After a hard day/night of partying in the Amsterdam for kingsday; hungover and hours behind schedule, my ex and I left for the magnificent tulip fields of Keukenhof (literally translated to kitchen garden).The tulips bloom for just a a few weeks every spring normally mid march to mid may, so visiting during April seems the safest bet and our best chance to see it.
The journey and the Crowd
Since we were staying with my friend in Den Haag we decided to take a train to Leiden and then a bus to the keukenhof gardens. The ride there is littered with glimpses of tulip fields giving you a hint of the things to come, just like a teaser to a great film.
So honestly as the bus pulled into the parking the first thing i noticed was how crowded the place seemed . Like, I’m from India and even I thought the place was overflowing with people. despite the overcast grey skies. So now to get into the actual gardens we stood in the lines, even though we bought tickets online (17 euros for an adult) and boy were they moving too slowly. After what seemed like half the day (Actually just 15 minutes, so I’m dramatic- SUE ME!!!) we finally got in and it was uuughhhh... filled with even more people.
The tulip fields are breathtaking; stretching out before you in gorgeous hues that popped against the grey skies- vibrant reds, bright orange and yellows, delicate pinks and purple. It was just stunning. Definitely worth the wait.
But now we encountered our next problem how to get a decent picture without someone photobombing it. This proved harder than expected! Also the crowds didn’t really allow us to explore the fields freely and to visit the windmills- forget it, the lines were crazy. So we regrouped and did the next best thing stepped out of the fields, rented bikes and decided to cycle around.
When In Netherlands- BIKE
The bikes are available for rent around 50 meters further from the gates quite close to the parking lot exit. they offer a variety of bikes ranging in sizes and also tandem bikes if you are feeling up for it.There are 4 bike routes, conveniently labelled 1-4 that encircle the fields. the total length is around 40 Kms, if you decide to do all of them or if you are lazy like us pick and do a few.
We followed route 4 which is the best if you want to see the fields. Thankfully, this is the Netherlands and cycle paths are well defined, thus making it safe to cycle around. We cycled along the path around various fields. There were many spots were we stopped soaked in the views and managed to take some great pics for my new tinder profile.
The best thing about renting bikes is that you are independent and you don’t really need to stay to the assigned routes. We ventured off on our own and I’m so glad we did that. We managed to get views of some fields that weren’t even mentioned on the official route maps.Plus these fields allowed us to step inside into them(even better pictures☺️☺️☺️).
Sadly due to time constraints, we weren’t able to do a boat tour. Nevertheless, this trip was definitely worth my time and money- definitely earned its moniker of garden of Europe. Plus I realised if you really want to once can avoid the crowds.
Practical Info:
Best time to visit- mid April
Getting there -
Bus: shuttle buses run
From Amsterdam Schipol (the lines are long and crowded)
From Leiden station (less crowded)
From Lisse- best option
By train:
From all over Netherlands to Lisse station, from where one can walk, take a local bus or cycle.
Entry fee:
17 euros for adults, Best Buy it online at keukenhof.nl