You can celebrate the tulips in person this year through the Canadian Tulip Festival.
The annual festival in Ottawa to commemorate Canada’s role in the liberation of the Netherlands during World War II was held virtually in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but organizers are planning some personal events this year for the Platinum Jubilee .
“We all need to have something fun and something for free,” said festival organizer Jo Riding on Newstalk 580 CFRA.
The festival will feature a mix of free and paid events. It costs nothing to visit Commissioners Park in Dow’s Lake to see the tulips, and the festival does not end at sunset. New this year is a night event lit by Blacklight.
“All along the Dow’s Lake Boardwalk we will see tulips lit in UV light,” Riding said. “You may be wondering why. The answer is because that’s how the pollinators see it. When all the butterflies and bees do their work, they see the tulips.”
The festival also collaborates with the National Film Board and will show films in the evenings.
“Every night, free movies from 8 a.m. in the park. Bring a blanket, bring a snack or enjoy something from the food truck,” Riding said.
Some of the paid events include daily Tulip Bingo, pa $ 5 per card, and a $ 20 per person night time guided tour called “Ghosts of the Faith.”
“That one is talking about some of the soldiers who went out to fight for our freedom and left directly from the festival grounds and did not return,” Riding explains. “We tell these stories as we commemorate our 70th anniversary, the original gift of tulips and the reason why.”
The parking lot at Dow’s Lake will be closed to the public due to the new development of Ottawa Hospital, but the festival has made arrangements for a “Tulip Trolley” shuttle service to Commissioners Park, which will make the National Stop at the Westin Hotel. Gallery of Canada, the Fairmont Chateau Laurier and the Lord Elgin Hotel.
The Canadian Tulip Festival 2022 runs from May 13 to 23. Virtual programs will still be available. More information can be found on www.tulipfestival.ca as the festival progresses.
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