2024: Keukenhof Celebrates Its 75th Anniversary
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Table of contents
- 2024: Keukenhof Celebrates Its 75th Anniversary
- Keukenhof Gardens Skip-the-Line Tickets
- Amsterdam-Keukenhof Transfer + Skip-the-Line Ticket
- Amsterdam Essentials
- Hotels Near Keukenhof
- What is Keukenhof?
- Where is the Keukenhof garden
- Best time to see the tulips at Keukenhof
- Bollenstreek: Bulb region — Flower fields
- Can you see the Flower Fields at Keukenhof?
- Map of Keukenhof
- How much time to spend at Keukenhof
- Keukenhof FAQ
- Keukenhof Statistics
- Bloemencorso 2024: 77th Flower Parade
- What does Keukenhof mean?
- More Amsterdam Tourist Information
Keukenhof is one of the world’s largest flower gardens. It is the largest showcase platform for the Dutch flower industry. The park’s 7 million flower bulbs are supplied by 100 local flower bulb growers and exporters.
Keukenhof is situated in the town of Lisse, about 40 kilometer (25 miles) southwest of Amsterdam.
Keukenhof 2024
Open just 8 weeks: March 21, 2024 – May 12, 2024
Keukenhof Gardens Skip-the-Line Tickets
Generally, tickets go on sale about a month before the park opens.
| Keukenhof 2024: 7 Million Spring Flowers | |
|---|---|
| Open: March 21 — May 12, 8:00 am — 7:30 pm | |
| Keukenhof 2024 Skip-the-Line Tickets | |
| From Amsterdam | Skip-the-Line Ticket + Transfer |
| From Amsterdam | Day Trip: Keukenhof Full-Day Trip with Tulip Farm Visit |
| Entrance Only | Skip-the-Line Ticket Only (No transport) |
Amsterdam-Keukenhof Transfer + Skip-the-Line Ticket
The vast majority of visitors who book a day trip from Amsterdam prefer to buy a combination of Amsterdam-Keukenhof transfer + Skip-the-Line ticket (Most popular!).
The bus to Keukenhof departs next to the This is Holland 5D Flight Experience attraction (located behind the A’Dam Tower).
You get there with a short, free ferry ride across the River IJ behind Central Station. (Tip: arrive a little early so you can enjoy what we think are Amsterdam’s best fries, at the Pont Neuf kiosk just steps from the ferry dock).
Amsterdam Essentials
- Hotel Guide
- Public Transport Tickets
- I amsterdam City Card
- Skip-the-line Museum Tickets
- Canal Cruise Tickets
Hotels Near Keukenhof
In the 8 weeks a year that the Keukenhof garden is open to the public, it welcomes some 1.5 million people.
If you want to beat the crowds you should know that Keukenhof is least busy before 10:30 a.m. and after 4:00 p.m. Tour buses usually arrive and leave between those times.
Therefore savvy travelers book a hotel, apartment, or bed & breakfast near Keukenhof.
See, for instance, Bed & Breakfast De Vier Seizoenen in the town of Lisse, an easy 15-20 minutes walk from the Keukenhof tulips garden.
Combine your stay with pre-purchased Skip-the-Line Keukenhof Tickets for a perfect head start.
What is Keukenhof?
Known as the Garden of Europe, Keukenhof is the second largest flower garden in the world. 1
Keukenhof is renowned for its splendorous displays of tulips. But you’ll also see daffodils, crocuses, narcissuses, hyacinths, and many more spring flowers — 7 million flowers, from 800 varieties!
The garden is open just eight weeks a year. Yet it remains one of the most popular day trips from Amsterdam, and one of the top excursions in the Netherlands.
Where is the Keukenhof garden
Keukenhof is located in the town of Lisse, in the province of South Holland, western Netherlands. That is 40 kilometer (25 miles) by car or coach from Amsterdam.
Surrounded by flower bulb fields, Lisse is the center of Dutch floriculture. The region — known as Duin- en Bollenstreek(Dutch for ‘Dune and Bulb region’) — is the largest of several flower bulb districts in the Netherlands.
It is also home to theworld’s largest flower auction, in Aalsmeer.
During the Spring, visitors from around the world come to see theflower fields(not just tulips, mind you), theannual flower parade, and theKeukenhof flower garden.
More about Bollenstreek / Flower Fields
The best flower fields in the Netherlands are in an area called Bollenstreek (literally, “Bulb region”), in the provinces of North- and South Holland.
Best time to see the tulips at Keukenhof
Each year Keukenhof plants 7 million flower bulbs, in such as way that all visitors get to see an amazing array of flowers regardless of when they visit.
Usually the best time to see the tulips in bloom is from about mid April through the first week of May.
Much depends on the weather. If sunny and warm spring-like weather starts early enough in March — as if often does — flowers are in bloom earlier than when it has been colder.
The weather in the Netherlands is notoriously fickle, and can differ vastly from one year to the next. But the effects of global warming are much in evidence here. A mild winter means tulips bloom early in April, or even at the end of March.
Crocuses, daffodils, hyacinths and early tulips flower at the start of the season. Other flowers, including the (larger) tulips, bloom later in the season.
Check the Weather for Your Keukenhof Visit
Tip: Check the weather before you go, as you may have to dress in layers. There can be quite a spread in temperatures during the course of your visit.
Our March, April, and May weather pages are updated throughout those months.
Bollenstreek: Bulb region — Flower fields
Tulip fields are concentrated in the Dutch countryside between Haarlem and Lisse. This area is known in Dutch as the Bollenstreek (bulb region).
Some flower fields can also be seen in the north of the province of Noord Holland, in the province of Friesland, and in the Oostpolder. But the most popular fields are those in the Bollenstreek, with the Keukenhof as its crown jewel.
Can you see the Flower Fields at Keukenhof?
The Keukenhof garden is bordered on one site by flower fields. There are various vantage points, including a windmill, from which to take photographs.
However, for the best views of the flower fields you will have to tour the area surrounding Keukenhof.
Many people buy a combination ticket: access to Keukenhof plus a visit to the flower fields and/or the nearby windmills. [Tip: This combination Keukenhof visit plus Windmill cruise is very popular]
Map of Keukenhof
How much time to spend at Keukenhof
You’ll want to take your time to take it all in. The garden is 32 hectares (79 acres) in size. Here’s an easy way to picture that: Most sports fields are one hectare in size.
While not everyone wants to see every single flower, the fast majority of visitors spend about 4 hours in the park.
Mind you: realize that the park includes 15 kilometers of footpaths. Even if you return to the park on another day (which many visitors do, if not the same year than the next), you can always take another route.
Keep in mind that the Keukenhof also includes various indoor flowers shows and exhibitions3, as well as a fine collection of art. There are activities and events, such as the 72st edition of popular Flower Parade (Bloemencorso) on April 13.
Keukenhof FAQ
Why is Keukenhof open only 8 weeks a year?
Normally Keukenhof is open 8 weeks a year.
If the park opens too early in the year, not enough flowers are in bloom. In the flower garden was open until May 22. However, climate change has brought warmer temperatures. It now closes a week earlier, because if the weather gets too warm nearly everything will have finished blooming.
Do I need a tour guide at Keukenhof?
In our opinion you will not need a tour guide at Keukenhof. Visiting this attraction literally is the proverbial “walk in the park.”
Upon entering you can pick up a free map. (View or download a PDF version of the Keukenhof map here).
Are there any restaurants at the park?
The park features 6 restaurants where you can get a nice meal, a simple lunch, or even just coffee or tea. There are also mobile food and beverage outlets throughout the park.
Don’t expect discount pricing. You’re a “captive audience.” But food and drinks are not overly expensive either.
Can I bring my own food and drinks to Keukenhof?
You are allowed to bring your own food an drink to Keukenhof. You cannot eat or drink your own food at the restaurants. However, there are many spots throughout the park where you can enjoy your meals. That includes a dedicated picnic area.
Can I walk through the flower fields?
No. There are numerous places where you can photograph yourself and others amidst the flowers. But you cannot walk through the planted areas. That is true both inside and outside the park.
The fields are the private property of the bulb growers.Walking among the flowers is illegal. People who walk into the fields not only damage the flowers, but also track in spores, dirt, and possibly diseases that harm the soil and the plants.
Keukenhof Statistics
Keukenhof welcomed almost 1.4 million people to the flower park during the eight weeks of its 2023 season.
The majority of visitors originated from the Netherlands (20%), followed by Germany, the United States, France and the United Kingdom. Visitors from Asia have also returned, though not in pre-Covid numbers. The park welcomed visitors from over 100 countries this season.
Ever since the Covid close down, Keukenhof has used arrival timeslots for its tickets. This has greatly improved travel to and from the park, as well as visitors’ experience of the park.
In 2023, the park sold out on multiple weekends including over Easter, on the day of the flower parade and the weekend of May 1st.
2024 will mark Keukenhof’s 75th anniversary! Special park activities are in the planning.
Bloemencorso 2024: 77th Flower Parade
The annual Bloemencorso (flower parade) — known as Bloemencorso Bollenstreek — is not the only flower pageant in the Netherlands, but is one the oldest and largest in the world.
The Bloemencorso Bollenstreek festival takes place over 5 days. All villages and towns in the bulb growing district in the west of the Netherlands together with the floral city of Haarlem take part in many activities surrounding the parade.
The parade itself, the 77th Bloemencorso Bollenstreek, will take place on Saturday, April 20, 2024. That’s when colorful floats and luxury vehicles decorated in masses of flowers travel a 42 km route.
Keukenhof is close to the parade route. Therefore, if you plan to visit Keukenhof on that day, make sure you arrive before 11:00 a.m. Many roads surrounding the garden are closed after that time, and the main parking lot will be inaccessible.
Tip: the parade passes alongside the Keukenhof entrance starting at about 15:45 (3:45 pm).
What does Keukenhof mean?
Keukenhof literally means “kitchen garden.” In the 15th century it was a source of herbs and vegetables for the kitchen of a nearby castle.
The land was part of the large estate of Castle Teylingen.
The hunting grounds of the castle were full of dunes and untamed bushes. In the 19th century, the castle’s wealthy merchants commissioned landscape architects J.D. and L.P. Zocher to redesign the garden in the English landscape style. The result is still the basis for Keukenhof today. (By the way, these architects later also designed the beautiful Vondelpark in Amsterdam.)
In 1949, the then mayor of Lisse, together with a number of leading bulb growers and exporters, organized an open-air flower show. The idea was to promote the flower export industry of the region. The exhibition became an annual event that continues to this day.
Get your Skip-The-Line Keukenhof Tickets here.
More Amsterdam Tourist Information
The Canals of Amsterdam
Westertoren, Westerkerk
Rijksmuseum — Not just Rembrandt’s Night Watch
Amsterdam King’s Day 2024: All-Day Citywide Street Party!
Dam Square, Amsterdam
I amsterdam City Card – Why it is Worth it!
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Anton Hein
Anton and Janet Hein live and work in Amsterdam.
Anton was born on a houseboat in the center of Amsterdam, right across from the iconic Westertoren, and what later became the Anne Frank House museum.
Having lived in nearly every district since then, he knows the city like his own back pocket.
Janet was born in England and raised in Ireland before moving to Amsterdam 41 years ago. Even to date she brings an expat’s perspective to the DutchAmsterdam website.
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Notes:
- The world’s largest garden is the Dubai Miracle Garden, but face it… Dubai cannot hold a candle to the Netherlands ↩
- This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license ↩
- There are over 20 of these shows, at which renowned floral designers present wonderful creations that include the best flowers contributed by some 600 flower growers. ↩
Category: Excursions | Related to: Keukenhof, tulips
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