Visit the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival and Lovely La Conner

Updated March 28, 2022

We’ve officially entered that magical time of year where the days are getting longer, there’s more sunshine in the forecast, and the flowers are starting to bloom. We love going for walks and enjoying all the different colors and varieties along our route. Remember the very beginning of the pandemic and how going for walks was the most exciting thing ever? If you want to take your flower-viewing game to the next level, you should make plans to head north to visit the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival and spend time in the adorable waterside town of La Conner.

Officially inaugurated in 1984, the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival has grown from a two-day affair to a month-long extravaganza. While you can certainly just hop in your car and drive up to the tulip fields, you may find yourself stuck in some serious tulip traffic, or worse, arrive to find the tulips aren’t even blooming! Visiting the fields is one of our favorite springtime traditions. We’ve figured out how to have an amazing experience at the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival and in the surrounding area, and want to pass our tips on to you!

When to visit the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival

While the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival officially runs from April 1-30, it’s important to know that only Mother Nature is in control. Meaning, there’s no guarantee when the tulips will bloom, and it can vary from year to year! I recommend keeping an eye on this bloom map, and the kind folks at RoozenGaarde provide frequent updates about the status of the fields on that same page as well. For reference, we’ve previously visited the tulips in bloom on April 21 one year, and on April 28 another.

So you’ve definitely heard of the tulips . . . but did you know that you can also view gorgeous, bright yellow daffodils in the same area before the tulips start blooming?! That’s right! The La Conner Daffodil Festival runs throughout March (blooms continue into April) and gets a lot less attention than the tulip festival, meaning less people! In our opinion, the daffodils are every bit as beautiful as the tulips, and it’s worth considering making your trip before peak tulip time if you want the best chance at a less busy experience. Especially if it’s your first time ever visiting . . . we promise you’ll still be totally in awe looking out over the endless fields of yellow with rolling mountains in the distance, and you’ll forget that you even originally wanted to see the tulips instead. Plus, you can always save the tulips for a second visit, or come back another year!

A final piece of advice about when to visit? Pick a day with rain in the forecast. Sure, it’s more enjoyable to be out and about in the sunshine, but we all know how unpredictable the weather can be in Washington in the springtime, and you can use that to your advantage! If the forecast looks like full sun, everyone and their brother will be targeting that weekend for their visit. If it’s showing a chance of rain . . . keep an eye on the hourly forecast as the day approaches. You might just get lucky and find that it never ends up raining at all, or the sun may even come out for a few hours! Regardless, if you live in Washington, we’re just going to assume that you own a rain jacket. Everyone tolerates weather differently, but all we’re saying is that you should keep an open mind. A drizzly day with the fields all to yourself may very well beat a sunny day alongside half of Seattle. Oh, and it probably goes without saying, but if you can visit on a weekday rather than a weekend — do that!

How to get around the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival

So you’ve decided to make the trip up to see the daffodils or tulips, but how are you actually going to get around once you’re there? You have a few options! No matter which mode of transportation you choose, you’ll want to have this printable map or this interactive version handy to reference as you plan your route.

Biking
If you own bikes or are able to rent them, we highly recommend this form of transportation for the ultimate flower-viewing experience. Traffic around the fields can get pretty bad at peak times, and there’s often not really a great place to park if you want to get out and actually spend some time viewing the flowers or taking any photos.

To bike around the fields, you’ll be on mostly flat, two-lane country roads, so it’s an enjoyable experience even if you’re not a very experienced biker (I, Katie, am a super nervous/cautious biker and did fine with it!). Biking is great because it allows you to cover a decent amount of ground while fully immersed in the views, and with the flexibility to stop whenever, and wherever, you want (within reason . . . don’t go riding through the fields!). We like to start our ride in town and typically cover about 12 miles total on the ride.

If you’re interested in renting bikes, check out Tulip Country Bike Tours.

Driving
If you cannot, or don’t want to, bike, then you’ll need to get around via car. If you go this route, we suggest one of two plans of attack to best manage expectations and set you up for success.

Commit to visiting Tulip Town or Roozengarde (pay-to-enter gardens – more on this later), park there, and enjoy the flowers in that area. (or)
Avoid those areas as they have the highest concentration of traffic, and instead visit a few of the fields that are the furthest away from those areas.

If you will be driving around the fields, following the tips in this post to avoid crowds as much as possible will really help you to have a more enjoyable experience. But no matter when you decide to go, pack your patience and some snacks!

Walking
While we are normally all for walking, the spacing of the fields can make it tricky to see very much solely on foot. While things may look close together on the map shared above, it’s important to note that it is not designed to scale, and what may look like just a block can actually be more like a mile. If you’re on board for a long walk, you’ll just want to accurately map out your route to ensure you know just what you’re in for and prepare accordingly.

How to get there and where to park

From Seattle, the drive is just over an hour north to get to the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival. If you’re planning to bike or want to explore La Conner after your drive (highly recommend – more on this later), you’ll need to find some parking. We’ve always had great luck parking in the large lot near the Swinomish Yacht Club (click here for Google Maps location), or you can snag street parking downtown if you’re lucky. You’ll also see some other parking options notated on the map shared above.

When to arrive

As early as you can! To us, this is one of the easiest ways to avoid the crowds. We’ll typically aim to leave home around 7 a.m. and have our bike ride underway by 8:30’ish. The drive north along I-5 is actually really beautiful with the mountains in the distance . . . so there’s a little added motivation to get you up and at ‘em early so you can enjoy those views at sunrise!

In years past, it has seemed that people really start arriving later in the morning like around 10 or 11. The best part about starting early? You’re done viewing the flowers in time for brunch and have the rest of the day to explore! Alternatively, you could wait and visit much later in the evening around sunset. If you can go on a weeknight, even better. We’ve never tried this tactic, but may have to this year to change it up!

What to bring for the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival

Snacks and water - you’ll be in a rural setting when visiting the fields, so don’t expect coffee shops or restaurants until you get back into town (Roozengarde and Tulip Town do sell some refreshments)
Sunscreen and sunglasses if visiting on a clear day
Raincoat if visiting on a not-so-clear day
Layers, layers, layers - it can be chilly and windy in the valley
Sturdy, comfortable walking shoes that can get dirty
Tickets purchased online in advance if planning to visit Tulip Town or Roozengarde
Cash - while I’m sure you can get by most everywhere with just a credit card, you might want to bring along a little cash in case you want to stop by a roadside stand to buy some flowers to take home

Other things to keep in mind

Should I Pay to Go to Tulip Town and/or Roozengarde?
You’ve heard us mention Tulip Town and Roozengarde . . . what are they? These are two very popular farms that you can visit during the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival. While we absolutely believe in supporting local farmers, you shouldn’t feel like you HAVE to go to one of these places. On the plus side, they have beautiful manicured garden displays and dense fields you can walk around all in one general area. They also sell refreshments and have things for sale. The downside to these places is just that they can be very busy and will cost you a little bit of money to enter. We’ve gone to both in the past and had a nice experience overall, but have also enjoyed just visiting the other fields around the area on our own. Please note that due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic, they are limiting admission and are requiring you purchase tickets in advance.

What Makes This A Festival?
From what I’ve described so far, this probably doesn’t sound a whole lot like a festival in the traditional sense. There are some events happening throughout the month, but we really just go for the flowers to be honest, so can’t speak to the festival happenings.

Extend your visit

In our minds, visiting the tulip fields is just part one of an overall incredible day. La Conner is a really cute town with a lot to offer. It’s worth hanging out for an entire day, or even making a weekend of it!

Grab Brunch
As I hinted at above, we like to wrap up our bike ride in late morning, and head to brunch at Calico Cupboard in La Conner. There can often be a wait, so go put your name on the list and then walk around town or check out the boardwalk path that runs along the water. If you’re super hungry, grab a pastry from inside to enjoy while you wait! We can strongly vouch for the giant cream puffs and cinnamon rolls. We love this spot for brunch because they have an outdoor seating area in the back that is usually nice and sunny and has views of the water and boats passing by.

Northwest Fuel is another great spot that’s new to town as of spring 2021. What it lacks in water views, it makes up for with yummy food and a nice vibe with an outdoor patio! We had their sundried tomato sandwich and a tropical acai bowl and it was incredible. Highly recommend!

Depending on your mood for the day, either spend the afternoon bouncing around town or head out on a hike.

Explore La Conner
The town is small and very walkable, so you can definitely just wander around and pop into any stores that catch your eye. Here are a few of our favorite places to spend time in town:

Stompin Grounds Coffee Co – a cozy spot with indoor and outdoor seating and a pretty large menu
Beaver Tales Coffee – a native/veteran and woman-owned coffee roaster, coffee shop, and cultural gift shop in a unique, greenhouse-like setting
La Conner Brewery – they have a decent size food menu, including burgers and wood-fired pizzas. If you’re lucky, you can snag a table outside!
Hellam’s Vineyard Winery – we love this unassuming wine shop and wine bar for, shocker, its outdoor seating. You can pick out a bottle inside and enjoy it on their sunny patio right on the water. There’s even a little waterfall that flows off the deck into the river!
Pioneer Park – walk off your brunch in this small, forested park at the southwest corner of town
Conner Waterfront Park – a small, but scenic park to have a picnic or relax in the grass and sunshine
La Conner Ice Cream Tower – need I say more? We love capping off the day at this walk-up ice cream tower. Everything we’ve ever tried has been delicious, and I still randomly think of their strawberry cheesecake flavor from time to time . . .

Go For A Hike
If you want to take your day from the fields to the trails, there are a number of great hiking options in the area. Here are a few of our favorites:

Oyster Dome (45 minutes from La Conner / 5 miles roundtrip / 1,050’ gain) – A moderate hike with views out over the San Juan Islands, Samish Bay, Vancouver Island, and the Olympic Mountains
Deception Pass State Park (20 minutes from La Conner / 38 miles of hiking trails) – Washington’s most-visited state park with many waterfront trails to explore. Our favorite is Lighthouse Point via Bowman Bay / Rosario Beach Trail
Sharpe Park – Sares Head (25 minutes from La Conner / 2.1 miles / 440’ gain) – Beautiful views similar to Oyster Dome without much effort. There are other interconnected trails within the park if you’d like to cover more ground, and a side trip to Porpoise Point is definitely worthwhile if you have the time.

(Click here to view a roundup of 12 other spring hikes we love)

Now you have all the intel needed to plan an awesome day at the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival and surrounding area, and we hope you have a great time. Let us know in the comments if you found this post helpful for planning your visit, and if you came across any other favorite spots worth exploring!

Visit the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival and Lovely La Conner