Keukenhof (which in English means Kitchen garden), is known as the Garden of Europe. It takes place in the province of South Holland near Lisse and it’s one of the world’s largest flower gardens.
According to the official website, Keukenhof Park covers an area of 32 hectares (79 acres). And approximately 7 million flower bulbs are planted in the gardens annually.
Although Keukenhof is widely known for its tulips, it also features numerous other flowers. That includes hyacinths, daffodils, lilies, roses, carnations and irises.
According to Wikipedia, 1.5 million people visited the gardens in 2019, equivalent to 26,000 visitors per day (as it’s open for public visits only for 8 week tulip display – mid-March to mid-May).
We went to the gardens with a friend of mine, a biker traveller whom I know from before, at the last weekend of March – just a day after they have opened for visitors.
It was a bit earlier, as most of the flowers was not blooming yet, but nevertheless it was a great experience! Just spectacular! And when you think of how huge is it…, wow!
Moreover the weather was just perfect and that place is really, really impressive! We walked for hours (5-6, if I am not mistaken) and if we haven’t got hungry, we could even continue.
Apart from the gardens themselves, there are also enormous greenhouses with just unspeakable amount and variety of all kind of flowers. Truly an amazing place to explore!
Besides lots of creativity have been used at the site. Not only for the gardens, but in every single place you look at – the museum, the greenhouses, showrooms and all the expositions.
There is also a small maze which is fun walking in. When you reach to the center, there is a high platform so you get a panoramic view. A little animal garden has it’s place there too. And of course lots of souvenir shops! 😉
On our way back to The Hague, we passed by some other flower fields. And we stopped, of course thanks to my thoughtful guide on the first seat of the motorbike!
Stopped a few times… 🤭
Well, he is really patient man! 🤗 And I really did regret my big heavy camera… 🤷♀️
To see the rest of the photos, check gallery page.