The Skagit Valley Tulip Festival in Washington State is one of those things I saw years ago and thought I'd love to go to, then promptly forgot about it as my travels took me elsewhere. I'm so glad I stumbled upon it again in my search for a spring getaway in North America because it was such a wonderful experience!
This was just a short trip to the Pacific Northwest for us because we had a one-week gap between jobs and life to-dos, so we decided to pack it full with a multi-destination trip. Our first two stops were to see family we hadn't seen since pre-pandemic, but we knew we'd be hitting the west coast on our way back so started brainstorming a nice getaway for just the two of us! (Does anyone else have a cram-it-all-in mentality, too?)
Since we were traveling in spring, my immediate first thought was a wildflower road trip in Cali … until I looked up their gas prices (about $7 at the time!) and I also realized Coachella would be going on in the area we planned to visit.
Then, on one of those ‘best spring destination' lists, I saw the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival in Washington State and knew that was the perfect fit! The weather would be chilly, but the bright blooms would be worth it for sure!
Although there is a great map of the blooms, I didn't really feel like there was enough clear information online as to how to go about planning a route to see the various tulip fields or how long to plan for. But, I gathered that in the 2022 season, only one of the go-to spots had a large variety of blooms. (The famous Tulip Town just didn't have as good of a bloom yet!)
So we planned a few hours at Roozengaarde with the rest of the day to drive around and see the sites. They also show which fields are currently in bloom with a bloom map online, which was really helpful! I checked daily leading up to the trip and they hit peak right before we left! Yay!
Our One-Day Skagit Valley Tulip Festival Itinerary
One day at the annual Skagit Valley Tulip Festival was perfect for us! We got into Seattle early in the day, drove a little over an hour up to Burlington where we had a hotel for the night, and set out to explore the tulip fields for the rest of the day.
We spent a few hours just driving around, stopping in a few of the farm stores, then we ended up over in La Connor for an early dinner and a stroll through Nasty Jack's Antiques (we aren't big shoppers, but this was a really cool store!). A few hours before closing, in time for the magic hour glow, we took our driving tour back up to Roozengaarde to stroll around the gorgeous fields.
This turned out to be the best time of year to really take in this gift of mother nature with so many flower fields in full bloom, although it was very cold as the sun dipped down.
Touring Roozengaarde Tulip Fields
We absolutely loved Roozengaarde. It was just breathtaking with the rows and rows of tulips against snow-capped mountains. But it was also breathtakingly cold since we decided to arrive when the sun was already hanging so low in the sky. We also didn't realize the gift shop and food offerings closed earlier than the field, so we missed out on that part of the experience.
We'd definitely recommend arriving a bit earlier in the day unless you just really want that golden hour lighting, then bring warm clothes!
After walking out to the large fields of various-colored tulips, we strolled through the stunningly manicured gardens closer to the front, admired the quaint windmill (reminisced on Zaanse Schans briefly), and just soaked up that fresh PNW air!
A day ended up being perfect to experience the tulips in Skagit county! Of course, Washington has so much to offer; you could easily spend more time in this area or explore further. We decided we wanted solitude, so hopped a ferry to Orcas Island for an off-season very relaxing couple of days. It was lovely!
If you have more time, this area of Washington also has great wine tastings, art shows, and food vendors. There is also a La Conner Daffodil Festival also in spring. The Skagit Valley tulip fields really are one of the best places to see these stunning colorful tulips, and it is conveniently close to the Seattle area!
