Yes...another Keukenhof question...how much time to stay?

Posted by Nicole P (Truro, NS, Canada) on 03/18/17 10:37 PM

So, I'm just curious how much time people usually visit Keukenhof...is 4-5 hours sufficient? Too much? Too little?

I saw mentioned on another posting that mid-afternoon may be less crowded (I see it is open until 7:30pm). I know we will never get there early enough to get the good morning light as we will be staying in Ams and my husband is NOT a morning person (I like taking photos) but thought perhaps if we went later and stayed until close to closing, I may be able to get the nice late afternoon/early evening light. I see sunset is around 8:30 when we will be there.

I'm thinking perhaps we could spend the morning/early afternoon in Haarlem or Leiden, then head over in mid-afternoon, but I have to figure out how much time we should budget...thanks all!

Posted by kim

oklahoma

03/19/17 02:09 AM

1022 posts

we were there last year, end of april or first part of May (can't remember exactly, on the Holland/Belgium tour 4-27 to 5-9, 2016. Our tour guide got us there right when it opened. PERFECT!!!!! Was great, we headed to the windmill first and then worked our way around to the front entrance by the time we were to leave around 2:ish. We had a little lunch there. The weather, crowds, and tulips were perfect!!

Enjoy them.

Posted by Jazz+Travels

Chicago

03/19/17 02:13 AM

8163 posts

Just wander until you feel you've seen enough.
I was there 2 hours. Like noon to 2

Posted by Harold

New York, NY, USA

03/19/17 03:42 PM

11294 posts

If you can choose which day to go, try to pick a cloudy one. As a photographer, you know that cloudy days are best for flowers, since that way there are no shadows, and the soft light is very flattering to the colors. I was there on a day with clouds, no sun, and a touch of sprinkles; I wasn't taking pictures (long story), but if I were, I couldn't have had better conditions for great flower photos.

As for how much time, it depends on how much you like flowers, and how well you deal with enormous crowds. I like flowers just fine, but found the sheer quantity of them numbing (although a lot of care was clearly taken to make each display different). And the crowds were merely unpleasant outdoors, but were actually a bit scary indoors (I don't get claustrophobic too easily, but did here). I got there about 10, so I definitely hit the worst of the crowds (looking at the parking lot, I could see 8 rows of tour buses with 8 buses in each row, but there was plenty more parking lot I couldn't see). I think going later in the day, you will have a much better experience than I did.

Posted by Tom

Danville, VT

03/19/17 03:51 PM

12040 posts

I saw mentioned on another posting that mid-afternoon may be less crowded (I see it is open until 7:30pm)

I don't think that's accurate. My experience is only a sample size of two, but on both trips, the place was packed in the mid-afternoon... well, more specifically, the indoor displays were packed. The entire complex is big enough that the outdoor gardens will never feel completely overwhelmed with visitors. I don't know when the crowds usually start to die down.