One of the most popular spots in SoCal during Springtime is The Flower Fields at Carlsbad, CA. You do not want to miss out on seeing these massive fields of colorful flowers. It is an amazing sight to see! The Flower Fields are only open March 1st through May 8th this year and is by reservation only.
Parking at The Flower Fields is free. We liked entering from the back south entrance. You would park right in front of the American Flag of Flowers and it’s less crowded. Walking in from here helps you to not miss any attractions since you can just journey towards the large fields and see everything along the way there and back. If you are here with young kids, keep in mind that is a long walk to reach the big, blooming fields at the end. You might want to make sure the little ones have energy for the fields first and see the smaller attractions on the way back. To make it easier, you can hop on the Tractor Wagon ride as your first activity to get a lift to see the fields. If you have extra time, you can walk along the very top row of the fields. It gives you a good perspective of the rows of colorful flowers and you can also see a glimpse of the ocean at the same time!
At the fields, there are photo op spots set up for you to be right in the heart of the flowers to take a lovely picture with the family. You really can’t avoid beautiful pictures with the blooming flowers everywhere.
For those of you who want to know what type of flower this is, it is the “Ranunculus”. Isn’t it beautiful!? The flower itself looks like a rose in some angles, (although it’s not) and the colors are so vibrant. While you’re at the Flower Fields, flower picking is not allowed (You might need to give your kids a heads up.), but these flowers can be purchased in pots at the gift store on your way out.
There are a couple of great spots to visit at The Flower Fields that we recommend on your walk back to the parking lot.
Next to the Ranunculus Fields, you can make a quick swing into the Cymbidium Orchid Greenhouse to see the beautiful Orchids.
After visiting the Orchids, definitely stop by the Sweet Pea Maze.
We absolutely loved the Sweet Pea Maze! You can actually take a while to find your way out of it if you take the wrong turn. For fun, we split the family into two groups and took different paths at the beginning of the maze to see which group would come out first. We were laughing throughout our time there. It’s a great maze to explore while being among fragrant sweet pea blossoms.
You definitely don’t want to miss the clover boxes right outside the entrance of the Sweet Pea Maze. We found our first four-leaf clover there!
As you continue your path back to the entrance, you’ll see a picnic area. Right next to it is Santa’s Playground.
I would suggest visiting this playground last. It’s pretty fun and unique with all the wooden playhouses with slides. It’s totally cute and perfect for little kids. Your kids may not want to leave after they start playing here, so it would be good to see all the flower attractions first and leave this playground for the end.
Continuing on, you can find great photo spots at Don Miller’s Garden. Kids will enjoy running through the flower arches here and visiting the bird atriums on the side.
Another great spot to not miss is the Fountain Garden. It’s so beautiful here!
The closest exhibit to the south entrance parking lot is the Historical Poinsettia Greenhouse. This is a display that you can walk through and admire.
A note for the families visiting… Regarding food, there is pizza, ice cream, lemonade, popcorn, and strawberry treats sold inside The Flower Fields. Besides that, at we didn’t see any other food items that you can purchase (we may have missed some). We noticed from the two years visiting here that it’s hard for the kids to last through all the picture taking without losing their energy towards the end. You definitely don’t want to forget their favorite snacks and be prepared to be there for 3 hours.
For more information and tickets visit their website at www.theflowerfields.com.
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