Visit to the Netherlands is incomplete without Keukenhof Gardens. It is the most popular place among tourists, and you really have to plan ahead if you want to visit this place. Below are the tips that would help your visit.

1. Consider strollers for children & wheelchair for senior citizens

Keukenhof, also known as the Garden of Europe, is one of the world’s largest flower gardens. It is so large, it provides you with map for you to plan your visit. Since we have a senior citizen without wheelchair (it’s fully booked!), we need to cut our journey short. It’s still beautiful, though!

2. Book your ticket & pay your parking online

We’re serious when we said it’s popular among tourists. Thank God we bought everything online! The only downside was that we travelled by car, and the que was SUPER LONG during exit. It was about 2 hours getting out of the car park!!!

Alternatively, you may consider getting to Keukenhof by bus. It is accessible by bus from train stations of Haarlem, Leiden & Schiphol.

3. Plan your trip between mid-March to mid-May

Keukenhof is open annually between these period. We did not do our research well back in 2015, where we paid Netherlands a visit during September. Lesson learnt, we planned our trip on April for the year 2018!

Better still, plan your visit there during the Flower Parade (which we missed). Surely a whole lot fun!

4. Expect variety of gardens, not long field of tulips

The Keukenhof features a variety of different gardens and garden styles. The map provided will show you exactly the location of each garden, so plan your walking tour beforehand!

However, it doesn’t contain the long fields of tulips many visitors expect. We know a lot of tourists expected this, because we were one of them. Ha ha!

There are tulips fields outside the Garden (mostly privately owned). There are even some that can be seen from the Garden, though the view is quite far. These fields may have restricted access and are not included as part of the Keukenhof ticket.

5. Best place to picnic!

Keukenhof Gardens has a lot of stalls, but just imagine the sea of people swarming the area! Plus, it is quite limited choices for us Muslims, so we decided to picnic. There are a lot of free space where we can sit around with our family and enjoy our food!

Enjoy your Keukenhof visit!

Planning a family trip in Netherlands? Head over to Giethoorn! It’s a small scenic village in Netherlands with plenty of activities for the whole family. Our age groups ranges from 1-year-old to 69-year-old, so it is indeed great for everyone!

However, if you do plan to enjoy all the beautiful sceneries, we would highly suggest you to bring strollers for the the little ones, and wheelchair for the senior citizens who are easily tired / legs problem. It’s because the scenic walking route is quite far for them.

While you’re there, rent a boat trip for the whole family to enjoy! Our boat were quite big to fit everyone, and Kak Fay was really brave to be the captain. Well done!

Just remember these boats don’t have breaks, especially the big ones are hard to stop. So just ignore those people who stares at your big boat that happens to bump everywhere, and enjoy the fun!

Planning for a short trip to Brussels and Bruges? Here are what we would recommend for a 2 days 1 night trip!

1. Frederick Blondeel

We know, many Malaysians would’ve visited Godiva and the likes, but Frederick Blondeel is said to serve one of the best hot chocolates in town!

When we were there, we saw the long queue for the ice cream, so we decided to try the ice cream instead. They were awesome!

Aydeen, however, did not know how to “taste” the ice cream, so he decided to eat the whole ice cream and cried (or should we say scream) when it’s finished. Oh well.

2. La Grande Place

This is a must-visit place in Brussels! La Grande Place is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Here, you may find the Town Hall and many souvenir & collectible shops, including Hard Rock cafe & Starbucks (yes, we are Starbucks collectors).

3. Minnewater

Sadly, this is the place that we were not able to visit, due to time constraint. But then again, there are loads of canals in Bruges (including our AirBnB stay) , so we’re not missing much 🙂

What makes Minnewater special is the story behind it. Minnewater is also known as the Lake of Love. The nickname comes from a story of a girl name Minna who died trying to escape from an arranged marriage into the arms of her lover Stromberg. Local legend says that lovers who cross the lake’s bridge will experience eternal love.

We were planning to try our luck on eternal love there. He he. Just kidding. Eternal love is gained by your deeds & efforts, not by visiting places, eh? 🙂

4. The Markt Square

This is the place to be in Bruges! The Markt Square is full of history. The most striking building is without any doubt, the Belfry. If you would like to know about the history of Bruges, you may also visit the Historium!

5. Try the famous Belgian Fries and Mussels!

Belgium is famous for its Belgian fries (they even have a museum for it) and mussels. While you’re there, why not head over to any restaurant or cafes, and try these out? You will definitely love them! 🙂

Hope these recommendations will ease your planning. Have fun on your short Brussels and Bruges trip!

Renting a car is one of the best options to consider in Europe, especially if you are travelling with a baby or toddler, and to multiple countries.

For one, it is cheaper, if you are travelling in a group, and can share out the expenses.

Secondly, cheap travels such as busses & coaches sometimes require you to bring your own car seat, which is quite a hassle to bring in a 13-hour flight with a 1-year old toddler.

Here are the tips for renting car in Europe, especially for Malaysians!

1. Malaysian Driving License Vs International Driving License

Our Malaysian Driving License are usually accepted. However, it’s best to do a research on the countries you’ll be driving beforehand. For instance, France required an International Driving License issued by JPJ Malaysia.

The International Driving License is also very easy to apply if you already have a Malaysian Driving License. Just go to the nearest JPJ & say that we need an international driving license. There will be a fee paid. You will usually get your international driving license within the same day.

2. Book Your Car & Car Insurance Online Through Car Rental Brokers

For one, it is always save time & money to book your car online. You may find various options, and may even compare the costs between car rental companies. If you rent a car through car rental brokers, the choice is even wider!

Many car rental brokers offer insurance to be bought together with the car rental. It is highly advisable to get the fully-covered insurance, as we will never know what will happen (and how much expenses to be incurred) in rainy days. However, the choice is all yours!

Insurance that is bought online are said to be cheaper than those bought at the car rental company’s counter, so it may save your pennies!

You will need to declare if you plan to drive outside the car rental’s country.

If you plan to pick up and drop off the rented car at different locations, there will be an extra charge called “one way fee”, which differs between companies. This needs even more research and comparisons.

If you pick up or drop off your rented car at airports, there are usually “airport charge”.

However, do take note that there will be a few things that need to be paid locally, such as deposits and infant car seats. Again, the charges differs between companies, so do your research thoroughly!

Also, please do read all the fine prints. Certain companies have “miles restrictions “, while others don’t!

It is required to receive & return the rented car with full tank.

3. Driver’s Credit Card

Drivers, please DO NOT LEAVE YOUR CREDIT CARD AT HOME!

It is key requirement that drivers bring their credit card together for deposits and other things that need to be paid locally.

4. Driving Opposite Side of the Road

Be prepared to drive on the left side of the road in countries such as Netherlands, Belgium & France, while driving on the right sight of the road in the UK! Flexibility is the key to drive in Europe.

5. Online & Offline Maps & Address

In an era of Waze, Google, pocket Wi-Fi and the likes, always expect the unexpected. Signal loss and data problem are real, people!

If it happens to u, and you don’t have an offline map, relax. Stop somewhere nearby and look for any local internet. Or just kill time while waiting for your pocket Wi-Fi to refresh quota. Travel needs to be stress-free!

Hope these tips will help you to plan your European road trip wisely! 🙂