Getting to Keukenhof tulip gardens near Lisse is easiest and cheapest on public transportation — take a direct Keukenhof express bus from Amsterdam (Europaplein RAI or Central Station area), Schiphol Airport, or train stations in the bulb fields region of Southern Holland in the Netherlands.
Transportation to Keukenhof is easy and cheap by bus and train from Amsterdam, Schiphol Airport, Haarlem, or Leiden train station. The Keukenhof Express buses are the best public transportation options but private bus transfers and guided day-trip tours from Amsterdam are easy to book online. Buy combination transportation passes or Keukenhof skip-the-line tickets online in advance — time-slot reservations are essential and cheaper online than at the gate. There are no train stations at Keukenhof — it is a half-hour bus ride from Leiden, Haarlem, or Schiphol stations. It is more fun to cycle in the tulip flower fields area near Keukenhof than to bike all the way from Amsterdam.
In 2024, Keukenhof is open from 21 March to 12 May 2024. Entry tickets for Keukenhof sold out for the Easter vacations and some other sunny weekends in 2022 and 2023. On such busy days, tickets may still be available with transportation from Amsterdam or with other guided tours.
Admission to Keukenhof in 2024 is by advanced reservation time-slot tickets only — buying tickets in advance (€20) is highly advisable and around €3 cheaper than buying at the gate.
Getting to Keukenhof is easy by car or public transportation. It is an ideal day-trip destination from Amsterdam or even directly from Schiphol Airport. Many guided tours with the option to see other sites too are available from especially Amsterdam. Cycling is of course also an option but probably a bit too far from Amsterdam (two hours, uninteresting routes).
From Amsterdam, the easiest options are the Keukenhof Express bus 852 from Amsterdam Europaplein (RAI) and private bus transfers from Centraal Station (Tours & Tickets or This is Holland).
Direct Keukenhof Express buses are also available from Schiphol Airport, Haarlem, and Leiden. Using the bus from Leiden or Schiphol are good options for travelers arriving by train from destinations other than Amsterdam.
Several options are available for travel by public transportation from Amsterdam to Keukenhof — the first option via Europaplein (RAI) is usually the best choice with the most frequent departures:
Important: tickets are NOT sold on the Keukenhof Express buses — buy combination Keukenhof entry and Express bus tickets online in advance: 858 from Schiphol, 852 from Amsterdam-RAI, 850 from Haarlem, or 854 from Leiden. A regular OV-chipcard may be used, or buy an Amsterdam & Regional Travel Ticket (or similar travel pass), or Tulip Festival Card online.
The Keukenhof Express combination tickets include admission to Keukenhof and return transportation by express bus. It is not essential to return to the same departure station but a €5 surcharge is payable to return to Amsterdam-Europaplein (RAI) if the original departure was on a cheaper €31.50 ticket.
Note that the Amsterdam & Region Travel Ticket covers transportation from anywhere in Amsterdam to Keukenhof on the three main routes (Schiphol, RAI, and Haarlem but not from Leiden). It is also valid to travel to the north of Amsterdam such as Zaanse Schans. Visitors with such travel cards should simply buy the Keukenhof admission ticket separately and not the combination tickets.
Keukenhof Express bus 858 goes directly from Amsterdam Schiphol Airport to Keukenhof during the season. The bus departs up to six times per hour from near the arrivals hall and takes about 30 min.
The combi ticket including return bus transportation and Keukenhof admission is €31.50 from Schiphol Airport (€17.50 for children 4 – 11) — this ticket does not include further transportation from the airport to Amsterdam. A bus-only ticket is €17 return — buy in advance, use an OV-Chipcard, or Amsterdam & Region Travel Ticket), as tickets are not sold on the Keukenhof Express buses.
Get easy online quotations for pre-booked transfers from Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, which may be convenient and even reasonably priced for small groups. Use Lisse as the destination for instant quotes if Keukenhof is not listed.
Two further Keukenhof Express buses are handy for travelers departing from Haarlem and Leiden train stations:
Further regional buses also run to Keukenhof during the flower season (not covered by the Keukenhof Express or Amsterdam & Region Travel Tickets):
Keukenhof is easily reached by car – it is near Lisse between Harlem and Leiden. From Highway A4, use Exit 4, and from Highway A44, use Exit 3. Follow Keukenhof signs rather than GPS once close to Lisse for directions to the parking lots open at any given time.
Ample parking is available — most online tickets allow parking to be added (around €10), which saves on queueing and trying to work the vending machines at the park. (Buy a parking ticket on arrival rather than departure may save time too!) Note that cars should exit the parking area by 19:30 at the latest.
Cycling from Amsterdam to Keukenhof is of course possible but really not the best option. The cycle from Amsterdam-Zuid is around two hours but much of the scenery is not particularly interesting. Better options are to bike from Haarlem or Hoofddorp (near Schiphol) — it will be an hour’s cycle to Keukenhof and the routes pass by some flower fields. Bicycles may be parked for free outside Keukenhof but may not be used or taken inside the flower park.
On the whole, few would regret arriving by bus and renting a bicycle at Keukenhof to explore from here the beautiful flower bulb field in the immediate area.
See Cycling at Keukenhof and the Tulip Fields for more details — guided cycling tours are also possible.
If taking a bicycle on a Dutch train, note that a bicycle ticket is required (Fietskaart Dal — €7.50 per day) and it is only possible from 9:00 to 16:00 on weekdays and all-day weekends. Bicycles must be placed in the designated bike space — if none is available, wait for the next train. Cargo bikes and child trailers are not allowed on trains in Holland.
Keukenhof is a very popular day-trip destination from Amsterdam. Many Keukenhof-only tours are available from Amsterdam but for better value add further sights such as Zaanse Schans (working windmills), Volendam, Giethoorn, or Delft to see more of the Netherlands in a single day.
Fun options at Keukenhof also include guided bicycle tours, self-drive electric car excursions, or even the occasional helicopter flights. Cruises in the region get mixed reviews, especially for time wasting — adding a standard Amsterdam Canal cruise may be better value for money.