Visiting Holland During Tulip Time
Tulip Time is a really fun time to visit Holland, Michigan. It takes place from the 1st to 2nd weekend of May every year. There are so many fun things to do during Tulip Time that I decided that I create a whole post about it. You should also download the Tulip Time app for information about the time and location of all the different activities happening each day.
Tulip Gardens
Veldheer Tulip Gardens has thousands of tulips and hundreds of different types of tulips. While walking through the gardens each type of tulip is marked with a number so you can some if you like them. Outside the garden there is a place to buy tulip bulbs and other souvenirs.
The Wooden Shoe Factory
The wooden shoe factory is also right next to the tulip gardens. At the wooden shoe factory you can buy wooden shoes and other dutch themed souvenirs.
Windmill Island
Another great place to visit is Windmill Island Gardens. At windmill island you can view the tulips, shop, and tour a working windmill. This is a great place to go for a walk and take photos.
Dutch Village
If you are traveling with children a fun place to visit is Neil’s Dutch Village. At the dutch village there are farm animals, small rides, and shops. You can also learn to dutch dance, watch a wooden shoe carving demonstration, and many other things.
Dutch Dance
If you come during the week of tulip time one thing you must do is watch the dutch dance. Dutch dance is every night at 7 pm around centennial park in downtown Holland. The dance lasts 15 minutes and is performed by local high schools and community members. If you get to centennial park early take time the watch kinderdance at 6:30 pm. This is a 5 minute dutch dance routine and singing done by local elementary school children.
Food
One my favorite things to do during tulip time is eat the food. There is a large variety of food trucks during tulip time and they are spread out all over downtown Holland. My favorite thing to get is deep fried marshmallows.
Carnival
The entire week of tulip time there is also a carnival. There are rides for children and adults inside the carnival. There are also lots of food trucks and carnival games inside.
Parades
During the week on tulip time there are 3 parades. These parades are on Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday. The parade on Thursday is known as the kinder-parade since all of the local elementary schools participate is this parade. The Saturday parade is the largest parade and has bands from all over Michigan. Make sure to get to the parade early to avoid traffic and find good parking.
Anytime Activites
Even though I mentioned Dutch Village, Windmill Island, and the tulip gardens as tulip time activities, they can be done any time. From my experience, the best time to visit these places are the week before tulip time. All the tulips are still there but you can avoid the crowds that occur during the week of tulip time.
Have You Ever Been To Tulip Time?
I would love to hear about you experience at tulip time or your visit to Holland. Comment below with your experiences!
More Information On Holland
For more things to do in Holland check out my post about 10 things to do in Holland here. If you have any questions about Holland, feel free comment or message me. I would be happy to answer any of your questions.