The Emperor and Empress arrived in Amsterdam on Tuesday for an official visit marking 400 years of bilateral ties between Japan and the Netherlands.
The Imperial couple are to meet Dutch leaders, including Queen Beatrix, later in the day. They are also scheduled to lay a wreath at the National Monument honoring the victims of World War II.
The Dutch visit is seen as the highlight of the couple's four-nation European tour.
Japan and the Netherlands, which are celebrating four centuries of ties that started in 1600 when the Dutch ship Liefde ran ashore at Usuki, Oita Prefecture, also continue to be haunted by Japan's colonization of the Dutch East Indies during World War II.