Tulips are the symbols of the Netherlands and the reason many people visit that country each spring. From the tulip fields and Amsterdam’s Tulip Festival to historical flower paintings in Dutch museums, there are so many ways to enjoy these beautiful flowers during your trip to the Netherlands. Here is the Culture Tourist’s guide to everything you should know about that floral topic, including the best places to see tulips in the Netherlands.
Where to See Tulips in the Netherlands
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The Netherlands is home to numerous colourful tulip fields, gardens filled with these lovely flowers and festivals celebrating them. The Netherlands is also the largest tulip exporter in the world with around three billion bulbs sold abroad each year. If you would like to explore some of the best places to see tulips in the Netherlands, check out some of the events below to plan your trip.
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Keukenhof
Address: Stationsweg 166A, 2161 AM Lisse┃When: 20 March – 11 May 2025┃Online tickets: Get your online ticket here
Keukenhof is the world-famous garden organising a special tulip exhibition each year. Florists from all over the country are showcasing their beautiful flower arrangements during the two months the garden is open. Each year they plant more than seven million tulip bulbs creating fantastic designs with them. With a different theme each year, you can visit this special flower exhibition over and over again and never get bored of it.
The garden is attracting millions of visitors annually. So, to visit it, be sure to reserve your online ticket in advance.
⤷ TIP: If you’re planning to visit Keukenhof from Amsterdam, here is the link to purchase your combined bus + entrance Keukenhof Garden ticket.
Tulip Festival in Amsterdam
Address: Various locations in Amsterdam┃When: 1 – 30 April 2025┃Online tickets: Free event
During the Tulip Festival, Amsterdam’s streets, squares and parks are decorated with thousands of flower bouquets. While walking around the city, you’ll stumble on numerous beautiful flower arrangements. Some of the most beautiful tulip creations are displayed at the Museumplein, so be sure to stroll around it during the duration of the Amsterdam Tulip Festival.
⤷ Read more: Amsterdam 3 Day Itinerary
Bloemencorso Flower Parade
Address: Noordwijk to Haarlem┃When: 12 April 2025┃Online tickets: Free event
The Flower Parade is one of the most unique events celebrating tulips in the Netherlands. This special parade takes place each year on the third Saturday in April (with the exception this year because of Easter). The cars decorated with fantastic flower arrangements follow the road from Noordwijk to Haarlem, where they arrive on Saturday evening and stay displayed in the streets of the city centre for the whole next day. All of that is followed by music, and various stands selling flowers, plant seeds, food and drinks.
⤷ Read more: What to see in Haarlem
Where to See Tulip Fields in the Netherlands
The most famous area to explore the tulip fields in the Netherlands is called Bollenstreek, or Bulb Region. It’s located between the Dutch towns of Haarlem and Leiden. The best way to explore the tulip fields in the Netherlands is by taking a walk or bike through them. You can take a train to Haarlem, Hillegom or Warmond and bike or stroll through the flower fields.
If you start from Haarlem, you can rent a bicycle at the train station and cycle in the direction of Lisse. It will take you around one hour to get there and another hour to come back. So, I wouldn’t advise you to do that unless you’re in good physical shape and used to cycling. Another option could be to take a train to Hillegom and embark on a short walk through the fields from there. If you are not up for walking, you can also take a train from Amsterdam to The Hague, and enjoy the sight of some of the tulip fields from it.
Tulip fields are commercial areas and privately owned, so it’s not allowed to walk into them, pick up the tulips or take photos within the fields. Be mindful when visiting them respecting locals whose livelihood depends on the tulip production.
If you’d like to go inside the tulip fields, you can do that while visiting some of the tulip farms. A nice place to visit is Tulip Experience Amsterdam. There, you can get into the fields, pick some of the flowers and learn more about them at the Tulip Museum. Check out this link for more information.
When to See Tulips in the Netherlands
The tulip season in the Netherlands starts in the third week of January with the celebration of National Tulip Day. This is when you’ll find more than 300,000 tulip bulbs displayed at the Museumplein, surrounded by some of the most famous Dutch museums, like the Rijksmuseum, Van Gogh Museum, and Stedelijk Museum.
Tulips are in full bloom between mid-March to mid-May, so this is the time to visit to see the tulip fields. The best month to see tulips in the Netherlands is April.
The History of Tulips
Although they are one of the symbols of the Netherlands today, tulips aren’t native to it. They were brought to the Netherlands from Turkey in the late 16th century from the court of Suleyman the Magnificent. They sent a few tulip bulbs to the Leiden University’s botanical garden and this is how the obsession started. Around a hundred years before that, they were brought to Turkey from the Himalayas, where they were cultivated into the flowers we know today.
These rare and exotic flowers soon became so popular in the Netherlands, that people started to buy them competing to who will get the most unusual colour combination. The prices of tulip bulbs were increasing until at one point during the 17th century they caused the first economic bulb in world history, an event known as the Tulip Mania today.
⤷ TIP: You can still visit the historical Hortus Botanicus botanical garden in Leiden.
Where to See Tulip Paintings in the Netherlands
The Dutch fascination with the colourful tulip flowers is visible in the numerous paintings depicting them in Dutch museums. They were especially popular among the 17th-century painters, with some of them specialising in only painting flower compositions including some very unique tulips.
Many of these beautiful paintings were made by Rachel Ruysch, who created some of the most beautiful compositions with tulips. You can see her artworks at the Rijksmuseum’s Gallery of Honour. However, that museum is also where you can see many more beautiful paintings of tulips. You can check some of them on this link.
So if you’d like to see tulips in the artworks in the Netherlands be sure to visit the Rijksmuseum in the Netherlands. You can even see them on the metal fence around the famous museum.
⤷ Read more: Best Museums in Amsterdam & Tips for Visiting Them
Where to See Special Dutch Tulip Vases in the Netherlands
During the 17th century, people living in the Netherlands would never display their tulips in classical vases. They produced special pyramidal-shaped vases for their tulips. They could be smaller and placed on a table or a cabinet. Or, they could also be quite large, and placed on a floor of the room.
You can see some examples of these beautiful Dutch tulip vases at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. If you’d like to see how they looked like when filled with flowers, visit the Rijksmuseum cafe. They have one of them as a central piece at a communal table.
The history of the Netherlands and tulips is inseparably connected, making these flowers a symbol of the country. With its blossoming season coming to its peak in April, be sure to plan your visit well.
Read more about the destinations in the Netherlands:
15 Best Souvenirs from Amsterdam
Is the I amsterdam City Card Worth it?
Best Museums to Visit in The Hague
What to See in Amsterdam Area: Art & Architecture
Cover photo by Shaojie on Unsplash