Keukenhof Gardens – Buds, birds and crowds galore! – Belgium & Netherlands, Part 10

This post is a continuation of my long drawn out series documenting my family’s trip to the beautiful countries of Belgium & Netherlands in the Spring of 2023. We were now based in Haarlem for the second part of our trip after a superb 4 days in Bruges ( First Taste of Bruges – Belgium & Netherlands family trip, Part 1 ). We had walked and cruised around the canals of Haarlem on our first full day in Haarlem and enjoyed this beautiful Dutch town to the fullest (Haarlem Canal Cruise & Haarlem by night – Belgium & Netherlands, Part 9 ).

The next attraction on the agenda were the legendary “Keukenhof Gardens”.It had been the reason I had planned this trip in the first place. My mother had expressed her desire to visit these gardens and we had planned a trip in the spring of 2020 and then you know what happened! So when it became relatively safe for the parents to travel again I had booked this trip and I was very glad that we could finally do it 3 years later. I had booked tickets to Keukenhof as soon as they had opened for booking online ( limited number of tickets are sold per day) and our itinerary had been decided. I had also booked the very limited canal cruise tickets in the canals around Keukenhof which goes through humongous Tulip fields around the garden itself.( This would turn out to be the best part of our time in Keukenhof).

Usually it is said that you should check the weather before booking tickets to Keukenhof as visiting the gardens on a rainy day isn’t really a pleasant prospect. Having planned our trip months in advance I didn’t have that luxury. As luck would have it, it turned out to be a brilliantly sunny day on the day of our visit. I finished my morning walk around Haarlem with my 300 mm (More on that in a later post ) and returned to the ML for breakfast with the family. We then walked to the train station from where the bus to Keukenhof – “The Keukenhof express” started. I had booked tickets with transport so we searched for the bus stop from where the bus would start. We finally managed to see the very small sign of Keukenhof Express at one of the stops and waited for the bus to arrived. It came bang on time and soon we were on our way.

The road to Keukenhof gardens from Haarlem is a proper highway but jams on this highway are well known especially in “Tulip season”. We had left from Haarlem early specially to avoid these traffic jams and it meant that a 45 minutes ride to Keukenhof took exactly that time. The bus deposited us at a stop which was a good 400 metres from the actual gate of the gardens themselves. We walked the rest of the way and there were signs saying “Sorry, Keukenhof sold out today!”. I could already see the crowds at the gates of the garden itself. It had been the right decision to buy the tickets before hand, it seemed like all the people residing in the region had seen the beautiful day and decided to head to Keukenhof!

I had expected a lengthy delay to get into the gardens given the crowds seen at the gates but it hardly took any time as there were a lot of ticket check points which were being operated to make it a smooth process. We took maps provided at the entrance and proceeded into the gardens.

The parents at the gates of the Keukenhof Gardens

It was just the start of the day , the gardens had just opened & it was already too crowded for my liking. The gardens were spectacular no doubt, the well planned lay out, the riot of colours provided by the different types of tulips and beautiful sunny day to amplify the colours. It would have been perfect for photography with my ultra wide if it wasn’t for the Dadar stationesque (Mumbai folk will get the analogy!) crowds walking the paths in the garden. I tried for sometime to take photos that would satisfy me.

Trying to take photos with my ultra wide lens in the ultra crowded gardens

Soon I realised that I would be happier to take out my favourite 300mm that I always carried with me and take photos of the flowers / flowerbeds up close. I would leave the people photos in the able hands of the better half and her trusty “pixel” mobile phone and enjoy the flowers blocking out the crowds in my viewfinder at least. There were tulips of all possible colours and sizes and the odd bed of daffodils and other flowers making it the most colourful photos my 300mm would ever take. We would walk through the sections of the garden towards the Windmill ( What else!) where we were supposed to collect tickets for our boat ride before the scheduled start at 12 noon. There is no point in me describing the flowers/ flowerbeds on display as I would run out of superlatives in my limited vocabulary, so I will just let the 300mm photos do all the talking.

The most colourful photos the 300mm lens has ever taken !

We walked along at a leisurely pace and took in the beauty all around us. An hours walk later we crossed the crowded bridge across to the windmill where I saw the booth where I was supposed to collect tickets for the boat ride. The booth had a “Sold Out” sign and I was happy that I had risked buying boat tickets months in advance. As I was collecting my tickets I thought I saw a familiar face. I thought it was my friend from High School, whom I hadn’t met since passing out of high school 25 years ago! So I called out his name and he turned around! Imagine the coincidence, we hadn’t met for quarter of a century and talked once a decade ago when I was visiting South Africa where he was then based. So imagine the minuscule chance of meeting him in his new country of residence without ever planning to do so, that too at a place as crowded as the Keukenhof Gardens. We introduced our better halves to the other and chatted for a fair few minutes. Then both of us realised that our respective families were waiting while we were chatting so we exchanged phone numbers and said goodbye planning to meet whenever he is in Mumbai next. With that happy coincidence done I took my tickets and returned to where my parents were waiting.

Meeting a High School friend at Keukenhof – A happy coincidence!

The parents had found a seat at the base of the crowded windmill and I asked the parents if they wanted to see the mill, knowing the answer. We had seen Windmills at pretty and peaceful locations in Bruges  ( A morning walk to the St Janshuis Windmill – Belgium & Netherlands, Part 3 ) and Haarlem ( Walking around Haarlem & the St Bavo’s Cathedral – Belgium & Netherlands, Part 8 ) so standing in a queue to see a crowded windmill really wasn’t on the cards. So I did the next best thing – bought stroopwaffles and coffees for everyone to enjoy on that beautiful morning as we waited for our boat ride to begin.

The better half enjoys a stroopwaffle as we wait for our boat ride

The 45 minute to 1 hour boat ride in the canals around the tulip fields is the best activity you can do in Keukenhof in my humble opinion. The silent electric boats take 30 people at a time and glide silently through the canals amidst huge tulip farms full of blooming tulips in the Spring. So you see more tulips than you ever will and without the accompanying crowds in the gardens. I would highly recommend booking it if you ever decide to visit Keukenhof.

With the parents on the boat ride through the canals around Keukenhof

Huge tulip fields without the crowds on the boat ride

We had collected the provided earphones at the pier and were listening to the staid but interesting commentary about the fields and the gardens. As soon as breeding grounds for birds such as Eurasian Oystercatchers, Northern Lapwings and Western yellow & White wagtails was mentioned in my commentary I was suddenly even more interested.

I already had the 300mm on and the birder in me was now on the lookout for the beautiful birds mentioned. I kept an eye out for them as I continued to take photos of the stars of the show – the tulips.

Tulips bloom in the fields around Keukenhof

First bird I spotted was the Western yellow wagtail as it flitted along the bank and the D500 went into machine gun mode, rattling off photos. As I stood and clicked away the others must have wondered what the fuss was all about. I wasn’t one to care, I got my photo!

The Western Yellow Wagtail along the banks of the canals around Keukenhof

Next I spotted a Northern Lapwing flying in the distance and I rattled off a few shots not knowing if I would see one on the ground. Sure enough a few minutes later there was one on the ground near the bank. The mid day light was harsh but this was as close as I would ever get to these skittish birds and I let the full speed of the D500 loose. Even in the harsh light I got what I call decent photos of this royal looking bird.

A Northern Lapwing in all it’s glory on the banks of the canals around Keukenhof

Mind you this wasn’t a birding cruise, so I didn’t expect the boatman to stop or slow down when a bird was sighted making the photos that I got even more satisfying. I went back to taking photos of the tulips but with a big smile plastered on my face.

Beautiful tulips, daffodils, carnations in the fields around Keukenhof

I had spotted the Eurasian Oystercatcher and taken a few unsatisfactory photos before it had scurried off into the fields. I thought that would be the extent of my luck as the boat turned back towards the pier after the most memorable 45 minutes. But the last 5-10 minutes would be most rewarding as I would get the oystercatcher and yet another Northern Lapwing. Even the last bird I was searching for, the white wagtail was waiting for me on it’s nest as if to say – Here I am!

A pair of common coot take to the canals

Yet another beautiful Northern Lapwing poses for the 300mm

The Oystercatcher poses as if to say – Here you go, happy??

The White Wagtail poses on it’s nest

That made the already great boat ride excellent, it had surpassed all my expectations. I had expected to see a glimpse of one of the beautiful birds nesting here and ended up with decent photos of many. As we neared the windmill I took photos of the windmill from the canal to give you an idea of the crowds we had stayed away from for 1 glorious hour.

People canoeing along the canals

The sea of humanity awaits as we near the pier near the windmill

We got off the boat and resumed our walk through the crowds towards a greenhouse that held various types of orchids. As the day had gone on the crowds had only increased so I kept my eye to the viewfinder when possible and enjoyed the tulips up close.

More colourful photos of flowers and an odd sculpture at the Keukenhof Gardens

We reached the orchid display and went inside and amazed at the variety of orchids on display. Even though the greenhouse was filled to the gills you couldn’t help but gasp in awe as one colourful orchid after another hit your retinas. Sensory overload!

A small sample of the variety of orchids on display

After that greenhouse visit we were happy to see a cafe next door and even though it was crowded our tummies were screaming for replenishment. So the dad & the ladies found us a place to sit while I went and bought food for all of us. While the food was nothing great it was fresh and surprisingly well priced. We satiated our tummies and rested our legs for some time.

Soon it was time to complete the rest of the garden as we had only completed 70% of it by now.  As I had photos of most colours of tulips by now I was on the look out for birds. I saw and managed to get more photos of common birds like song thrushes, common blackbirds, pigeons & mallards. I was happy to see a family of Egyptian geese swimming in the canals as we walked the final stretch of the huge gardens along a wide canal.

Song thrushes enjoy their meal at Keukenhof

A blackbird glistens in the beautiful sun

A white pigeon at Keukenhof

A male mallard glistens in the sunlight

An Egyptian goose family on the canals at the end of the garden

It had been a great day to experience the beauty of the gardens and inspite of the crowds we had enjoyed a lot. Amma finally had visited the Keukenhof gardens and had soldiered through it walking for hours on her dodgy knees. The better half had taken photos of the parents and us and of the beautiful gardens themselves throughout our visit and I want to share a few of them here.

Parents pose happily at the Keukenhof gardens

No better place for a selfie

Some photos of Amma posing at the Keukenhof gardens – She is usually a very reluctant poser

Mobile photos of us, parents and the beautiful Keukenhof Gardens

The last photos I would take before walking out of the Keukenhof gardens after more than 5 hours of walking through them were of course of birds. A beautiful common coot gliding through the canals and a pet macaw on a man’s shoulder (imagine seeing that here!)

A common coot glides through the canals

A pet macaw brings more colour to the gardens!!

We went out through the gates at around 3.30 pm and went towards the bus stop where we would catch the bus towards Haarlem. We would see the dreaded traffic jams as people still continued to go towards Keukenhof. The return journey would take us much longer thanks to the same traffic jams at round about. Finally we reached Haarlem and returned to our hotel ML to rest our tired legs.

Back at the ML after a wonderful day at the Keukenhof gardens

After 3 years of our cancelled trip and after surviving through the pandemic we had finally visited the Keukenhof Gardens. It had lived up to its hype in terms of the sheer number and variety of tulips and other flowers on display. The birds sighted and the superb boat ridehad been the cherry on top and had reduced the effect of the huge crowds we had encountered in the gardens themselves.

We would go out to dinner again to our favourite restaurant, The Zuidam and walked around Haarlem canals at night with a planned trip to Amsterdam the next day. Whether the famed city would live upto it’s reputation / notoriety (depending on whom you ask!) is story for another post some other time, some other day.

I have gone overboard on this post with the photos but I couldn’t decide what to leave out. So forgive my excesses.

Till then,

Bye.

Yet another photo of the beautiful Northern Lapwing with the out of focus tulips providing a colourful background