The annual flagship Canadian Tulip Festival celebrates spring by showcasing over a million beautiful tulips across Ottawa. The festival, believed to be the largest of-its-kind in the world, attracts over 500,000 visitors from around the globe. What’s more, this year, the event, which takes place May 12-22, is celebrating its 65th anniversary, as well as Canada’s 150th anniversary of confederation, under the theme ‘One Tulip, One Canada.’
The Special 2017 Edition
In honour of Canada’s 150th birthday, over 200,000 specimens of a special red and white tulip called the Canada 150 will bloom in public places throughout Ottawa. That’s other than your chance of being able to revel in the myriad number of other colourful tulips. This year’s special anniversary programme also includes family activities, live entertainment and breathtaking Tulipmania fireworks. There will also be vintage military displays that pay tribute to Canadian veterans and recall the festival’s roots. Here are the four official sites:
Lansdowne and Glebe neighbourhood: You’ll be able to see indoor and outdoor floral exhibits and installations from artists across Canada in this area located between downtown Ottowa and Commissioners Park. There will be indoor and outdoor spaces with photography exhibits and workshops with artisans. As well as taking a break at the Tulip Café in Aberdeen, there are interactive family activities with lots of arts and crafts.
Commissioners Park: Commissioners Park is where you’ll find the highest concentration of tulips, over 250,000 of 60 different varieties, along one kilometer of show-stopping, mass-planted tulip beds and pathways. It’s located along the picturesque Dows Lake section of the Rideau Canal, a UNESCO World Heritage Site that winds its way through downtown Ottawa. During the festival, there will be family-friendly live entertainment, interpretive signage and guided tours.
ByWard Tulip Park(ing): This is an urban tulip experience that sees tulips popping up in the downtown market. The active neighbourhood will feature tulip-inspired art installations, workshops and animation.
Tulips on the Garden Promenade: New in 2017, this is a city tour experience that gives you the most out of the best of Ottawa’s public gardens. Arranged with the help of the Canadian Garden Council, visitors can enjoy a self-guided or escorted tour of public gardens. Some of the sites include Rideau Hall, the Central Experimental Farm, Parliament Hill and gardens in Gatineau, Quebec. Additionally, you can take part in enriching activities like having a yoga session in the tulips!
Ottawa’s Historical Connection to Tulips
Princess Margriet was born in Ottawa while the Dutch royal family took refuge there during World War II. What’s more Canadian troops played an important role in liberating the Netherlands. When the war ended, the Dutch royals sent 100,000 tulips as a thank you gift, and have apparently been doing so every year since then! The Canadian Tulip Festival was established in the early 50s as a way of celebrating this gift. World-renowned Turkish photographer Malak Karsh, whose photographs have celebrated the tulip, urged for an annual tulip festival and became one of the founders when it started in 1953. Eventually, the tulip was adopted as Ottawa’s official flower.
