The Floriade is a maaaahoosive flower and gardening show in the Netherlands held every 10 years. It takes place in different parts of the Netherlands every 10 years. The last one was in 2012, at Venlo. We decided we would like to go there for a couple of days to take in as much as possible. The next one in 2022 will be over near Amsterdam. While we used the camper, because we decided to go in April, we wanted to use hotels or other acccomodation with a roof, where we would be warm and dry. This turned out to be a good idea, April 2012 was quite showery and we spent a lot of time driving in the rain. The planned route was based on pre-booking accomodation as we didnt want the added stress of finding a place to stop on each day of the trip. The first night was spent at Ashford, to give us a chance at an early crossing on the Channel Tunnel. So the first day of the trip we stopped off at Leeds Castle, which is a few miles before Ashford near the M20 in Kent. The blossom was out and the daffodils were out on the banks. Looking at the pictures, the maze in the castle garden was quite deep in water in places. That night we stayed in a Travelodge at Ashford, typical industrial estate terrain. Next morning we boarded the Channel Tunnel train to Calais. An uneventful trip, made more fun by having the space in the bus to move around and snack while we crossed the channel. Then it was off to the north, up the coast and through Belgium (traffic jams at Antwerp I seem to remember) , tanking along the nearly flat autoroutes at 65 mph. It was damp, we stopped off at the service stations every 200 miles for petrol and a top-up of engine oil, and crepes or sandwiches for the humans. That afternoon we arrived at the Centre Parcs site where we had booked a stay. This was one of the three original Centre Parcs, it still had some strange things like a small zoo on the site, but overall the theme was the same as the Longleat location (no longer part of the same organisation.) Being the Netherlands, it was all quite flat, without the exciting paths down the hillside (when its icy !) . In the central atrium was the usual ponds and moving water, restaurants around it. This was to be our home for a few nights. A nice big room with a wood burning fire. The bus lived out in the car park, I felt awkward fiddling with the engine , the progressive carburettor had been put on the engine just before the trip so it needed a bit of tweaking from time to time. The next days were spent at the Floriade, commuting by our bus every day. The site itself was huge, at one end were permanent buildings that will be used by local plant growers after the show. In one of the greenhouses there were cut flowers displays, and upstairs and in a heated greenhouse extension there were orchids being grown. One of the most fascinating displays was the North Korean stand, with the "Kimiljongia" orchid, and people in national dress. The site was so big, there was a cable car, to move people to the far end of the site, which we used on the outbound trip the next day . You can see the "arch" above in the picture below. At the other end were national outdoor displays, with China producing one of the most impressive . A reduced scale copy of the "Humble civil servant's Garden". There were also displays from Japan and South Korea which we really loved. One evening on the way home, we took a loop through Eindhoven in the bus to pass by the Philips sites which we had been so often visitors to when we worked for the company back in the 1980's and 1990's. Memories of turning up in the Bezoerkers (visitors) car parking spaces . After two days at the Floriade, we had decided to continue to Cologne, with a thought of possibly visiting the war grave of one of Shirleys grandfathers who had died of Spanish Flu in 1919. Although the city itself is a Low Emission Zone, we were able to park up in a nice car park area outside the zone , right beside the tram line south into the city centre. This has a black water dumping facility for overnight campers. In the end, we found the river Rhine and the Cathedral so fascinating, we decided to give the cemetery a miss. I still remember my "herrings and cream" with a lager beer in a restaurant in a side street. Apparently a tradition of the Rhine boatmen. That afternoon, we took the ring road to a Holiday Inn where we spent the night, walking round a nice park with a boating lake just outside. The final day was the big push. We set off early, to make it back to the Channel Tunnel, with a journey of 500 miles on the road. We made it OK, with one memorable moment being tow-starting a navvies Transit pickup at Clackett Lane Services on the M25 west. using the camper van's towbar.
Nice one Mike. I really enjoyed reading that. Are you going to the Floriade in 2022 then? I love the Netherlands, could easily spend longer than a month exploring it in the camper. Great photos as always, think my favourite photo is the Blossom & Castle one. Thanks for posting
Yes, I am thinking about a visit to the next Floriade . A lot depends on what happens across Europe over the next year.
I've been to Venlo for work so many times in the last 20 years. Probably averages out at a week a year in that time and I've never heard of this, amazing what you miss.
