DETAILS
Day 1, Saturday, August 24: ARRIVAL
Tour members arrange their own transportation to Amsterdam and to the Schiphol Sheraton, where a reservation has been made for them.
We will gather for a welcome dinner this evening (included in tour price).
Day 2, Sunday, August 25: SINGER LAREN SCULPTURE GARDEN, GARDENS AT PALACE HET LOO, GARDEN OF FORTMOND
Our first stop will be the Sculpture Garden at the Singer Laren Museum, which is devoted to presenting and preserving the collection of the American artist William Henry Singer and his wife, Anna. The garden was designed by Piet Oudolf, considered the leading figure in the "New Perennial" movement. Oudolf uses herbaceous perennials and grasses in his designs for their structure, movement and color. The garden opened in 2018 and features contemporary Dutch sculptures that highlight the relationship between culture and nature.
At midday we’ll travel to the Palace Het Loo in Apeldoorn, which was the royal palace of Willem and Mary when they became King and Queen of England, Scotland, and Ireland in 1689. This Dutch Baroque Great Garden is nicknamed the "Versailles of Holland" because of its perfect symmetry, axial layout radiating gravel walks, and parterres with fountains, basins, and statues. Be sure to look for the orange trees! There are several café and restaurant options here for you to find a delicious lunch on your own.
Next, we’ll board the bus and head to the Garden of Fortmond in Olst. This marvelous home and garden overlooks the IJssel Valley, with the hills of the Veluwe in the distance. From the terrace, you have a panoramic view of the property, including bird groves with natural undergrowth, the stunning flower meadow, as well as De Duursche Waarden nature reserve that sits adjacent to the garden.
We’ll check into the Hotel Mooi Rivier in Dalfsen and eat dinner together tonight.
Day 3, Monday, August 26: MIEN RUYS GARDENS, LIANNE’S SIERGRASSEN, DEWIT GARDEN TOOL FACTORY
This morning we’ll make our way to Dedemsvaart to explore a sequence of 30 inspirational horticultural displays at Mien Ruys Gardens. Nine of the gardens have been given national monument status and offer a chronological overview of 20th century garden architecture. We’ll have an opportunity to explore the Sunken Garden, the Water Garden, the Wilderness Garden, and many others. We can discuss what we’ve seen over lunch together here.
Today we've got an exciting stop at Lianne Pot's Prairie Garden in the Wilp! Lianne is a designer who found inspiration for her Dutch garden in the American prairie. In her prairie and steppe gardens, Lianne has experimented with balancing new, low-maintenance planting forms of swaying grasses with flowers like echinacea, helianthus, aster and monarda. Each area of the garden has different layers, beautiful shapes, and rich, vibrant colors that change with the seasons. The new steppe garden features blue-leaved grasses, herbaceous perennials and spontaneously sowing upright fillers that attract butterflies, bees, and other pollinators.
Our next stop is the headquarters of the DeWit Tool Company, which began as a small blacksmith factory in 1898 but in the 20th century began making high-quality garden tools. For over a century, the DeWit family has remained true to their original roots of handcraftsmanship and high quality. We'll have the opportunity to take a tour of the factory and learn the history behind these heirloom tools, and of course do a little shopping in their showroom!
We’ll return to the Hotel Mooi Rivier to eat dinner together tonight.
Day 4, Tuesday, August 27: PARK OF DUTCH DREAMS, STUDIO NICO WISSING, JELLE GRINTJES GARDEN
The Park of Dutch Dreams on the south bank of the Oude IJssel in Doetinchem is our first stop today. The park is divided into 6 sections, with a different garden expert drawing up a plan for each area. Piet Oudolf, Jacqueline van der kloet, Tom de Witte, Bart Hoes, Climmy Schneider and Nico Wissing have already planted more than 200 perennial plant species, and almost 45,000 flower bulbs, including 60 different species. No matter the season, Park of Dutch Dreams is a colorful, diverse, yet unified, design that can be enjoyed by the community and gardeners from around the globe.
Next, we’ll travel to Megchelen for lunch at the Studio of Nico Wissing, a landscape designer known for his vision of the nature-inclusive living environment. He’s also one of the designers of Park of Dutch Dreams. His personal romantic hillside garden is worth a stroll, with more than 300 species of plants, including a long, modern pond flanked on either side by banks of pennisetum.
Our last stop of the day is the private garden of designer Jelle Grintjes. This 5,000-square-meter garden is composed of almost 20,000 perennial plants and grasses, as well as more than 50,000 flower bulbs, all only a few years old. Impressive and beautiful!
At the end of the day we’ll check into Hotel Bergse Bossen in Driebergen before we dine together.
Day 5, Wednesday, August 28: VLINDERTUIN DE ZINDERING, MARIEKE NOLSEN’S GARDEN
This morning we’ll travel to Tiel and visit Vlindertuin De Zindering, where we’ll take a tour with designer Edwin Barendrecht. What makes this exuberant garden especially unique is its focus on biodiversity. The garden also uses an intricate underground irrigation system that’s powered by solar energy. You’ll have many opportunities to ask questions on this garden visit!
In the afternoon, we’ll make a stop at the garden of Marieke Nolsen, a flower stylist, gardener, and lecturer extraordinaire whose lifelong passion is flowers. The dahlia is the center of attention in this garden, with countless varieties, colors, and textures creating a spectacular explosion of color. Be sure to have your camera handy for this one as you’ll want to capture all the inspiration!
This evening we’ll eat dinner together at the Hotel Bergse Bossen.
Day 6, Thursday, August 29: VLINDERHOF, UTRECHT, GARDEN OPDEHAAR
Our morning garden stop will be a tour of Vlinderhof Garden in Utrecht. Vlinderhof means Butterfly Garden in Dutch and was designed in the New Perennial, or Dutch Wave, style by Piet Oudolf. From one end of the garden, you can catch the overall effect, in which vibrant perennials are combined with grasses, creating a natural play of heights, textures, and colors. Wander through the park and see each plant up close for an entirely different experience.
You’ll have time to explore and find a bite to eat in Utrecht. This city boasts beautiful canals and parks, lively restaurants and cafés, fascinating museums, and remarkable historical buildings.
In the afternoon we’ll make our way to Garden Opdehaar in Hoevelaken, which is a plant lover’s dream created by John and Joyce Ramsbotham. It’s known for more than 4,500 different species of shade-tolerant woodland plants, trees, and shrubs. We’ll have the afternoon to stroll under 300-year-old oak trees, wander over bridges and forest paths and explore the eight contiguous gardens that cover nearly 2 hectares. This shady property is quite a contrast from the sunny butterfly garden on our morning garden tour.
At the end of the day we’ll again gather at the hotel for dinner.
Day 7, Friday, August 30: BOAT TOUR IN BOSKOOP, MILLS OF KINDERDIJK
A boat tour along the nurseries in Boskoop is undoubtedly the best way to see the horticultural center of the Netherlands, which is exactly how we’ll start our day. From a small boat, you can enjoy the views over countless nurseries of shrubs, trees, and perennials, while learning about the historical district and hearing stories about this fascinating botanical world. We’ll enjoy lunch together on the tour before we leave for our next destination.
We have an equally delightful afternoon planned at the Mills of Kinderdijk amongst the village’s 19 windmills. Explore the fascinating stories of the dikes, windmills, and pumping stations at this UNESCO World Heritage Site.
This evening we’ll again gather for dinner at our hotel.
Day 8, Saturday, August 31: APPELTERN ADVENTURE GARDENS, GARDEN OF HANS GIESZEN, CANAL BOAT TOUR IN AMSTERDAM
Our last full day begins with a stop at the Appeltern Adventure Gardens, a collection more than 200 small exhibition gardens. Maybe you’ll decide to visit the Cottage Garden, rich with flowers, vegetables and fruit, which will be sure to make you feel like you're in the English countryside. Or perhaps the Downtown Garden, which is meant to conjure the memories of a seaside getaway using natural materials, such as tall grasses, sand, shells, chestnut wood, and moraine boulders. We’ll have plenty of time to explore here, as well as time for lunch on your own.
Our next stop will be the garden of Hans Gieszen near the village Renswoude. A self-taught garden designer, Hans has learned to use the shape, structure, and seasonal changes of plants to create stunning gardens. He began creating his garden in 2012, beginning with perennials that could be easily grown and maintained sustainably.
This afternoon we’ll check into our final hotel in Amsterdam, and will finish our day in with a canal boat tour, including dinner. What a wonderful ending to a once-in-a-lifetime trip!
Day 9, Sunday, September 1: DEPARTURE
Our time together has ended, but garden lovers always find fresh inspiration wherever they are. Tour members can choose to return home or carry on the adventure.
