TC

Headed to AMS today (4/3) hoping to see lots of blooms. What's the weather? Are the fields in bloom? Is "K" Gardens blooming?

Thanks

hetismij2

Keukenhof is in full bloom.

Weather is variable - showers tomorrow, sunny periods on Thursday, chance of showers from Friday. Max temp 10C, could be as low as -2C on Thursday night, so normal sort of temps for early April.

ENjoy your trip.

amyb

If you "Like" "Visit Keukenhof" on Facebook, they've been posting photos and reports almost daily. The blooms look fabulous.

TC

Thank you, thank you, thank you! I've been to Amsterdam many times, but never the right time for blooms. I have been looking forward to this trip so very much. I'll bring layers, the rain jacket, umbrella and all my camera gear.

Can't wait!

TC

Back from my visit to AMS. Keukenhof was lovely - although still lots more to bloom there. The glass houses filled with roses and orchids were a bigger show. The weather was (maybe still is) very cool and windy with rain. I wore layers, layers, layers all the time. Can't say I was bowled over by the blooming fields of tulips. At least from the train they were not as spectacular as I had thought they would be.

Had a lovely time. Thanks all.

flygirl

If you weren't utterly bowled over, they weren't in full bloom yet.

HappyTrvlr

Agree with flygirl.The tulip fields were spectacular when we saw them.

TC

I don't know...maybe one needs to be quite close to truly appreciate the fields. At least from the train and bus, they were large fields of low plants in yellow, pink, etc. The edges of the fields and often the adjoining field would be simply dirt. So other than the color, there really wasn't a great sense that these were tulips.

I'm an Indiana farm girl, so I've seen fields in bloom all my life -- fields of saflower for example, bloom yellow in the spring. Fields of melons are covered in orange blooms at times. Even fields of potatoes bloom. So to see a large field of low growing plants with colored tops isn't a rarity for me. Maybe that was the problem. I expected to have more a sense that these were miles and miles of exotic flowers.

Kuekenhoff Gardens <u>was</u> amazing. There, one is close enough to the flowers to appreciate the delicate beauty of each and the mass of the plantings. However, the canal boat ride around the "fields" wasn't interesting enough to get us to stand in line for hours.

What I found lovely all over were the little masses of tulips or daffodils planted along canals everywhere. The green fields were filled with giant white swans migrating in and wonderful big, gray farm geese. While I love Amsterdam, it is so beautiful to get out into the country and see the canal side farms with miniature ponies, newborn lambs and those funny shaggy cows.

Again, I had a lovely time. Quite possibly we were a bit early - however, mid-April is the perfect timing according to all guide books. Something to consider when planning -- each year is different.