Keukenhof Garden visit
 

Me and my wife are planning a visit to Amsterdam in April 2016. We would like to visit Keukenhof Tulip Gardens.

Can any one tell us the best and economical route to Keukenhof. Also how much time it will take to visit main parts of Garden. We are aged couple and can not walk long distances. In this case what area we should restrict our selves to visit.

Next morning we wish to take a Flexi-bus to Cologne, Germany. Can any one tell us how far is Bus stand from Amsterdam Central Train Station.

Similarly how far is Bus stand in Cologne from Main Train Station.

We would like to stay near Train Stations in Amsterdam and in Cologne. Can any one suggest a Budget Accommodation with kitchenette facility. A Hostel with independent room will also be acceptable.
Thanks in advance
Chatur

1. In season (mid-March to mid-May) there is a direct bus (Keukenhof Express) from Schiphol airport to the Keukenhof. When you're visiting, actual information can be found on http://9292.nl/en
2. Are you sure you want to take a bus to Köln, as it is locally known? The train is much more comfortable and don't have to cost you more than some EUR 25-30. Buy them some two months in advance on www.bahn.de. They accept credit cards and you can easily print the tickets at home. (I do it regularly for train trips with the German railways and it works perfectly.) Don't forget to have the credit card with you on the train. It is used as a kind of identification.

The link I gave you is the German language version. You'll probably prefer the English language one: http://www.bahn.de/p_en/view/index.shtml
(Last week I met an American couple somewhere in Italy struggling with a ticket machine to get their tickets printed they had bought from RailEurope. After half an hour they gave up and just bought new tickets. Buy them directly from the national railway company and you won't have any problems.)

We used Amsterdam City Tours for bus ride and entry ticket. About $55 per person. Bus picks you up near the main train station, drives to the gardens and you are allowed 3-4 hours (which is plenty of time). Gardens are flat and easy to walk. A very memorable experience!!

Does one have ti use the Express bus? Can one just train there?
?

If you mean »can I take train to the Keukenhof«, I'm afraid the answer is negative. In the past they did have a temporary station (on the line between Haarlem and Leiden), but that's finished.
I'm not an expert on the Keukenhof (I'm living some 15 km from it, but never have been there), but I understand that in season there are requent busses running from the railway stations in Haarlem and from Leiden. Both Haarlem and Leiden (I'm biased regarding the latter) are interesting historical cities you'll love, so you could make it a combined outing.
The advantage of getting the Keukenhof bus from Leiden is that the train runs right through the tulip fields (or the »bulb fields« as they're known over here). Make sure you've got the train which runs via Haarlem (and not via Schiphol).
I advise you to check all the possibilities on http://9292.nl/en# when your trip is near. As I said, they're seasonal busses, and the timetables are not yet available. If you find it all too much a hassle, you can always decide to take an organised trip from Amsterdam. They'll be well advertised in the city, the tourist information can help you, the Keukenhof website provides a link to an operator, and otherwise you can have a simple Google search. There's no need to worry. It's still early days!

»... from the railway stations in Haarlem and from Leiden« is confusing. The Keukenhof busses run from the stations both in Haarlem and Leiden.