Enjoy fabulous tulip time without leaving the country

Does your bucket list include traveling to Holland to see the tulips at their peak, watch windmill sails turn slowly in the breeze and be entertained by cloggers in wooden shoes?

You can see all that without leaving the country. Really. No expensive airline tickets, no getting to the airport two hours before flight time, no hanging around for the flight to depart, no nine-hour flight crammed into a small seat next to someone you don’t know and no long bus ride to your destination.

It’s all right here in southwestern Michigan at Holland. The tulips are just as colorful as those in the Netherlands, and they’ve got windmills, dancers and wooden shoes. You can get there in your own car, stay as long as you want and leave when you want.

But, if you want to see tulips, the time to be there is between late April and mid-May. That’s when Holland’s only tulip farm, Velderheer Tulip Garden, will be ablaze with color. There are acres and acres of tulips with winding paths that take you up close to the many varieties. They’re all marked so you can jot down the number of the ones you’d like to purchase for your garden back home.

It all began in 1950 as a hobby farm with 400 tulips. Now, it’s an awe-inspiring display of more than a million tulips of all colors for visitors to enjoy. In addition, thousands and thousands of daffodils, crocus and hyacinths add to the colorful springtime landscape.

Of course, if you went to the Netherlands, you’d want to see a windmill. So, the place to go is Windmill Island Gardens. Granted, they only have one, but it is authentic. In fact, the 200-yearold, De Zwaan (Swan) windmill arrived in Holland in pieces and was reconstructed on site.

The view of the surrounding tulip fields from the fourth-story deck is awesome. Be sure to check out the 10-foot-tall grove of wooden tulips.

Take a step back in time at Nellis’ Dutch Village. Wander along canals to old-world Dutch shops to watch artisans at work making wooden shoes and traditional cheese.

Costumed dancers in wooden shoes will “welkom” visitors into their “klompen” folkdance. Sample old-world culinary specialties like saudijebroodjes (homemade sausage rolls), banket (Dutch almond pastry), the village’s famous pea soup and 20 varieties of cheese. You can even find Grolsch lager at the Thirsty Dutchman Pub.

For a double-Dutch treat, visit the Deklompen Shoe and Delftware Factory; imported machines from the Netherlands carve the shoes. View craftsmen paint them.

Inside the Delft facility, the only one in the United States, you’ll see liquid clay pouring into molds and fired at 2,000 degrees. When they’re cool, artists apply the authentic blue designs on

Travel By Bridget, LLC

Group Travel by Motor Coach and Cruises

2023 Trips

A Bavarian Getaway!

Frankenmuth, MI

Wed., May 17th – Fri., May 19th 2 breakfasts, 2 dinners, boat ride, Bronners and so much more. $429 pp/dbl, $379 pp/tpl, $556 pp single Chicago Cubs game at Wrigley Field

Friday, July 21st

Cubs face off against the St. Louis Cardinals at 1:20 pm cst

Avoid the traffic and enjoy the ride.

Coolers Welcomed. $169 pp

The Ark & The National Air Force Museum – Williamstown, KY

Thurs., July 27th – Fri., July 28th

Overnight stay at The Drury Inn in Franklin, OH. Includes accommodations, admissions, 1 breakfast, 2 lunches and 1 dinner.

Seniors $291 pp/dbl, Adults $303 pp/ dbl, Kids 10-17 $275 and kids under 10 are $245

America’s North Coast –Sandusky, OH & Put-in-Bay

Tues., August 22nd –

Thurs., August 24th

A three-day nautical adventure with 3 boat rides and Put-In-Bay. $649 pp/dbl, $594 pp/tpl, $804 single Lighthouses, Legends & Lore –the Outer Banks of NC Sun., Sept. 10th – Sat., Sept. 16th

Experience beautiful seashore vistas from your oceanfront hotel room, search for wild horses in hummers and so much more. This itinerary is packed with fun and will be the trip of a lifetime!

$1,669 pp/dbl, $1,469 pp/tpl, $2,275 single

Christmas in Branson

Mon., Nov. 6 – Thurs., Nov. 9th

Three night stay in the Hotel Grand Victorian, Branson Showboat Belle, Shows, Shopping and tons of fun!. $966 pp/dbl, $912 pp/tpl, $882 pp/ quad, $1,182 single Woodfield Mall – Schaumburg, IL

Saturday, December 2nd

Save the date for a day of shopping, dinner and fun. $99 pp

Christmas in Amish Country –Shipshewana, IN

Thursday, December 7th

Enjoy 7 – 8 stops in the Amish Country, demonstrations, shopping and traditional Thresher’s Style Dinner. $110 pp

Discover Hawaii 2024 October 10-19, 2024 10 days, 9 nights. Two nights prestay in Honolulu followed by a 7 night cruise of the islands. 3 shores excursions, air, beverage pkg. & more. Pricing starts at $5,820 pp/dbl occ for interior cabin. 15 cabin minimum required. Deposit due by September 1, 2023. Call for details.

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Follow us on Facebook at travelbybridgetllc Group white backgrounds. More than 400 varieties of Delft pieces are produced here.

Holland also has a mill where hardwood bowls are turned the way they were more than 150 years ago.

Standing at the head of the channel connecting Lake Macatawa and Lake Michigan stands the most photographed lighthouse in Michigan. The history of the tower, affectionately known as Big Red, dates back to 1870. The first lighthouse on the site was built of wood. A number of evolutions over the years included a steel structure, a fog signal building and today’s bright red electric lighthouse.