Your travel specialist on: The Keukenhof Exhibition Grounds

The Netherlands has 12 provinces and two of them are South and North Holland. The Dutch people are used to having their country called Holland. Three languages are spoken, Dutch, Flemish, and German. The extreme north of the country, Friesland, has its own language and National anthem.

I have been to the Netherlands many times, and always enjoy Amsterdam. I was surprised to see several Tesla cars while walking around the town. The Dutch only buy small cars, since you pay a hefty tax on a heavy car.

Keukenhof gardens (www.keukenhof.nl ) - is an hour by bus from Amsterdam, and dates back to the 15th century when it was the Kitchen Gardens for the Palace. It is 80 acres of sheer Heaven even if you aren’t a gardener. It was set up as a display park in l949, when the Dutch were trying to bring back to life their bulb industry which the war had brought to a halt. It is only open for eight weeks a year, between the end of March and the beginning of May when the bulbs are in bloom. Seven million bulbs are planted in layers in October by thirty gardeners . Tulips first, then Hyacinths, then crocus snowdrops, and daffodils on top, Over three billion bulbs are exported in October each year. I was there at the beginning of the month, and if you are a Tulip lover, then you should go the end of April. I was delighted to find a bed of Tulips, not in flower yet, named “Maureen” so of course, I ordered some to be shipped to me in October. They don’t charge you for shipping. These are the largest flower gardens in the world. There are over 700 tulip varieties and there is even a large exhibition hall named Tulopmania for you to see them all on display. This was spectacular, with hundreds of tulips in rows all with their names and in vivid colors.

The most expensive Tulip ever sold was a flame striped bloom called Semper Augustus. It sold for 5,200 Guilders in 1637 at the height of the Dutch tulip mania. By way of comparison, Rembrandt sold his masterpiece the Night Watch for 1,600 guilders just a few years later.

Every Spring there are vast fields of spring flowers transforming the whole area into a seemingly endless quilt of dazzling colors with an almost magical quality. They have wheel chairs free for you to use, and there where hundreds of people exploring the exhibition halls, and the flower beds. There were lots of benches for you to rest at all over the park, and several nice coffee shops/restaurants with excellent food. The Beatrix exhibition hall had the most magnificent display of orchids and an anthurium show and I stopped to enjoy a flower arranging class in one of the halls. There were seventeen shops offering a huge range of bulbs and souvenirs. The chap I ordered my blooms (www.dutchworldgarden.com ) from told me since I am living in California, I should put the bulbs in the fridge for 6 weeks to chill before planting them in January. I ordered 200 bulbs, and will try the layering method in pots, tulips on the bottom, and daffodils on the top for bloom next year. I also went to a lecture on the latest gardening trends.

It was a very enjoyable day and I must have walked miles since I went back to the various sections twice. It was jolly chilly, but I paced myself as I wandered, and sat down to take photos as I found a section I wanted to get some ideas from.

Several years ago I ordered 500 tulips to plant in the garden of our Lake Tahoe home. I sprinkled lots of red pepper on top of the flower trenches to discourage the squirrels from eating the bulbs. Sorry to say that I only saw one tulip, even the pepper didn’t help.

If you can plan a trip to the Netherlands, do try and go in the Spring to include a visit to Keukenhof Gardens on our itinerary. It was a magical day. A cruise on the Dutch waterways is much more than just a feast of culture and landscape. Uniworld did an outstanding job of making this an enjoyable trip

The Dutch royal family was so grateful to England for housing them during the war from 1940-1945 that each Spring they send millions of bulbs to London for everyone to enjoy. The parks in London are always lovely with the spring flowers sent as a thank you from the Dutch.

A trip to the Netherlands is a wonderful experience at any time of year.

Maureen Jones

Maureen Jones is president of All Horizons Travel at 160 Main Street. Members of her staff are experts in business travel, cruises, and all types of leisure.