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Things to do in the Flower Strip

The world-famous flower strip makes for an ideal day out all year round, with heritage monuments, storied gardens, serene lakes and beautiful foliage. If you’re visiting the area in spring or summer, take some time to get lost in fields brimming with millions of blossoming flowers. Throughout the year, you can discover garden estates and castles, museums, and various attractions, alongside charming villages like Lisse and Hillegom, as well as fascinating forts and monuments that tell the story of the Dutch struggle against the water.

Take a tour of the lakes

In Aalsmeer, the Westeinderplassen (Westeinder Lakes) offers plenty of water sports, from swimming to sailing lessons and boat rentals. The area is famous for its horticultural industry, and the small islands still grow strawberries and lilacs – just as they did long ago. You can take an open or covered boat tour via Westereinder Rondvvaart through a maze of islands and let knowledgeable skippers fill you in on the region’s horticultural history. Presiding over the water, the 50-metre-high Art Deco Aalsmeer Watertoren (water tower) is one of the region's architectural showpieces. Swing by for a fascinating exhibition about local water management before climbing to the top for breathtaking views of the surrounding region. Across the road, The Flower Art Museum is the world’s first museum dedicated to floral-inspired contemporary art. At the foot of the tower, you’ll find the On the Rock restaurant, which offers a stunning view of the lake and is a perfect spot for a surf break.

Venture into hidden UNESCO fortresses

The Defence Line of Amsterdam is a UNESCO-listed ring of fortifications around the Dutch capital, and many of the fortresses have undergone a large-scale renovation in recent years, transforming them into spas, restaurants, theatres and museums. Fort van Hoofddorp on the Haarlemmermeerpolder offers various cultural activities throughout the year, such as exhibitions and performances. Amidst the public park, you will find a restaurant, terraces, a wine bar, an open-air theatre and an education centre. It's a great space to explore on a day out, or there are regular guided visits before dining at Restaurant Fort Noxx on the upper floors - which often hosts live jazz and blues nights. Also, check out Kunstfort bij Vijfhuizen for contemporary art and the CRASH Air War and Resistance Museum ’40-’45 at Fort Bij Aalsmeer, containing a unique collection of objects and documentation about World War II.

Experience the hustle of a live flower auction

Image from Cris Toala Olivares

The Flower Strip region produces a staggering 70% of the world’s commercial flower output, so a trip to this world-famous landscape is well worth it. At the Royal FloraHolland flower auction, visitors can get behind-the-scenes at the world’s largest flower sale. Experience the hustle and bustle of the trading floor, watch dealers bidding against the clock and be amazed as hundreds of thousands of beautiful flowers are sold to traders worldwide. Located just a stone’s throw from Schiphol Airport, get there early to explore the auction at its busiest. You can also take a guided tour with an expert - available in Dutch, English or German - or use the information panels to embark on a self-guided tour.

Step back in time at the Black Tulip Museum

Museum de Zwarte Tulp flower exhibition
Image from Museum de Zwarte Tulp

Located in the centre of Lisse, Museum De Zwarte Tulp (The Black Tulip Museum) tells the history of the Netherlands’ bulb region and the origins and development of bulb culture through an interactive exhibition for the whole family. There’s also a significant collection of botanical prints alongside paintings, glass, silver, and porcelain and changing contemporary art exhibitions. Read our guide to art and culture in the Flower Strip for more arty recommendations.

Pick your own tulips and fruit

Thanks to the fertile polder soil in the region, this is where you’ll find beautiful organic fruit farms such as Landgoed de Olmenhorst (Olmenhorst Estate). This green oasis of apple and pear orchards in the village of Lisserbroek is over 160 years old and is where you can enjoy a stroll through the grounds or high tea on the terrace of De Fruitloods all year round. Autumn is when the fruit is ripe and when you can join one of the pick-your-own events. Likewise, Annemieke’s Pluktuin (picking garden) is an organic tulip nursery in Hillegom that offers visitors the chance to wander through the tulip fields in spring and pick your own vibrant bunch to take home.

Meet the world's largest steam engine

museum De Cruquius
Image from Creative Bros

Four metres below sea level, the municipality of Haarlemmermeer harbours a historic pumping station with the world’s largest steam engine. In the middle of the 19th century, the Cruquius steam engine was used to drain a lake to create new land. The only pumping station saved from demolition, Cruquius is now part of a fascinating museum. Learn about the Dutch struggle against water, marvel at a model of how the Netherlands would look without dykes, and experience a live steam engine demonstration. Don't miss the Steam Weekends on dedicated dates throughout the year for a double-hit of watery history. 

Visit the world’s largest flower gardens

Nowhere is the Dutch cult of the tulip celebrated more gloriously than at the ‘the most beautiful spring garden in the world’, located in the bulb region south of Amsterdam. Open for just eight weeks each year (per the tulip’s national flowering season from March to May), Keukenhof boasts a staggering seven million blooms planted across a 32-hectare park. Over 500 growers present their most beautiful blooms, and leading florists create truly unique displays. Special activities for kids, exhibitions, events, and performances will ensure that the whole family finds something special to do.

Feel like king of the castle

Statue of Cupid in the garden of Keukenhof Castle.
Image from Koen Smilde

Its showy neighbour may perpetually outshine it, but Keukenhof Castle (located directly across from the world-famous gardens) boasts an impressive history with 17th-century roots and is open all year round. Inside, you’ll find portraits, artefacts and period furniture. The estate now measures 240 hectares and is home to 15 listed buildings, an art museum, a café, a petting farm and walking paths.

Explore the Bollenstreek by foot or electric vehicle

Image from Koen Smilde Photography

One of the country's most popular and unique attractions, the Bollenstreek (bulb region) stretches 30 kilometres between Haarlem and Leiden. Home to the world-famous tulip fields, the area comes alive with colour every spring when millions of crocuses, daffodils, hyacinths, asters and tulips burst into life. While the best time to visit is from mid-March to mid-May, the tulip season is in full swing during mid-April. Throughout the year, the countryside landscape is also well worth exploring, with various routes passing windmills, quaint farmsteads and lush green polder landscapes.

  • Wandelnetwerk Bollenstreek (website in Dutch) is a network of marked hiking routes throughout the Flower Strip. Follow the signposts, and you’ll soon savour the jaw-dropping views from atop wooden stiles and navigating waterways on pulley-operated ferries. Be sure to stick to the paths and follow the farm rules. Walking across the fields is not permitted as it can crush or damage the flowers.
  • Another unique way to explore the region is to hire a 100% electric two-seater vehicle. Renzy’s excursions take you around the region and feature a GPS and an audio guide.

Cycle through the region

Cycling in Haarlemmermeer
Image from Christa Doorhof

Renting a bike is the perfect way to explore the flower strip at your own pace. You can rent bikes from Rent-a-Bike van Dam at the main entrance of Keukenhof for €16 a day (€11 for 3 hours), including a cycle route map. You have four marked routes to choose from - ranging from 5km to 25km - all of which are well-signposted, relatively flat and very safe. For the real green-fingered fanatics, there is a longer ‘Bulb Route’, a bum-numbing 35km. Or you can out these cycleseeing routes for more ideas in the Amsterdam Area.