Springtime in Seattle: Cherry Blossoms & Tulip Fields {Let's See Seattle}

5/10/2019

{Let's See Seattle} is a brand new series where I show you the best of, you guessed it, the city of Seattle.

The focus here on Figs and Flights leans toward the destinations of my travels while the great eats, gorgeous spots, and weirdest attractions of Seattle aren't often mentioned. It's my goal to remedy that and show you Seattle, the surrounding area, and the Pacific Northwest area overall.

I'm kicking off {Let's See Seattle} with the two biggest indicators of Springtime in Seattle - the Cherry Blossoms and Tulip Fields.

It's been over five years since I moved to Seattle. After a year or two of living here the newness seemed to wear off. I'm always forcing myself to keep exploring and enjoying this city, even when I'm not entertaining out of town visitors.

That all being said, springtime is a wonderful time to be in Seattle. The rain stops, the days slowly get longer and fill with sunshine, and the residents crawl out from the shadows. We take advantage of rooftop decks and outdoor seating at our favorite watering holes and flock to Mother Nature's finest works. You'll find the quad on the campus of the University of Washington filled with pink and delicate Cherry Blossoms and acres and acres of colorful tulip fields in bloom about an hour outside of the city.

The UW Cherry Blossom Trees

The campus at the University of Washington, better known as UW (pronounced u-dub), is gorgeous at all times of year. There are old and historic buildings mixed with brand new and sleek ones. The real gem of the campus are the cherry blossom trees on the quad.

All of the Seattle news stations keep tabs on the infamous cherry trees on campus and the masses are alerted when the blossoms are approaching and reaching peak bloom. That's when Seattle residents make their annual pilgrimage the campus to see the amazing sight.

This was our second time visiting the cherry blossoms and we did it perfectly, minimizing the crowd and maximizing time spent there. The canopy of tiny pink flowers is delightful and I hope to visit again every single year.

Visiting the Cherry Blossom Trees

Enjoy a few tips for visiting the cherry blossoms and many, many photos.

The UW Quad

Cost: None, it's free to visit campus and the quad
Parking: Good luck, it's impossible to find parking on campus. I'd recommend taking an Uber, a bus, or riding your bike. We've parked illegally in the same lot twice now…
When to Visit: There is a one week window for visiting the trees during their peak bloom. Go very, very early in the morning. We'd visited on a Sunday morning a few years back. This year we went at 7:00 am on a weekday and there were even fewer people there. It was very sweet to see who the other early birds were and what they were doing. Many graduation photo shoots, a wedding or two, and plenty of love birds were onsite. I was hoping for a proposal! The people watching is excellent.
The Best Spot: There are more trees and plenty of benches in one particular corner. If you stand with your back to end of the quad with the large stairs. head to the far right corner!
What to Bring: We brought our camera, our dog, coffee, and some snacks/breakfast. Bring your pals and something to eat and drink. We sat on a bench and enjoyed the gorgeous pink floral ceiling and people watching together. If you're not going very early, I'd recommend bringing a blanket to sit on. You'll want to be comfortable and ready to relax in order to make the most of your time there.

The Tulip Fields

The Skagit Valley is located about an hour south of the city of Seattle. Every year in April the Tulip Festival attracts people from near and far to the valley to see the thousands and thousands of colorful flowers.

Tulips have always been my favorite flower and going to the Tulip Festival has been on my bucket list for all five of the years I've lived in Washington. A few years back we attempted to go but got stuck in hours of traffic in the small town that leads to the fields, eventually turning around and spending the day shopping at the nearby outlets instead.

This year we did our research and we did it right! The beauty and quantity of the flowers are overwhelming, I've never seen anything like these tulip fields. Even my 12 and 14 year old nephews were impressed, and that's really saying something.

Visiting the Tulip Fields

There are several fields, we visited Roozengaarde. Again, enjoy several tips and many photos.

Roozengaarde Tulips

Cost: Weekend admission is $10 per person. A Military ID will save you $1 per person. Bring cash and you'll be able to stand in a shorter line, getting to the flowers faster.
Parking: There is a huge field for parking just across the street from Roozengaarde. There's no cost to park.
When to Visit: Any time in April! The best time of day, again, is early in the morning! The opening time was 9:00 am and we arrived just a few minutes later. By the time we left, about an hour later, the line of cars waiting to enter was well over 100.
The Best Spot: The layout of the fields is really nice, you can clearly see where to walk and there are little cut outs into the field where you can stand to gather and take photos. People were kind and offering to take group pictures for each other. It is disheartening to see people ignoring the rules and walking through the fields and picking the flowers(!!).
What to Bring: Bring cash and a camera and wear boots. While the photos focus on the gorgeous and colorful photos, don't dismiss the fact that you'll be walking through mud the whole time you're there! Every kid we saw was having more fun jumping in mud puddles than they were looking at flowers.

I hope you enjoyed this little Springtime in Seattle experience. If you don't already, please follow along on Instagram or Facebook.

Stay tuned for more of Seattle via {Let's See Seattle} and the best season of all - SUMMER!

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