The Bollenstreek or bulb area, a 13 km stretch of land that lies between Haarlem and Sassenheim famous, is commonly refereed to as the world’s biggest flower garden, with its highlight being the world famous Dutch flower exhibition, Keukenhof gardens Park.  If you fancy exploring the Bollenstreek then you’ll find The Flying Pig Beach Hostel the perfect base, because Noordwijk is situated right on the tip of the Bollenstreek. 

When the bulb fields are in full bloom the Bollenstreek is one of the most colourful, visited, and photographed regions anywhere in the world.  Imagine field after field of multicoloured crocuses, daffodils, hyacinths, and tulips, rolling across the countryside in a patchwork of intense colour that extends for miles.  At the end of April the annual flower parade sets off from Noordwijk on route to Haarlem.  The procession passes through the entire Bulb region in a vivid procession of floats and passenger vehicles decorated with local flowers.

The best way to explore the Bollenstreek is to rent a bike, pack some food and cycle off into the countryside, armed to the teeth with a map and a camera.  Before long you will be surrounded by rainbow coloured flower fields, historical windmills, and Dutch farmers wearing wooden clogs.

But take a look while you can, because by the end of May all the flowers have disappeared, with the majority of the crop cultivated for export around the globe.

In the middle of the Bollenstreek or bulb region you’ll find Keukenhof Gardens, the famous flower exhibition.  The Keukenhof gardens are open from early March until late May, and within that time more than 750,000 visitors pass through the gates!  That suggests that the park tends to get very busy, so get there early.  Once you get to Keukenhof gardens you’ll get treated to music, song, and dance performances, fantastic flower shows, and birds of prey demonstrations.  A walk around the park will take about 5 hours. 

In peak season buses head toward the Keukenhof gardens every hour from the bus stop situated outside The Flying Pig Beach Hostel.