April 9-12, 2019
One of the big reasons we chose Vancouver for this trip were the cherry blossoms, and then I found out about the tulip festival. The outskirts of Vancouver are more interesting than the little town itself. We drove for about an hour to get to a tulip farm. Strangely, there seems to be no clearly marked entrance. So, we took a side road and then a back road and somehow got close to the farm. Other cars follow us. We are now at the side of the farm, but are not sure if we can go in. We stop for pictures when an angry looking lady stomps towards us and accuses us of trespassing. We try to explain that we couldn’t find the entrance and she very rudely tells us it’s because they are not open yet. They will open for the festival tomorrow.
We drive a little further to Chilliwack Farms. This one is open and has fields of daffodils. There are no tulips to be seen. We take our time to stand and stare;to run around and smell the daffodils. We are ready to head back when we notice the hyacinths. A cycle with a little basket stands close. A perfect photo prop. It is then that we find out that the tulips are at the back and there is a tractor that will take us there. We hop on. Close to 20 acres of around 30 varieties of tulips await us. It certainly is gorgeous. Turns out that this is the Lower Mainland’s original tulip festival and Western Canada’s largest. The flowers have been planted in extra wide rows for easy viewing and convenient photo opportunities. The mountains in the background and strategically placed swings make it ideal for those insta-worthy shots.
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