Tulip fields of Netherlands: How and where to see tulips other than in Keukenhof? |

Tulip fields of Netherlands / How and where to see tulips other than in Keukenhof?

This is a pretty interesting topic.

For the vast majority out there, Tulip in Holland = Keukenhof.
I am not complaining, there is a very good reason for that equation.

Keukenhof is one of the best if not the best tulip garden in the world. So given a chance, you must visit it at least once.

Here is the link to Keukenhof’s official site.

Back to the topic of this post,

Now Keukenhof needs a day of your time.
It is also not cheap. It is very unlikely that you are going to get a chance to be in a real tulip field within Keukenhof.
Getting to Keukenhof, finding parking etc are not easy tasks on sunny weekends.

Overall, I think the idea of experiencing tulips other than in Keukenhof has some market for sure.

For those who wants to drive by and have some fields visits, Cycling enthusiasts, Those who wants to get a couple of quick photos with out having to go through Keukenhof and so on.

So here is one of the easiest options.
I just drove this route today [22nd April 2018] and all the photos in this post are from my drive. None of them belong to Keukenhof.

Starting point: Harleem.
Why Harleem? It is a typical Dutch city. It is a good idea to have a walk around and enjoy a coffee before setting out for the Tulip journey.
Harleeme looks and feels very close to Amsterdam with classic Dutch buildings, canals and cafes.

Ending point: To keep it simple, Leiden.

Now you could either choose to drive or cycle.
The road to follow is N208.

What to expect:

The first few kilo-meters after Harleem is a bit boring. There isn’t a lot of tulips.
As you travel, you will start seeing fields.
A good first stop would be Hillegom, Wilsonweg. Parking is free on the street.
The fields are at a few minutes walk from the main road.
Now these fields farms, so there will be tulips of all sizes, shapes and ages and not all of them will look pretty. There are going to be vacant land as well.

Please note that these fields are not open to public as such. They are private tulip farms.
You are allowed to walk near by or take photos, however kindly be respectful to the farmers and do not cause any harm to flowers or plants.

Once done with first stop, you will already have a good idea of what to expect and how to deal with it going forward.

Be sure to check out those small country roads as well, I promise you wont be disappointed.

Below I have a map of the route with some interesting points where I stopped.

Those are not the only ones, so be sure to stop and enjoy the way you like.

One final note about Lisse which is one of the small towns on this route.

It is also the access point for Keukenhof and that means that the road may have a good amount of traffic if you are at peak hours or weekends.

My personal recommendation would be to do this trip a bit early morning as the trace of mist usually gives the tulips an extra boost.

Route map: The Tulip road

Photos from my trip along the this route: