• The special Tour Ambassador! 
• The spring flowers! 
• The flower parade!
• The art!
• The canal cities! 
• The ease! Our holiday is meticulously curated and includes a Tour Manager and private coach transfers

• Tiptoeing through seven million spring-flowering bulbs at Keukenhof Gardens
• Mixing and mingling with NAFAS/Tour Ambassador, Graham Parker
• Taking a journey along the famous ‘Noordoostpolder Tulip Route’ and ‘Tulip Route Flevoland’, heralded by National Geographic as “one of the world’s most beautiful car journeys”
• Seeing spring bloom in three beautiful private gardens
• Watching the fabulous Bollenstreek flower parade
• Visiting the Mauritshuis for a guided tour of the museum's extraordinary collection of floral still life paintings
• Staying in Utrecht with time to explore this quintessentially Dutch, canal-crossed city at your leisure
• Exploring Amsterdam on foot or by boat

• 3 nights bed and breakfast accommodation at the 4* Park Plaza Utrecht 
• 1x dinner at the hotel on the first night. (Dinner is a main course and dessert with a glass of wine. Bread and water will also be on the table. We can arrange for a cheese board or savoury alternative to dessert if preferred.)
• Welcome tea/coffee and cake at the hotel 
• All transfers within the Amsterdam by private coach
• Private guided tour of the Floral Still Life collection at the Mauritshuis 
• Entrance to Keukenhof Gardens 
• Private coach journey along the Noordoostpolder Tulip Route and Tulip Route Flevoland
• Visits to three gardens on the Tulip Route Flevoland, including refreshments and a light lunch
• Services of an ECT Tour Manager 
• ECT / NAFAS Ambassador, Graham Parker on 17th & 18th April 
   

Day One - Wednesday 17th April

11:00 – 11:45 – flights from regional UK airports arrive at Schiphol Airport

Your Tour Manager will be waiting for you at the Meeting Point between Arrival Gates 2 and 3 and will be wearing an ECT Badge.

13:00 – depart Schiphol Airport by private coach for 4* Park Plaza Hotel, Westplein 50, 3531 BL Utrecht

14:30 - arrive at the hotel and check in

Inspired the Dutch art movement De Stijl, the Park Plaza is an easy walk from the centre of Utrecht. The bedrooms boast all modern conveniences including smart TVs, Chromecast and Nespresso machines and the hotel offers free Wi-Fi and a 24/7 fitness centre. The restaurant CUBO kitchen is one of the best restaurants in the city.

15:00 – welcome tea/coffee and cake

16:30 - depart the hotel and walk to Oudegracht 85 (800m) for an optional 1hour Schuttevaed Boat Cruise* (*Please note, this carries an extra charge)

17:00 - cruise departs Oudegracht 85  

18:00 - cruise returns to Oudegracht 85. Walk back to the hotel

19:30 - group dinner at the hotel

Day Two – Thursday 18th April

Breakfast at the hotel. (Available daily from 7am)

09:00 - depart the hotel by private coach for the Mauritshuis museum in The Hague

10:15 – 1 hour guided tour of the museum's collection of 17th century floral still lifes. This breathtakingly sumptuous collection charts the extraordinary development the genre underwent between c.1600 until c.1730 and  includes masterpieces by Ambrosius Bosschaert, Roelant Savery, Jan Davidsz de Heem and Rachel Ruysch. 

11:30 - depart the Mauritshuis and continue by coach to Keukenhof Gardens

12:30 - arrive Keukenhof Gardens for an afternoon visit. (There are plenty of places to have lunch.)

16:00 - depart Keukenhof and return to the hotel

17:00 - arrive back at the hotel. Evening at leisure

Day Three – Friday 19th April

Breakfast at the hotel

09:00 - depart by private coach for a journey along part of the famous tulip trails ‘Noordoostpolder Tulip Route’ and ‘Tulip Route Flevoland'.

National Geographic once described this as 'one of the world’s most beautiful car journeys' and, as you travel through the vast expanses of tulips which paint the landscape in blocks of dazzling colour as far as you can see, you will understand why. You will also visit three lovely private gardens on the route. 

10:15-12:00 - tour of Anges and Mart Muijsers' garden, Het Zwaluwhuis near Ens. The visit includes coffee/tea and apple pie followed by a tour of the garden.

12:30-14:30 - tour of De Pegasushof Garden, near Bant. This is a peaceful garden created around a structure of clean lines defined by yew and boxwood hedges, ponds and a modern terrace. The visit includes a light lunch of soup and sandwiches, followed by a tour of the gardens. (You can read more about this garden on our blog)

15:00 -16:30 - tour of Weis and Gerrit Voesten's De Stekkentuin Garden, near Espel, with its more than 25,000 spring-flowering bulbs. The visit includes a tour of the gardens followed by a drink and snacks. There is also the opportunity to buy home-grown cuttings. 

16:30-17:00 - return via Dronten and Zeewolde to see the Tulip Route Flevoland, one of the Netherland's largest open tulip fields. The coach will stop at several points along the way to give you the opportunity to take photographs.  

18:30 - arrive back the hotel. Evening at leisure

Day Four – Saturday 20th April

Breakfast at the hotel

08:15 - depart by private coach for Voorhout village

09:30 – arrive Voorhout village to watch the Bollenstreek flower parade

12:00 – continue from Voorhout village to Amsterdam

13:00 – arrive Amsterdam where you will have time to explore at leisure 

15:00-16:15 – optional Amsterdam Boat Cruise* (*Please note, this carries an extra charge.)

16:45 – depart Amsterdam and transfer to Schiphol 

17:00 - arrive Schiphol airport for return flights to the UK

Tour ends