The world’s largest tulip festival is returning this weekend and it’s happening right here in Ontario, just a few hours from Toronto. Set against the backdrop of the Rideau Canal, the Canadian Tulip Festival is more than a spectacle — it transforms Canada’s capital into a living mosaic of hundreds of thousands of blooms.
This year’s Canadian Tulip Festival runs from May 9 to 19, filling Ottawa’s Commissioners Park with over 300,000 tulips in full bloom. The festival is free to attend and sprawls along the scenic paths of Dow’s Lake, offering more than just a beautiful walk. It’s a historic homage that invites visitors to step into the past and trace the roots of a post-war gesture that has grown into a national treasure.
Through exhibits, storytelling installations and guided tours, the festival honours the enduring friendship between Canada and the Netherlands. That relationship began during World War II, when Ottawa sheltered the Dutch royal family and Canadian soldiers helped liberate the Netherlands. From that alliance, a living symbol emerged. In 1945, the Dutch gifted Canada 100,000 tulip bulbs as a thank you gesture of international solidarity and freedom. Today, that gift continues to bloom each spring.
Beyond the flowers, the Canadian Tulip Festival is packed with things to see, do and experience. From history buffs to families, there’s something for everyone.
Festivalgoers are invited to take part in a range of free events, including the Vintage Victory Party: a lively big band street dance and parade complete with flags, music and a pyrotechnic show. Lace up your sneakers for the 5K Flower Fun Run, catch nightly movies under the stars (think throwbacks: Wall-E, Toy Story, A League of Their Own), or stroll through the breathtaking tulip trail while you make your way to the market. There you’ll find everything from fresh flowers to handmade treasures and delicious-smelling candles. With food trucks, a play zone and an opening ceremony welcoming Princess Margriet of the Netherlands herself, the festival offers more than just fields of colourful flowers.
True history lovers can even take part in the Tulip Legacy Walking Tour: a 45-minute guided journey through the festival led by live storytellers. You may even meet some soldiers along the way.
For all accessibility needs, people movers run daily from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., offering scenic rides across the park. Rest your feet in style while you make your way from one end of the festival to the other for just $2 per ride.
For Ontario’s largest tulip festival and the GTA’s largest tulip festival, click here.
