The beautiful sprout of colourful tulips across gardens in the Netherlands is the latest sign that spring has arrived. Despite a cold start to the season, the latest flower report from one of the largest tulip fields in the world is promising for a beautiful spring.
The famed Keukenhof gardens, just 20 miles (32 km) outside of Amsterdam, is home to over seven million unique tulips, and is now open for visitors to see the flowers up close.
Tulip gardens in the Netherlands are finally open to tourists
“The first tulips and hyacinths are already flowering. Visitors can enjoy a colourful park from day one. In autumn, Keukenhof’s gardeners planted 7 million flower bulbs by hand. Across the Bollenstreek [bulb growing region] the fields are starting to bloom,” the flower exhibition Keukenhof shared in a statement.
Book your stay at Hotel restaurant Stad Munster via Booking.com
“2023 is mainly a welcome back for our international visitors,” says Keukenhof’s director Jeroen Duyster in a statement. “We are looking forward to receiving visitors from across the planet again. Spreading our visitors across the season ensures optimum enjoyment for all and excellent accessibility.”
Keukenhof opened for visitors last week, and will conclude its season on May 14. Tickets can be purchased on the attraction’s website. Entrance tickets are EUR 19.00 (USD 20) for adults, and EUR 9.00 (USD 9.78) for children aged 4-17. The website also offers tickets for transportation to the attraction via boat or public transportation.
View this post on Instagram
The garden dates back to the 15th century, and became open to tourists in 1949 with over 2,00,000 guests going to see the tulips in its first season. Now in its 73rd year of operation, the tulip garden is expecting over one million visitors this year.
Book your stay at Vakantie Villa Markermeer via Booking.com
At the nearby Tulip Experience Amsterdam, visitors are offered another opportunity to get up close to the flowers, and learn about the gardening process. The Experience was created by one of Amsterdam’s largest farmers of flower bulbs, after tourists were stepping on the precious flowers in order to get selfies. The company, W.A.M. Pennings, was started in 1951 and the family-owned business created the experience as a public garden and area where tourists could experience and be in a field of tulips to understand the flower and get the perfect photo.
“You can take beautiful photos in our show garden with 1 million tulips, in 703 varieties from our own nursery, and at the same time learn everything about the tulip in the museum in an interactive and accessible way! Everyone can also pick their own bunch of tulips in the indoor garden to take home,” shares Tulip Experience Amsterdam in a statement to Travel + Leisure.
Tickets for Tulip Experience Amsterdam are available for purchase, and are EUR 9.95, or USD 10.82 adults, and EUR 6.95, or IUSD 7.95 for children 3-11. Children under 2 are free. Visitors are encouraged to check the Experience’s social media for the latest status of the Tulips.
“There’s nowhere in the world where you can see the amazing colours of these tulips – it’s unbelievable and so beautiful,” says Tulip Tours Holland founder Mike Zwart in an interview with T+L. For the last five years, Zwart’s company has led travellers on custom tulip tours throughout the Netherlands, with stops at iconic windmills.
Book your stay at Grand Hotel Amrâth Kurhaus The Hague Scheveningen via Booking.com
Spring in the Netherlands is a popular time for tourists to visit and see the tulips, and celebrate the King’s Day on April 27, according to the Netherlands Tourism Department.
This story first appeared on www.travelandleisure.com
Main and Feature Image Credit: Getty Images
All USD conversions were done at the time of writing
Written By
