Over 8 million tulips will be in bloom at Holland Ridge Farms in Cream Ridge. It’s one of the state’s most mesmerizing spring displays. Photo courtesy of Holland Ridge Farms
Casey Jansen Jr. wants his family’s farm in Cream Ridge to become the “selfie spot of the world.” He has about 8 million reasons to prove his vision is blooming into reality.
That’s how many tulips sprouted last year at the Holland Ridge Farms Tulip Festival, the Jansens’ signature spring event that attracted visitors from Connecticut down to Maryland and as far away as Puerto Rico and Colombia. This year, they’re looking to up the ante: The same number of tulips but with added enticements, like weekday picnics, more food trucks and extra photo ops.
So, we’ll call it 8 million reasons … and counting.
People come from all over the world to take selfies in front of a sea of tulips at Holland Ridge Farms. Photo courtesy of Holland Ridge Farms
“We’re go-getters. When we see something that’s doing well and we believe in it, we go full throttle,” Jansen Jr. said of the farms’ tulip festival. “In our first year when we opened in 2018, we tiptoed into it. After 2018’s success, we saw that we were onto something, and we went full throttle to get to where we wanted to be.”
Perhaps it’s no surprise just how fast their tulip display burst onto the scene, either. What started as a modest showing of 200,000 bulbs spread across 50 acres has, in just six years, expanded into the largest event of its kind in America, if not the world, according to Jansen Jr. An ambitious expansion plan coupled with an endless stream of social media posts from visitors helped sprout awareness seemingly overnight.
Casey Jansen Jr., right, has brought his father’s tulip festival vision to life over the past six years, and they’ve got more expansion ideas up their sleeve. Photo courtesy of Holland Ridge Farms
It also doesn’t hurt that the three-week festival, which is projected to run from April 11 to April 30, is a spectacle you’d expect to find on a postcard for the Netherlands — not New Jersey. But that’s precisely the point.
“One of the phrases we use for the company is ‘Don’t fly to Holland, drive to Holland’ because it’s the closest you can get outside of the Netherlands,” said Patrick Marini, the farm’s creative manager. “We often stand at the entrance as we welcome people to the farm and we hear their reactions, and it’s just like, ‘Wow, I’ve never seen something like this.’ ”
A Family Affair
Staying true to its slogan, Holland Ridge Farms prides itself on being far more than a pretty row of rainbow fields. It’s an immersion in Dutch culture, beginning in the ground with those millions of tulips, and the hands that plant them. Jansen Jr. is a third-generation tulip farmer following in the footsteps of his father, a tulip bulb salesman who became a wholesale grower when he moved to the United States in 1964. The father-son duo co-run the year-round wholesale operation, Holland Greenhouses, alongside the festival.
During the late winter/early spring, Jansen Jr.’s sister, wife and two sons get involved around the farm in what Jansen Jr. described as an “all hands on deck” situation as they gear up for tulip season. By April, after the tulips have made good use of New Jersey’s Netherlands-esque climate with hot summers and cold winters, the beauties begin their full bloom. When visitors arrive at the festival, they’ll be able to see and pick all kinds of varieties — triumph and fringed, parrot and lily-flowered — and they’ll feel like they’re on the other side of the Atlantic.
“It’s a breathtaking experience that we try to showcase using photos and videos, but you really have to see it to believe it,” Marini said.
Around 30 food trucks will be on-site during weekends throughout the 2023 Tulip Festival. Photo courtesy of Holland Ridge Farms
This cultural immersion extends beyond the blooms into almost every aspect of the operation as well. Step into the museum, and you’ll find 100- and 200-year-old tools and equipment handed down from friends of the family. Stop by the food trucks to feast on Holland delights, like poffertjes (pancakes) and stroopwafel. There’s even a display based on the Dutch tale, “Hans Brinker, or The Silver Skates,” which recreates one of the story’s iconic scenes. Don’t forget those supersized yellow clogs out in front of the field, too.
Of course, all the typical fan favorites will be back this year as well, from the feeding zoo to horse and carriage rides to hayride shuttles. For handicapped visitors, there will be a gator service that goes from the parking lot to the picnic tables and back. Many are excited about the return of weekday picnics, where you can bring your own food and nonalcoholic drinks. Eager picture-takers can hop on the Instagrammable bike and swing props or flaunt some freshly picked tulips in front of the new floral arches and doors to frame their perfect shot. Wherever you go on the farm, it’s sure to put a smile on your face.
“My dad and my mom always raised us to think, ‘It’s not what you can do for yourself, it’s what you can do for others,’ ” Jansen Jr. said. “We did this and saw all the people out there, and the joy on everybody’s face and the happiness that we feel from them is just so satisfying.”
The Dutch bicycles are a prime attraction for those looking to capture an Instagrammable moment at the farm. Photo courtesy of Holland Ridge Farms
Exciting Developments on the Horizon
While Jansen Jr. looks at the 2023 festival as another step toward becoming the selfie spot of the world, he has his eye on a bigger prize that may have the family farm clutching the title even more quickly. In June, they’ll be breaking ground on an authentic, Dutch windmill that will grind the farm’s grain via wind power. The 100-foot-tall, wooden structure will rest on the northern side of the property, becoming an unmistakable landmark along I-195 — and an iconic photo op for selfie lovers everywhere. The grand opening will happen in conjunction with the 2024 Tulip Festival, but visitors will be able to get a glimpse of construction during this year’s sunflower festival in the fall.
“This isn’t going to be a little windmill,” Jansen Jr. said.
In the meantime, mark your calendars for May 8 to enjoy an Asbury Fresh pop-up craft and farmers market, featuring 50 vendors and photo props. Also in the works are a weekend petting zoo, movie nights and food truck festivals. Facility tours and even a vineyard are on the wishlist as well.
For more information on tickets, U-pick prices, hours of operation and other details, visit hollandridgefarms.com.
When you come and soak in this dazzling display of spring, don’t forget you can only find it … Just in Jersey.
Hunter Hulbert is the Just in Jersey features writer for Jersey’s Best magazine. To read more stories like this, click here.
