Discover Lisse

First impressions of Lisse

Lisse is best known internationally as the home of Keukenhof — the spectacular spring flower garden often called 'the garden of Europe', which displays around 7 million tulips, daffodils, hyacinths, and other bulbs across 32 hectares of formal beds, themed pavilions, and waterways. The garden opens for just 8 weeks each year (typically late March to mid-May) and is a working showcase for the Dutch flower-bulb industry, which exports roughly 4 billion bulbs around the world annually — the Bollenstreek bulb-fields surrounding the village turn into stripes of red, yellow, pink, and orange in late April. Beyond Keukenhof itself, the wider Bollenstreek area is a joy in spring: rent a bike at the visitor centre and ride the dedicated bulb-field cycle routes through the rainbow-coloured fields between Lisse, Hillegom, and the spectacular flower auctions of Aalsmeer (Royal FloraHolland is the largest in the world, with around 100,000 transactions a day). The Museum De Zwarte Tulp ('the Black Tulip') tells the dramatic history of the 17th-century Dutch tulip mania — the world's first speculative bubble. Don't miss the annual Bloemencorso Bollenstreek flower parade, which floods the streets with extraordinary floral floats every late April.