luvtravelin

Hi - we will be in amsterdam for just 2 days on the way back from Turkey. I really really want to see the tulip gardens. We will be in Amsterdam on May 22-23. Will we miss blooming time? What is the closest garden/field we can go from Amsterdam (since we are on a time contraint) to see tulips and windmills ( i might be getting too greedy now).

Thanks!

cmeyer54

I don't know if tulips will still be in bloom in late may. We vivisted Kuekenhof gardens 4/30-5/2 and they were in full bloom then. You might want to check out some websites to see when the optimal time is. Kuekenhof is world renowned for their tulips and was definitely worth the trip.

nytraveler

Too late. We went the first week of May one year and everything was finished.

hetismij

Even though it has been a much cooler spring than for instance last year I think you will be too late for tulips. The fields will have been long since deheaded and Keukenhof closes on May 18th. Sorry.
Lots of other things to do in Amsterdam though.
For windmills Zaanse Schans is the closest collection of mills. You can go on a bus tour there from Amsterdam or get there yourselves by public transport.

PalenQ

only tulips you'll see will be plastic ones in tourist shops i believe

heitismij - any word on the elusive Black Tulip being developed?

3bugs

I agee - too late. The gardens are
fantastic end of April, but last year we went in mid-May and were
quite disappointed after having been
there other times while they were in full bloom. Probably a waste of your time so late in May.

Ida101

Last year was an unusual warm spring in NL, I think the warmest since over 100 years...
But even with a cold spring like this year you will not see any tulips anymore at the end of May.

gruezi

There is a very nice flower market right in Amsterdam though and you can stroll through and see some amazing bouquets... a pleasant morning before or after your coffee.

It's not Keukenhof, but you'll still get a sense of the locals appreciation of flowers.

I remember watching men spend quite a bit of time picking the right bunch to bring home. Made me smile.

PalenQ

And in that Amsterdam flower market you can also buy punch and grow cannabis kits and peyote and magic mushroom kits

cmeyer54

naw...just go to the When Nature Calls shop for anything other than bulbs. If you decide to buy some bulbs to bring home, make sure they are sealed and have a sticker on them so they can be legally brought into the country.

luvtravelin

Thank you all so much for the replies. I have to admit - I am disappointed that we will miss the blooming season. I've seen photos on line and it looks like a dream. I was really hoping to see the endless fields of tulips. Oh well - on the bright side - yes Amsterdam also has a lot to offer and we are looking forward to it.

So a question about bring home tulip bulbs...will immigration allow us to bring it into the states? cmeyer54 mentioned they should be sealed with a sticker? Can we get these at the flower markets? How much are they? I actually will have to get something other than tulips since we live in a deer infested region of NJ and the tulips will not survive the deer!

PalenQ

You'll perhaps find the same Dutch tulip bulbs in your local gardening center as cheap or cheaper than those bought in Holland IMO

The blooming season is NOT over after tulips, which make up a minority of the flower fields which are abloom practically all summer with flowers

global_guy

Luvtravelin:
Just tell the people selling the bulbs that you intend to import them to North America and they will show you a selection of ones that are permissible. Any decent flower market, including the Bloemengracht (the floating flower market in the middle of the city) will have some options.

PalenQ

They also sell bulbs inside Customs in the departures area of Schiphol Airport and these are definitely OK for import to U.S. i'd think

hetismij

Personally I wouldn't buy bulbs in May. They will be last years bulbs and old. You can sometimes arrange for fresh bulbs to be posted to you at the right time of year for planting, although that cost more. Since the US has masses of bulb fields of their own (Oregon amongst other places) you might as well buy US bulbs and be done with it. Not such a souvenir maybe but certainly fresh bulbs.
As for the deer eating them - I have never heard from friends here that the deer eat their tulips - they eat lots of other things in their gardens but not the tulips.

gruezi

The tulips are the first thing to go where we lived in the northeast.

The deer don't like lavender, peonies, daffodils or narcissus and that is the only thing safe.

hetismij

Daffodils are poisonous so they wouldn't eat them. The wild boar like tulips here I'm told. So maybe the deer don't get a look in, though there are stunning displays in gardens in the Veluwe right now.

PalenQ

Hetismij - we also have plenty of Dutch tulip bulbs on sale in our garden shops - no doubt exactly the same as you'd buy in amsterdam and with the exchange rate perhaps even cheaper?

Like those Dutch grown tomatoes i recently saw here at 99cents a pound and have rarely seen tomatoes sold that cheap in Holland itself

So they can fly them over here and sell them cheaper than they do at home it seems.

cmeyer54

We bought a lot of bulbs which were then shipped to us months later - just before they should be planted. The growers had little kiosk type shops at Kukenhoff which we used but I am sure other markets in Amsterdam offer the same service.

irishface

The deer in Massachusetts seem to find tulip buds like candy. Just before they bloom, chomp, chomp, all gone.