Beautiful Keukonhoff

When our family was visiting in April, we took them to Keukenhof, a large public garden full of beautifully landscaped gardens with all sorts of trees and flowers- and of course, many many tulips.  The gardens are about a 30 minute bus ride from Schipol airport, and it is possible to buy a Combiticket which includes the entrance fee and the bus ride to and from the airport.  They can be purchased at the tourist information centre at the airport.

The gardens are only open for about 2 months per year, between March and May.  We were there on the first weekend after opening, so there was quite a few displays which were not yet in full bloom, but it was far from disappointing.  We spent about 5 hours there and still didn't get to see everything.  It was a lot of walking and we were very ready to go home by the end of the day.  Fortunately for Nanna they provided wheel chairs so she didn't have to walk (although when she wanted to walk, the others were more than happy to have a turn it it!)

As well as the many outdoor landscapes, including the hedge maze and the windmill, there were a few themed indoor displays, such as the tulip house and the orchid house.  It was quite nice to get inside every now and then because it was a cold, windy day.

Video of the indoor tulip display

There was not as many people there as I expected, given the short duration which it is open.  It also was not just tourists, there were many Dutch people who had come to enjoy the flowers.  Regardless of nationality though, every person had a camera and was trying to perfectly capture the amazing colours of the flowers, some with little point and shoot cameras, other with foot-long lenses and tripods.  We also took many photos, it was hard to choose which ones were best but there is a selection of my favourites here.