keukenhof gardens worth it?
Feb 23rd, 2016, 11:30 AM
#21
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Zaanse Schannse is Netherlands' second largest grouping of behemoth windmills after Kinderdijk I believe (though the ones in Z S were mainly brought here - Kinderdijk's were all built in a natural wind tunnel I think.
Kinderdijk is hard to get to by public transit but Zaanse Schanse is not - take a short train from Amsterdam to Koog Zaandijk and then walk several blocks to the entrance - the open-air part is free and always open I think - the museum charges but accepts the National Museum Card - the museum tells the history of this part of the former Zuider Zee, since blocked off from the sea and remaned the Ijsl Meer (sp?) - you could easily do both in one day by taking the train from Leiden (shuttle bus there from the gardens) to Amsterdam Sloterdijk station and changing to the short train ride to Koog Zaandijk.
BTW there are lots of direct trains Amsterdam to Leiden where the shuttle bus will be waiting to whisk you to the gardens - no reason to suffer like Iwantogo in taking two buses, etc. And I too was not overwhelmed by the gardens but those will have an interest in flowers - some of exotic nature will love it. Loved walking by the tulip fields next to the gardens though (there is a look-out over them from the gardens but not quite the same).
Kinderdijk is hard to get to by public transit but Zaanse Schanse is not - take a short train from Amsterdam to Koog Zaandijk and then walk several blocks to the entrance - the open-air part is free and always open I think - the museum charges but accepts the National Museum Card - the museum tells the history of this part of the former Zuider Zee, since blocked off from the sea and remaned the Ijsl Meer (sp?) - you could easily do both in one day by taking the train from Leiden (shuttle bus there from the gardens) to Amsterdam Sloterdijk station and changing to the short train ride to Koog Zaandijk.
BTW there are lots of direct trains Amsterdam to Leiden where the shuttle bus will be waiting to whisk you to the gardens - no reason to suffer like Iwantogo in taking two buses, etc. And I too was not overwhelmed by the gardens but those will have an interest in flowers - some of exotic nature will love it. Loved walking by the tulip fields next to the gardens though (there is a look-out over them from the gardens but not quite the same).
Feb 26th, 2016, 09:19 AM
#23
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lhs624
I see you have made your decision..however a word of warning: the peak bloom period all depends on the kind of winter the local area has had, as to just when the flowers bloom. When we were in the Amsterdam area in the first week of May one year, we contented ourselves with enjoying later varieties blooming in places like the garden adjacent the Rijksmuseum, for example. Keukenhof, we had learned, was past peak by the time of our visit. W
So I urge you to have a backup plan. We chose to do a bike ride instead - if this isn't your cup of tea, maybe go out to the folk museum iwant2go mentions. I wasn't, I confess, too disappointed to miss Keukenhof: I love gardens, but keukenhof photos persuaded me it is more of a park than a garden (to me, there is a difference!)
I see you have made your decision..however a word of warning: the peak bloom period all depends on the kind of winter the local area has had, as to just when the flowers bloom. When we were in the Amsterdam area in the first week of May one year, we contented ourselves with enjoying later varieties blooming in places like the garden adjacent the Rijksmuseum, for example. Keukenhof, we had learned, was past peak by the time of our visit. W
So I urge you to have a backup plan. We chose to do a bike ride instead - if this isn't your cup of tea, maybe go out to the folk museum iwant2go mentions. I wasn't, I confess, too disappointed to miss Keukenhof: I love gardens, but keukenhof photos persuaded me it is more of a park than a garden (to me, there is a difference!)
Feb 26th, 2016, 09:50 AM
#24
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There is a website - www.tulipsinholland.com - where you can sign up for weekly updates on where the tulips (maybe other flowers, too) are blooming. It's probably going to be a bit early this year, as the weather in Western Europe has been unseasonably warm.
Feb 27th, 2016, 04:25 AM
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Things have cooled down considerably over the last couple of weeks StCirq, and look to remain cool for the coming couple of weeks, so that may slow things down a bit.
The mahonia in mine garden is only just flowering, which is actually much later than normal.
I do have some early daffodils and of course snowdrops flowering. I didn't plant tulips last autumn so no update on those until I get out and about. Since I have a terrible cold at the moment that won't be for a while.
The mahonia in mine garden is only just flowering, which is actually much later than normal.
I do have some early daffodils and of course snowdrops flowering. I didn't plant tulips last autumn so no update on those until I get out and about. Since I have a terrible cold at the moment that won't be for a while.
Feb 27th, 2016, 04:31 AM
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It wouldn't bother me much if they never perfected the pure black tulip. IMO, flowers aren't supposed to be black.
I know the weather is very different "up north" there, heti. That's why I signed up for the tulip updates. We'll see if we get lucky! Hope you feel better soon.
I know the weather is very different "up north" there, heti. That's why I signed up for the tulip updates. We'll see if we get lucky! Hope you feel better soon.
Feb 27th, 2016, 01:43 PM
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It wouldn't bother me much if they never perfected the pure black tulip. IMO, flowers aren't supposed to be black.>
But would not black flowers be a hit at funerals? Or to send to an ex on Valentine's Day? Anyway I understand the Dutch have been at this quest for a long time and to yet yes deep purple ones that could seem black but are not.
I don't care much but it is a curiosity.
Pirates may like black tulips too as would Satanaists - lots of potential sales...
But now I'm not so sure about there never having been a black tulip:
http://www.nytimes.com/1986/03/20/ga...ack-tulip.html
But would not black flowers be a hit at funerals? Or to send to an ex on Valentine's Day? Anyway I understand the Dutch have been at this quest for a long time and to yet yes deep purple ones that could seem black but are not.
I don't care much but it is a curiosity.
Pirates may like black tulips too as would Satanaists - lots of potential sales...
But now I'm not so sure about there never having been a black tulip:
http://www.nytimes.com/1986/03/20/ga...ack-tulip.html
Feb 27th, 2016, 01:44 PM
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http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1...-hybridization
Well apparently not quite black - the quest continues.
Well apparently not quite black - the quest continues.
Mar 1st, 2016, 02:14 AM
#31
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Thank you for all your comments. Follow up question.....we will be in Delft before arriving in Amsterdam. Now thinking we might go to Keukenhof on our way to Amsterdam but is there somewhere for us to secretly store at bags at the Leiden station?
Mar 1st, 2016, 04:26 AM
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Yes there are lockers at Leiden. Unless you have a Chip and Pin card I don't think you can't use them though. You may have to do a deal with a passing Dutch person and pay them in cash.
http://www.ns.nl/en/travel-informati...e-station.html
http://www.ns.nl/en/travel-informati...e-station.html
Mar 1st, 2016, 09:31 AM
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<<you don't need to go into Keukenhof itself to see the flowers - as jamikins' lovely photos demonstrate, you can just drive round the fields in the area and enjoy the sight>>
Someone must have pointed this out already: you can do this, but it needs careful timing: much depends on the weather, and even then, the tulips are grown for the bulbs, not for the flowers, and bulbgrowers cut them after a short time on the field. So all in all, you may only have a window of opportunity of 2 weeks, and which two weeks is a matter of conjecture.
Someone must have pointed this out already: you can do this, but it needs careful timing: much depends on the weather, and even then, the tulips are grown for the bulbs, not for the flowers, and bulbgrowers cut them after a short time on the field. So all in all, you may only have a window of opportunity of 2 weeks, and which two weeks is a matter of conjecture.
Mar 1st, 2016, 09:51 AM
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<i>hetismij2 on Mar 1, 16 at 8:26am
Yes there are lockers at Leiden. Unless you have a Chip and Pin card I don't think you can't use them though. You may have to do a deal with a passing Dutch person and pay them in cash.</i>
That's what I had to do in Haarlem a few years ago. I asked a passerby to put his C+P card in the slot and I paid him cash. So before you go to the lockers have some euro coins in your pocket. Good luck with that though because getting change in Holland is more difficult than finding a sunny day. Merchants, and even the banks, will not change bills for you. Buy a chocolate bar, which will come in handy later in the day anyway.
The luggage lockers at Haarlem station have been moved to the far east end of the track platform. There are no passersby in that area because all the trains stop a hundred feet west of there. The Dutch make it so easy for visitors. NOT!
Yes there are lockers at Leiden. Unless you have a Chip and Pin card I don't think you can't use them though. You may have to do a deal with a passing Dutch person and pay them in cash.</i>
That's what I had to do in Haarlem a few years ago. I asked a passerby to put his C+P card in the slot and I paid him cash. So before you go to the lockers have some euro coins in your pocket. Good luck with that though because getting change in Holland is more difficult than finding a sunny day. Merchants, and even the banks, will not change bills for you. Buy a chocolate bar, which will come in handy later in the day anyway.
The luggage lockers at Haarlem station have been moved to the far east end of the track platform. There are no passersby in that area because all the trains stop a hundred feet west of there. The Dutch make it so easy for visitors. NOT!
Mar 1st, 2016, 10:10 AM
#38
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The majority of visitors don't have a problem Spaarne, since they have the option of Chip And Pin, or a European bankcard.
They are working on a tourist card for the trains, and presumably buses etc too, but who knows when it will arrive?
They are working on a tourist card for the trains, and presumably buses etc too, but who knows when it will arrive?
