Tulips/Windmill, Holland

 

Every March the sandy patches of fields turn into this dramatic landscape, like something from the Wizard Of Oz, truly fantastic. While there are a few different bulb-growing regions in the Netherlands, the most well-known area lies between the towns of Haarlem in the province of Noord-Holland (North Holland) and Sassenheim, just north of Leiden, in the province of Zuid-Holland (South Holland). This area includes the small village of Lisse, roughly 30 miles southwest of Amsterdam, home to the Keukenhof Gardens. Depending on which kind of transportation you choose, the trip takes less than an hour from Amsterdam, one way.