Skagit Valley Tulip Festival and more

When we think of brightly colored tulip fields in spring, we conjure up an image of the Netherlands, with picturesque windmills near the North Sea coast. Reasonably, the country cultivates more than four billion a year as the world’s largest producer. But you don’t have to fly to Holland all the time to enjoy these beautiful harbingers of spring.

The United States has its own tulip farms and fantastic views to complement those colors. One of the most productive growing regions in the United States is found in the Pacific Northwest. You’ll find it beneath the towering peaks of the Cascades. It’s not the only place, however. Across the Midwest, the Great Lakes, and even along the Atlantic, tulips are a favorite spring flower. Plus, their growing fields make them a remarkable destination worthy of a trip.

With colder days behind us, it’s time to hit the road and enjoy some of America’s best tulip fields and festivals.

1. Mount Vernon, Washington

The vast tulip fields near the town of Mount Vernon are no secret. Every April, over a million people visit the area for a month Skagit Valley Tulip Festival to celebrate the ongoing flowering.

Nestled between the San Juan Islands and the Salish Sea to the west, and less than 30 miles from the summit of Mount Baker to the northeast, the Skagit Valley is set in spectacular scenery near the northernmost corner. west of the Lower 48. Not only that, but Washington’s maritime region’s mild winters and summers have helped make Skagit County the largest tulip grower in the county in the United States. Rows of spring tulips are supported by the chiseled profile of the North Cascades, breaking with the dreary winter.

The trip to Mount Vernon is just an hour’s drive north of Seattle, or you can take Amtrak. Among the festive atmosphere, two farms dominate the current production of tulips: Roozengaarde and city ​​of tulips. Fields are rotated annually, so you’ll want the latest map to know which fields in the area are open for roaming.

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