Post Overview: Helpful Guide to the Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival (the Famous Tulip Festival in Oregon).
If you dream of frolicking through never-ending fields of tulips, I’m about to show you why you can’t afford to miss the ultimate tulip festival in Oregon — the Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival in Woodburn.
The Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival is a beloved tradition for locals and out-of-town visitors alike. Every year, like clockwork, I take a scenic 45-minute drive from Portland and arrive at the doorstep of this beautiful farm, bursting with anticipation.
Over the years, I’ve visited the famous tulip farm in Oregon 5+ times and thought it’d be helpful to cover some tips for visiting the Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival this year. Considering some of the rules/guidelines have changed from previous years, so let’s get to it!
Visiting the Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival
(Click here for the table of contents)
Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival Admission
Good to Know: Tickets to the Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival are only available online and MUST be purchased in advance. To streamline the process, tickets are no longer being sold at the farm.
Admission packages listed below:
- Full Season Pass ($65 + $5 processing fee). Unlimited visits for the duration of the festival, may arrive one hour before sunrise and one hour after sunset. This pass works well for professional photographers that want to get photos of the festival during the best light of day and without the crowds.
- Drone upgrade available for an additional fee.
- Day Pass (Per Person) ($15 weekdays/$20 weekends). One day access for an individual, tickets required for anyone older than 12 years.
- Note: You cannot arrive an hour before sunrise with this ticket, therefore you cannot take sunrise photos.
- Wine Tour ($70 per person). Enjoy the Wooden Shoe vineyard tour with an estate wine tasting and food pairings. Available for guests aged 21+.
Photographer’s Tip: If you plan to visit the tulip fields for sunrise or sunset, you must purchase the Full Season Pass, as the day pass doesn’t admit folks until after sunrise.
Best Time to Visit the Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival
To make the most of your visit, try to visit the Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival during peak bloom. Exact peak bloom varies from year to year, but, generally speaking, mid-April to late April is a safe bet. Check the festival’s bloom status for current pictures of tulips.
Best time of day to visit the Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival: Early morning is by far the best time for visiting the tulip farm in Oregon before the crowds swarm in. The farm gets crowded really fast!
History of the Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm
The Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm was opened in 1950 by two local farmers, Ross and Dorothy Iverson. The couple looked for ways to expand the farm to get their six kids through college. They started growing tulips in 1974 and officially started the Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival in 1983. As of today, the farm boasts 40 acres of tulips for visitors to enjoy.
Things to Know Before Visiting the Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm in Oregon
Bring rain boots! The tulip festival is open rain or shine, so bring your boots because the fields get muddy! These are my go-to rain boots.
To avoid crowds, go early in the day. By midday, the tulip fields are flooded with visitors. If you want some reprieve from crowds, sunrise is a great time to come. It’s mostly photographers at that time.
During peak bloom the Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival gets busy. So busy, in fact, that the line leading to the parking lot was 3 miles long last year. I urge you to arrive as close to sunrise as possible, and to turn a blind eye to the extra activities offered and head straight to the tulip fields after parking your car.
The fields start to fill around 8am and you’ll be hard-pressed to find a corner to yourself because this farm is lovely and everyone wants to enjoy it.
Pick up a souvenir on your way out. Tulip bulbs and fresh cut flowers are available for sale from the Tulip Market located in the middle of the main blue building.
Hot Air Balloons at the Oregon Tulip Farm
There’s no guarantee that hot air balloons will be out while you’re visiting the Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival because they are weather-dependent. The farm confirms hot air balloons on their Facebook page, which they update daily.
And if you’re wondering – yes, the hot air balloons at the tulip festival most definitely live up to the hype. Seeing them is always a highlight for us.
If you’d like to fly in a hot air balloon while visiting the Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival in Oregon, you can contact that Hot Air Balloon Hotline at 503-877-4693.
Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival FAQs
Does this Oregon tulip farm close when it rains?
- No, the Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm is open rain or shine. Some weather dependent activities (mostly kid’s events) may close if it rains, but the tulip fields remain open.
Are dogs allowed?
- Yes, dogs are allowed in the tulip fields.
Can I show up for sunrise/sunset?
- If you want to visit the Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm for sunrise, you must purchase the Season Pass because it allows entry one hour before sunrise and one hour after sunset.
Can I buy food at the festival?
- Food vendors are out every day, but the weekends offer more vendors/food options. Here’s the lineup from 2024.
- Deliciosa Donuts: Daily
- Gimme Some Sugar: Daily
- The Feedshack: Thursday-Monday
- Fat Schlag’s: Daily
- Hotshot Bar-B-Q: Daily
- Smith Rock Coffee: Friday-Tuesday
Is it okay to bring your own food to this Oregon tulip farm?
- Yes, guests are welcome to bring food to the tulip festival and picnic tables are provided.
Things to Do at the Famous Tulip Farm in Oregon
Daily Activities
- For kids: take the cow train around the tulip fields, weather dependent.
- Tulip Tour Train around the tulip field, weather dependent.
- Enjoy a glass of wine at Wooden Shoe Vineyards Tasting Room.
Weekend activities
- Wooden Shoe Making Demonstration
- Steam Tractor Demonstration – weather dependent
- Local Balloon Artist
- Carnival rides for kids (max 80 lbs.) range between $3-$7, but are weather dependent.
Visiting the Famous Tulip Festival in Oregon (Post Overview)
We eagerly await this famous Oregon tulip farm festival every year. There’s no better way to kick off the (long awaited) sunnier season than by enjoying never-ending fields of tulips!
Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm is downright lovely and such a great way to spend half a day with family and friends. It’s also fun to check out the Woodburn Outlet Mall just a few miles away.
I hope you enjoy your time at the lovely tulip fields in Oregon! I hear that Amsterdam is known for their tulip fields as well. How lovely would that be. Meet you there next year?
Map of the Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival
Until next time,
Antonina
fantastisch super kaum zu glauben
vielen Dank!
Thank you for posting this! I’ve been trying to find out where this place is. Do you know if there are doing the tulip festival this year even with COVID? Thanks again!
They are open for the 2021, until May 2nd. You must buy tickets online from their website. No purchases allowed at gate. They are limiting the amount of people. You must wear a mask.