Advice please to vist Dutch bulb fields

Heedtheadvice

Thinking of taking elderly relative to visit Keukenhof in the spring so looking for any advice that is forthcoming.


Walking and standing will not be great for us. I not a comment that there is plenty of seating but also very busy at all times.

I note there are skip the line tickets.
Non to keen on the bus journey from Amsterdam and would prefer to stay closer to the gardens (so no doubt a lot of demand and therefore costly)
Ideal would be travelling from Amsterdam Central station or the airport, staying fairly close for a couple of nights then maybe a short (taxi or public transport) ride to the gardens. Hostel would not be an option.



Probable travel sometime between 6 and 22 April 19



Can anyone give advice or make suggestions to make it good, comfortable but fairly low budget! ?

Ganga

Can you not contact the owners of the bulb fields and ask if they have facilities for old/dissabled visitors?

gettingtheresometime

I'd also bear in mind the time of year you plan on going - a relative went once & basically saw fields of earth and no flowers......even this was nearly half a centenary ago it's still mentioned lol

koalakoala

Plenty fields of flowers in Spring

agrinnall

gettingtheresometime wrote: »

I'd also bear in mind the time of year you plan on going - a relative went once & basically saw fields of earth and no flowers......even this was nearly half a centenary ago it's still mentioned lol

It's really not that difficult to work out when tulips will be in bloom.

gettingtheresometime

agrinnall wrote: »

It's really not that difficult to work out when tulips will be in bloom.

All I'm saying is what I've heard....time & time again :rotfl:

Mojisola

agrinnall wrote: »

It's really not that difficult to work out when tulips will be in bloom.

Are you a gardener? Don't you realise that the weather affects the timing of flowering?

https://tulipsinholland.com/faq-tulips-and-keukenhof/best-time-to-visit-keukenhof/

The weather
One thing we can’t predict in the Netherlands is the weather. For example: due to warm weather a lot of daffodils were flowering in the beginning of January 2012 (on new years day!), in February 2012 it was so cold that the whole country was expecting the 11 cities ice skating tour. The second and third week of March the temperature was reaching 25 degrees C. On the opening weekend of the Keukenhof a lot of flowers were in bloom already! The beginning of April after a warm couple of weeks, the flower farmers were worried about the flowers, due to the high temperatures the flowers were growing too fast! The hyacinths for the flower parade were almost in bloom, way to early for the time of the year. And then a cold period with lots of rain came in and saved the spring flowers, the flower parade and the Keukenhof.

In 2013 it was the opposite. No flowers in the tulip fields until the first week of May. We have never seen them so late. In 2014 all the tulip fields were gone by the third week of April 2014. Mother nature likes surprises. And for 2015 we had a regular spring time again. With blooming in the last part of April and first week of May. And springtime 2016 we had a regular spring but with very cold weather during April. Springtime 2017 was a unusual one. It started out as a early springtime with high temperatures in the end of March. April 2017 was unusual cold for the time of the year so the fields were there until the last week of april. Peak blooming was during the last week of april and first week of May. By the end of season most tulips were gone.

cubegame

We went a couple of years ago during the Bloemencorso Bollenstreek, which is the flower parade which goes for many many miles through the tulip fields.

It was stunning but it draws SO many visitors to the Keukenhof gardens so as to make it completely unsuited to an elderly visitor who has issues with walking/standing.

That being said, there is plenty of seating and even on the day of the parade it was actually reasonable in terms of crowds after the parade had passed in the afternoon.

As much of the foot traffic will be be due to coach tours from Amsterdam which tend to leave mid-afternoon you should time your arrival at the Keukenhof after this to have it to yourself as much as possible.

My recommendation (if funds stretch) would be to hire a car. That way you can also drive around the area and see all the bulb fields. The roads are generally quiet and there will be enough people pulling over and taking snaps.

Hotels will be pricey though. Cheapest area for a nice hotel will be near the airport. This is some 30 minutes closer to the bulb fields than central Amsterdam so might be more convenient. Public transport to the Keukenhof is possible from the airport by train/bus.

martindow

If you take the train between Amsterdam and Den Haag you will go past fields of flowers (at the right time of year). The best stretch is between Haarlem and Leiden.


Keukenhof is good for those who like visiting flower gardens but for seeing sweeps of coloured landscape I don't think you can beat the train.

Heedtheadvice

Thanks for the info. We plan to miss the parade (it will be just too busy!) and must trust to luck that there are flowers out at the time!!


A little research is now called for!

hammersfaniow

I work for a company that runs river cruises to the Dutch Bulbfields every April, I’ve been Keukenhof five times escorting our passengers. We tie it in with visits to Enkhuizen, Hoorne, Amsterdam & Volendaam. You can hire a wheelchair for €20 for the day, but there are plenty of seats available should you just want to stop every now and then.

I don’t really know about accommodation I’m afraid but if you’re into your gardening then you’ll love it, it really is impressive.