Viewing Tulips at the Tulip Festival in Holland, MI
By Dave Pipitone
If you love Spring, tulips are blooming from mid-April to mid-May.
This is your time. The Tulip festival in Holland MI occurs in the first part of May every year. In fact, Tulip Time in Holland, MI is the official celebration of one of the largest Dutch ethnic events in the midwest United States. If you have always wanted to see a close imitation of the Netherlands, visit Holland, MI to see beautiful tulip fields in full bloom.
Holland Michigan tulips are on display, depending on the Spring weather and the growing season. In 2007, the tulip season seems to be on track and the Holland tulip festival is scheduled for May 5- May 12, 2007. The city of Holland features a line up of tulip viewing, entertainment, events and ethnic celebrations for tulip lovers and families. Here is what to see when you visit Holland, MI for Tulip Time.
Fields of Authentic Festival Holland Tulips
When you drive down River Street from US 31, you will see the beginnings of tulip flowers that fill the Holland, MI area. The city claims that more than 5,000,000 tulips are on display in parks, along streets and in local attractions. For starters, visit the Veldheer Tulip Farm. This attractive farm began in 1945 with 100 red tulips and 300 white tulips. Now, there are millions of tulip bulbs that blossom every Spring. The farm hosts multiple gardens that teem with white tulips, yellow Big Smile, orange Apricot Dream, red Appeldorn, and literally dozens of other varieties and colors.
The Veldheer Tulip Farm displays lily tulips, Darwin Hybrid tulips, peony (double) tulips, parrot tulips, Triumph tulips and specialty tulips. The grounds show blue, white, and pink hyacinths, white and yellow daffodils and narcissi. Each garden has a numbered stake that identifies the type of flower. Visitors match the flower number with a printed guide sheet to learn more about the flowers. For those who want to order Holland tulip bulbs, visitors can order Holland tulip bulbs from the guide sheet, which are shipped the following September. Admission to the farm is $10 for adults, $5 for children. The Veldheer Tulip Farm is located on Quincy Street, just off Highway US 31, about 3 miles north of Holland.
If you are taking children and the family to Holland, make sure to visit Nelis’ Dutch Village. Dutch Village is a family theme park model buildings, authentic Dutch chocolate and licorice, Delftware, a wooden shoe factory, a working street organ, bell tower and photo spots for adults and children. Dutch Village offers a beautiful setting for family fun. The spot has buildings modeled after 1800’s Netherlands cottage architecture. Dutch Village had smaller patches of tulips that are spread throughout the grounds. Each “garden” is identified by numbered stakes so that visitors know what the tulips are. Dutch Village is on US 31 on the northern edge of Holland. Admission for adults is 10; $5 for children.
A third scenic spot to view tulips during the Holland Tulip Festival is Windmill Island. Windmill Island is the home of the “De Zwaan” (graceful bird,) a 240 year-old working windmill from the Netherlands. Located just off 7th Street, Windmill Island offers a shopping area, historic architecture including the Posthouse museum (14th century replica of a wayside inn. During Spring, Windmill Island boasts 150,000 tulips; during summer and fall, the gardens offer colorful annuals. Admission is $10 for adults.
You can wander downtown Holland on 8th Street and view the many attractive settings and plantings of tulip flowers. Then, drive along the eight miles of curbside tulips planted throughout the city. You can get some inspiring ideas for creating and enhancing the tulip garden at your home.
Make your Spring a joyful one; visit Tulip Time, the tulip festival in Holland MI.
Dave Pipitone is hopelessly in love with tulips and nourishes them in his Hope Patch. For more information on the tulip festival in Holland MI, visit http://www.tulipreview.com