Travel bucket list idea:

Keukenhof Gardens

Lisse, North Holland, Netherlands
https://keukenhof.nl
Bucket List Experience

Last updated: 06 February, 2024

Each spring, more than 1.5 million tulip aficionados flock to Lisse, 25 miles outside Amsterdam, to see the iconic Dutch flower in its full glory. Across 79 acres of gardens – interspersed with paths, ponds, creeks, greenhouses, and even faux windmills – some seven million tulips (as well as other flowers) blossom in a vast array of colours and patterns.

This magnificent spectacle, which kicks off in March and lasts only eight weeks, is the most-visited attraction in the Netherlands.

Logistics

Price from: £15

Minimum age: Any

Age suitable: 18+

When: All year around

Getting there & doing it

The Keukenhof Express Bus (public transport) is the least expensive option, departing eight times an hour from Amsterdam RAI station and Schiphol Airport, with direct service to the gardens. Bus 397 leaves from several major points in the city centre and travels to Hoofddorp station, where you switch to the Keukenhof Express Bus. Most journeys take around 30 minutes.

As you’d expect, lines are long and booking an online, timed ticket well in advance is essential. For ease, you can purchase an online Combiticket that includes round-trip travel and admission to the gardens. Other options include private tour buses, most of which depart from Amsterdam Centraal Station.

Expect to spend about three hours exploring the gardens. There are multiple cafes inside the gardens for rest and refreshments.

When to do it

The opening date varies, depending on when the flowers start blooming, but it’s generally in early March and lasts for only eight weeks. The last two weeks of April are the best time to see everything in full bloom.

Weekends and public holidays are the busiest; Mondays and Tuesdays see fewer crowds as do mornings and late afternoons.

Who to go with: organised tours

Our selection of the best Viator tours of this attraction or activity

Keukenhof Ticket and Transfer from Amsterdam (Guide option)

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This 5,5-hour tour departs from Central Station Amsterdam to Holland’s colorful Keukenhof Park. Travel by air-conditioned bus through an area with endless tulip fields, one of the country’s most photographed and iconic landscapes. You have the option to choose between a guided bus tour and a non-guided bus tour. The guided bus tour has a guide on board the bus who speaks both English and Spanish as well as a multilingual audio guide. On the non-guided bus tour you'll only have the audio guide available. At Keukenhof, simply skip the line and enter one of the largest flower parks in the world with ease. The Keukenhof park contains over 7 million flower bulbs including tulips, hyacinths, and daffodils. Dozens of gardeners work for months to get the park in shape. During the planting, the bulbs are arranged according to a different theme every year. Enjoy approximately 3 hours to explore the park on your own before the return trip to Amsterdam Centraal Station.

Price €32

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Rating 4.32 / 5 [2350 ratings]

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Windmills, Marken, Volendam Plus Guided Keukenhof Visit

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Enjoy a Super Saver tour that combines the best of the Dutch countryside – windmills, fishing villages and flowering tulips – all in one day! With your guide, visit a clog maker in the windmill town of Zaanse Schans, and take a boat ride to the quaint fishing villages of Volendam and Marken to see cheese made the traditional way. To top it off you will enjoy a leisurely stroll through Keukenhof Gardens, where the beautiful seasonal displays of springtime bulbs will take your breath away. You will have the opportunity to explore this wonderful park at your own leisure. This 10-hour day trip takes you from Amsterdam's lively city centre to the beautiful countryside outside the city. The order of the tour may differ.

Price €99

Min age 4

Rating 4.18 / 5 [620 ratings]

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Keukenhof Gardens & Tulip Experience Guided Tour from Amsterdam

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Enjoy a comfortable scenic ride from Amsterdam. Depending upon the season, you will see a landscape with colorful bulb flower carpets in the most stunning colors you can imagine. We finish the scenic ride at the one of the highlights of this tour; the Keukenhof Gardens. Once a kitchen garden filled with vegetables and herbs, it now has the distinction of being the world’s most extensive flower garden. Stroll through the paths where millions of bulbs are planted each year! After you explored the Keukenhof, we will make our way to our next destination; The tulip farm: Tulip Exprerience Amsterdam is a must see during a visit to the flower bulb region (Bollenstreek)! We take you on a dynamic journey through the history, the breeding process and the magic of the tulip. The story behind the Dutch icon is told vividly from the point of view of the tulip grower.

Price €84

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Rating 4.50 / 5 [161 ratings]

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Tulip Tour Keukenhof & City Tour Delft from Amsterdam

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The 9-hour tour allows you sufficient time to adore Keukenhof ''Garden of Europe'', get close to colourful tulip fields (depends on weather condition). Visit home to traditional Delftware, little cute medieval town Delft to get away from bustling large cities. Accompanied by a personal guide throughout the day tour, you will get to know more about tulips, culture and lifestyle in the Netherlands. Enjoy personalised attention from your friendly guide. • 8-hour personal touring experience visiting top attraction Keukenhof tulips garden • Personal guide throughout the whole-day tour • Visit tulips fields get close to the 'sea of flowers' fields (depends on season) • Escape from bustling city visiting medieval city Delft • Visit a pottery factory in Delft to get to know how the famous Delftware is made, demonstration to identify the 'genuine' and 'fake'.

Price €149

Min age 0

Rating 4.29 / 5 [65 ratings]

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Holland Spectacle (Keukenhof Tulips Garden & Giethoorn)

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A unique combination of one tour package that will take you to the top of your imagination that you have never experienced before. Two neatly and beautifully packaged destinations that you will never find from other tour operators in Europe.

Price €149

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Rating 4.34 / 5 [52 ratings]

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Destination guides

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North Holland, Netherlands

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