Tulip Time Named Best Flower Festival

The Holland Area Convention & Visitors Bureau announced the city’s Tulip Time Festival in Holland, Michigan, as the winner of USA Today’s Best Flower Festival.

In competition with 20 festivals around the U.S., Tulip Time rose above its friendly competitor, the Mackinac Island Lilac Festival, the only other Michigan event nominated. Mackinac came in second in the contest.

Other competitors included Dallas Blooms of Dallas, Historic Garden Week in Virginia, North Carolina Azalea Festival and the International Cherry Blossom Festival of Macon, Georgia. There was one other festival that featured the tulip, the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival in Washington State.

During Tulip Time, Holland boasts 4.5 million tulips, with 200,000 in the downtown alone. The festival is also a celebration of Dutch heritage, including dance, a traditional marketplace, parades, and Dutch food specialties.

Both the Holland Area Visitors Bureau and the Tulip Time Festival organization promoted voting for Tulip Time on their websites and in social media.

Holland had its fifth consecutive win last year in the America in Bloom contest for Outstanding Achievement for Floral Displays, as well as a win in the 2015 Champions Category.

America in Bloom‘s Katy Moss nominated Holland’s Tulip Time Festival for the USA Today Best Flower Festival.