or a combined castle visit, then use the official times to arrange the market, music and workshops. Because the orchard remains and its plums can still be tasted, history leaves the display case and continues through an invitation, shared food and live sound.

• The tradition has a named protagonist: 17th-century castle resident, poet and writer P.C. Hooft ended letters with “Tot in de pruimentijd”, inviting Amsterdam friends to Muiden to share ripe plums from his orchard. It was not invented later as a market slogan.
• How the current day continues the invitation: visitors taste the orchard harvest and meet honey, freshly baked bread and regional products in a farmers' market atmosphere. “Come and eat together” remains the centre rather than becoming a museum label.
• Another cultural voice enters the grounds: Dakar-trained musician Ibou Ndong, who now teaches and performs in the Netherlands, leads djembe workshops. Check times if you want both music and castle; free grounds do not mean every part is ticket-free.

Hokimi field note: Ask a child to write one sentence inviting a friend to the orchard before tasting a plum or joining music; Hooft's phrase then becomes hospitality, not vocabulary.