Your Complete Guide to Visiting Poldertuin Anna Paulowna – the Free Mini Keukenhof!

A while ago I was on a Google maps hunt for places to see tulips in the Netherlands (besides Keukenhof) and I came across Poldertuin Anna Paulowna. As soon as we had a reasonably warm sunny-ish day I convinced Dennis we should go for a drive to visit it and was very pleasantly surprised by what we found! Basically, Poldertuin Anna Paulowna is like a miniature version of Keukenhof, without the hordes of tourists and pricetag. It’s also quite straightforward to get to and very beautiful. Now that I’ve been for myself I’ve also written this guide so that you too can experience the beauty of this free garden in North Holland!

A Bit About Poldertuin Anna Paulowna

Poldertuin Anna Paulowna is located in the town of Anna Paulowna which is in Noord-Holland (North Holland). Anna Paulowna was a former Dutch queen who originally came from Russia, just for a bit of background info! In Russian, she was called Anna Pavlovna but in Dutch, she was called Anna Paulowna. The word polder doesn’t have a one-for-one English translation but generally means reclaimed land. The town of Anna Paulowna is located in the Anna Paulownapolder, which was reclaimed in 1846 during the reign of King William II, and named for his wife Anna Paulowna.

The garden of Poldertuin Anna Paulowna was laid out around 1855, not even ten years after the land was reclaimed. It was designed by landscape architect Jan David Zocher Jr., who also designed the Vondelpark in Amsterdam and the garden of Soestdijk Palace in Baarn (which is near Amersfoort). There’s a stately house in the middle of the garden but this is private property so you can’t go inside. However, the Poldertuin Anna Paulowna is open daily from sunrise until sunset and completely free to visit!

What It’s Like Visiting Poldertuin Anna Paulowna

As I mentioned, I was pleasantly surprised by how big and beautiful the garden was, based on what I had seen online. Of course, it’s not as big as Keukenhof, but it’s still a lot more extensive than I was expecting with winding paths, canals, bridges, big trees and many beautiful varieties of tulips, plus other flowers. As you arrive you will see a lovely bit of the garden across a canal, and then you can walk into the main driveway of the Polder House which leads around past flower beds to the much larger fields behind.

The entire garden is flat and accessible, although once you get behind the house the paths become gravel/dirt so we saw some people struggling a little to push wheelchairs on them. The flowerbeds have lots of different flower varieties with signs telling you their name, which we also enjoyed looking at since many of the names are quite funny. We even found some Australian-themed ones!

The main differences between Poldertuin Anna Paulowna and Keukenhof are size (Keukenhof is MUCH bigger), price (Keukenhof is also expensive but Poldertuin Anna Paulowna is free!) and what there is to do at the gardens. Poldertuin Anna Paulowna is just a (very beautiful) garden. You can walk around, take lots of photos and maybe have a picnic on the grass but that’s it. Keukenhof has pavilions with displays and multiple places to eat, drink and shop within the grounds. But if you’re looking for pretty flowers without the hefty price tag then Poldertuin Anna Paulowna might be just the ticket!

How to Get to Poldertuin Anna Paulowna

Another reason that Poldertuin Anna Paulowna might be better for you than visiting Keukenhof is that it’s relatively straightforward to get to. Trains from Amsterdam Centraal to the town of Anna Paulowna take about an hour but there are no changes. Once you get to Anna Paulowna it’s about a 20-25 minute walk from the train station to the garden, although it’s a cute town so you can admire lots of pretty Dutch homes as you go.

If you’re travelling to Keukenhof from Amsterdam by public transport it also takes about an hour but you have to get the train to the airport and then get a special bus to Keukenhof from outside the airport so it can be a bit overwhelming. If you have a car then you can drive to Keukenhof from Amsterdam in about half an hour while driving from Amsterdam to Anna Paulowna will still take an hour. However, there’s free parking at Anna Paulowna which you won’t find at Keukenhof.

I’m definitely not saying don’t go to Keukenhof if you can and want to as it’s a pretty incredible experience (you can read all about visiting Keukenhof here) but if you want to save money or are looking for a more laidback experience (or just want to see as many tulips in the Netherlands as possible) then you might also like to visit Poldertuin Anna Paulowna!

Other Things To Do in Anna Paulowna and Surrounds

As I mentioned, there are lots of really cute little houses in Anna Paulowna which I enjoyed looking at as we walked to and from the garden. There was a very crowded café with a terrace across the road from the garden if you wanted to have a meal before or after your visit. There were also some shops and food vans right by the garden where you could get kibbeling (fish) or Vietnamese snacks. The other main attraction in Anna Paulowna is Dierenpark Hoenderdaell, a wildlife park and zoo that has a lot of animals that have been rescued from poor conditions like bears, macaws, raccoons and even lions. We didn’t visit this time but I am hoping to go back at some point.

If you visit Anna Paulowna from Amsterdam then you might also like to combine it with a visit to Alkmaar. Trains to Anna Paulowna from Amsterdam go through Alkmaar on the way and this town is home to a very famous traditional cheese market in the summer months. There’s also a cheese museum, an art and history museum and even (randomly) a Beatles museum!

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Have you visited Poldertuin Anna Paulowna or another free flower garden in the Netherlands? Let me know about it in the comments or pin one of these if you’re planning to visit the beautiful Poldertuin Anna Paulowna for yourself!