🌷 Top 5 places to admire flower fields in the Netherlands

Tulips are as much a calling card of the Netherlands as Gouda cheese and klomps, wooden Dutch shoes. They gained their popularity in the 1630s. Local residents decorated their homes with flowers, and resourceful ladies used tulips as corsets. For bulbs of certain types, the Dutch were willing to pay more than the bulbs themselves weighed.

Today tulips are distributed throughout the world. But in the Netherlands there is still a special attitude towards them. Every year, on the third Saturday of January, National Tulip Day takes place in Amsterdam. At this time, the city's Museum Square turns into a giant tulip garden, where everyone can choose a bouquet.

However, you can see the country in full colors from the end of March to the beginning of May. It is at this time that the flower fields are covered in stripes of pink, orange and yellow flowers. We have compiled a list of places where you can find the most incredible tulips in 2024.

Amsterdam Tulip Festival

• Where:  Amsterdam
• When to visit:  April 1-30, 2024
• Cost: Free

During Amsterdam's annual tulip festival, flowers appear in every corner of the city, from Vondelpark and Dam Square to the twisting streets of the Museum Quarter. More than 880 thousand tulips will bloom in 85 locations throughout the city.

Saskia Albrecht is a garden designer and the initiator of the festival. Her goal is to bring tulips back to the streets of Amsterdam under the motto: “A tulip for every Amsterdammer and from every Amsterdammer.” Throughout the fall, students, employees of various companies, owners of shops, hotels and museums were planting bulbs. And now all the flowers will be ready to bloom. You can find all locations with tulips on a special map.

Amsterdam Tulip Museum

• Where:  Amsterdam
• When to visit:  all year round, except April 27 and December 25
• Cost:  5 euros for adults, 3 euros for students

is a colorful corner that can be visited throughout the year. Take note if you can’t visit the Netherlands in the spring. This small museum along the Prinsengracht canal will help you delve into the fascinating tulip mania that swept the country in the 17th century. Other parts of the museum display Ottoman ceramics and industrial artifacts, naturally with a tulip theme. And the souvenir shop sells certified bags of bulbs of various varieties.

Royal Flower Park Keukenhof

• Where:  Lisse
• When to visit:  March 21 – May 12, 2024
• Cost:  19.50 euros for adults, 9 euros for children

The Keukenhof Royal Park, a 40-minute drive from the center of Amsterdam, hosts some of the most incredible flower shows in the Netherlands. Just imagine 40 hectares, which are decorated with more than 7 million flowers, including 800 types of tulips. This is the largest flower garden in the world.

Every year, it is visited by over a million people over eight weeks—that’s how long the park’s gates are open to visitors. In 2024, the gardens can be accessed from March 21 to May 12. This year marks the 75th anniversary of Keukenhof, so various Dutch musical groups are scheduled to perform in the park.

Museum “Black Tulip”

• Where:  Lisse
• When to visit:  all year round; hours vary
• Cost:  10 euros for adults, 5 euros for students

Outside of Keukenhof in the town of Lisse there are other starting points for exploring this tulip-growing region (also known as the Bollenstrijk region). For example , the Black Tulip Museum, where all exhibitions are dedicated exclusively to tulips.

From here, go hiking or cycling around the tulip fields. Intrepid and luxury travelers can take helicopter tours for €159 per person. However, they are only available on Saturdays and Sundays during April.

Afterwards you can go to the family farm Tulip Experience Amsterdam. It was founded in 2019 near the Keukenhof gardens. There are tulip fields with over a million flowers. The owners allow guests into their plantations for only 9.50 euros.

Bloemencorso Bollenstreek

• Where:  Noordwijk, Lisse and Haarlem
• When to visit:  April 17-21, 2024
• Cost: Free

The flower frenzy of the Lub district reaches its peak on April 20th, when the annual parade known as “Blomenkorso Bollenstrijk” takes place. It will stretch for 40 kilometers between the village of Noordwijk and the city of Haarlem.

Noordoostpolder Tulip Festival

• Where:  Emmeloord
• When to visit:  April 19 – May 5, 2024
• Cost: Free

While the Loob area around Amsterdam produces “tulip tourists” every spring, most of the flowers are grown in Noordoostpolder. This is a municipality about an hour's drive north of Amsterdam.

During the blooming season, the area turns into a patchwork of flower fields. The annual tulip festival takes place here from April 19 to May 5. During this time, two routes are offered: automobile and bicycle. They will give guests the opportunity to see the most beautiful tulip fields in the area.