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The Navy Days are quite fun to go to, but will only be entertaining for one single day or so. When you also intend to visit the Naval Museum (with i.e. the submarine Tonijn, a WWII minesweeper and the bridge section of the old De Ruyter) and the Rescue Museam, you can add another day. But Den Helder doesn't have anymore to offer than that. (I think the Germans will disagree because they invade Den Helder every spring and summer, I don't know why...)

The Navy Days will have about 200.000 visitors in two-and-a-half day. Of course the most ships are Dutch, but typically the Belgians send a frigate and a minehunter, the Germans a frigate and the British a frigate and a minehunter. Probably the Indonesians will send their newbuilt corvettes, but that is about all.

The Tall Ships Sail 2008 will be attended by 400.000 visitors and will be visited by about 90 (tall) sail ships. I think there will be much more things to do around Den Helder during these days. I don't think a lot of foreign naval ships will be present, except for the South-American naval sail training ships, as usual. Oh and the strange Belgian naval sail training ship, the Zenobe Gramme. But that is it. All the other ships are owned by civvies.

Maybe the World Port days in Rotterdam in the first weeks of September is another option. Lots of different types of ships, naval and civil and a more interesting city than Den Helder...

Websites:
http://www.thetallshipsraces2008denhelder.nl/Default.aspx?tabid=89
http://www.marine.nl/historie/marinemuseum/English/
http://www.wereldhavendagen.nl/ (only in Dutch)

Regards,

E2R