What are the Netherlands famous for other than their grass? Tulips! And oh boy I can tell you that you do not want to miss out on the tulip fields when they are in peak season, inespecially when the weather is as beautiful in mid April as it was this year.
Of course there are many different regions around the Netherlands where they grow tulips. The tulips are grown commercially which is why you will also see many fields that are closed off/where you can’t just stroll through. And even when the farmers allow people to go on the fields, it is super important to be respectful. So do not step on them or pick them unless you are at a tulip picking field (right outside of Amsterdam is one for example!) where you pay for per flower.
If you are already planning to see Keukenhof garden anyway (check out my other post about it here), I highly suggest to also explore the surrounding tulip fields. And so you don’t need to spend 10 years like i did trying to research about this, here is my little guide for you.
When is the best time to see tulip fields?
Tulips are usually in full bloom around mid April to May depending on the weather that year. But this is usually the best time to visit! But don’t worry about the crowds. The fields are so large, you will find free space!
If you don’t want to die of a heatwave and wanted to go to Keukenhof anyway, I recommend going to Keukenhof during the midday heat as there is plenty of shade there!
Where to find the tulip fields?
So first of all, considering that they are grown comercially, there are many different places. Depending on where you are coming from it might be easier to reach one place than another.
The most well-known fields are around the Keukenhof garden (it’s just conveniently close to the garden) which is in the city Lisse.
From Leiden or Haarlem
To see as much as the fields as possible try to arrive in Leiden or Haarlem (the latter is not even 30 km away from Amsterdam). From there you can rent a bike (or continue by car) and start going on the “Bloemen Route”, the Flower Route. This route usually starts from Haarlem to Leiden(or vice versa), passing by Lisse on the way. You can find more infos here.
From Keukenhof, Lisse
If you don’t really have time for this, you can take a bus directly to Keukenhof, where you can rent a bike right infront of the entrance or even just walk around the nearby fields (like I did but please make sure to bring comfortably shoes). It really doesn’t matter which direction you go as you will find tulip fields on all sides. Don’t worry. This region is known as “Bollenstreek”.
You can check which fields are currently in bloom and thus plan your route around the dutch fields on flowerradar.com! It gives you almost daily updates of the fields (with images) and is thus very concurrent. If you can’t get to the crowded area around Keukenhof, this is a great thing to help you out!
If you want to pick your own tulips to buy them and take them home, which you can only at specific fields, check out this website which has more infos. I definitely think it’s a cool experience and there is one right outside of Amsterdam.
Whether you are going by car or bike, you can usually just park your vehicle infront of the fields as long as you are taking the land roads (not highways) as there usually isn’t too much traffic going on.
Costs of going to the tulip fields?
Visiting the fields themselves is completely free. So this is for all yall instagram wannabe famous budget-friendly models.
Picking tulips: around 0.25€ per tulip depending on the field of course too.
Renting a bike
Keukenhof: 10€ for 3 hours and 15€ for the whole day
Leiden/Haarlem: can start from as low as 6€ for 3 hours and 9€ for the whole day
Please don’t rent a bike in Amsterdam and bring it in the train. It’s just a hassle and more expensive.
I hope this helped and I hope you get to go too!
