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Where to go and when to experience seasonal nature at its best

seasonal-nature-seasonality-in-tourism-autumn-seasons-nature

Nature is often too beautiful words, but the times it’s especially stunning tend to be when it’s showing off the seasons. Even if you’re not a fan of winter, you have to admit frosty spider webs and snow-capped mountains are gorgeous right? If you’re in a country like Australia where the change in season isn’t too noticeable, you’ll long for yellow autumn leaves. Here are the best places around the world to experience seasonal nature at it’s finest (and get an epic shot for the ‘Gram).

Bluebell Season

In spring it’s worth heading out to some wooded areas in the UK because you’ll likely to be treated to carpets of sweet bluebells under the trees. Best spotted at the end of the flowering season in April or May, get in quick because they don’t last long!

lake-district-uk-bluebells - one of the best reasons to do a wellness retreat in the uk

Tulip Season

From mid March to mid May fields in Holland become a bloom of colour as the tulips wake up from their winter naps. While you can find fields of tulips all over, one of the best places to see them is Keukenhof in Lisse, where more than 7 million flower bulbs are flowering.

lisse-netherlands-tulips

Cherry Blossom Season

Cherry blossom, or Sakura season as it’s known in Japan, is one of the most stunning displays of nature anywhere in my opinion. Endless seas of pink and white blooms on delicate branches, it’s just gorgeous! The season is closely tracked in Japan because it is such a big draw for travellers, but aim for Spring and you’ll see some. In fact here are the best places to see them.

osaka-japan-cherry-blossom

Sunflower Season

Bright yellow fields of happy sunflowers; it must be summer! When the weather gets hotter, the sunflowers come out in droves and the best part is you can find fields of sunflowers all across the world! From Thailand, to the USA, and even Australia, just head to the destinations in summer and you’ll be treated to this joyous sight.

sunflower-field

Rainbow River

Caño Cristales, AKA the River of Five Colours, is a natural phenomenon in Colombia that results in a patch of the Guayabero River looking like a rainbow. From the end of summer (July in Colombia) until November, the unique ecosystem reacts with the plants at the bottom of the river to turn it green, blue, black, red and yellow.

Red algae in a seasonal river in the amazon rainforest.

Grüner See

See this lush looking lake? You can only see it in summer! Austria’s Green Lake or Grüner See, disappears every winter, revealing a hiking trail, but in summer when the snow melts it fills up and becomes an underwater land of magic! You can find out more about it right here if you’re as obsessed with it as we are.

green-lake-austria

Koyo/Momijigari Season

Japan brings a lot of seasonal goodies and if you thought the cherry blossoms were pretty, wait until you see the landscapes in autumn. Autumn (AKA Fall) in Japan means reds, oranges and yellows as the seasonal Japanese maple trees prepare to shed their leaves for winter. It looks like it’s on fire right?!

autumn-japan

Maple Leaves

Japan does autumn well, but it’s up against tough competition with Canada and the USA. Iconic autumn images are people jumping into giant piles of fallen orange leaves, pumpkins and harvested wheat. You can find all of that on every corner in Fall in America and Canada!

autumn-canada

Seal season

We love flowers and trees, but what about the animals! In autumn parts of England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland become home to the cutest seal colonies as they migrate for the changing seasons. Their friendly little faces mean you know winter is coming!

seals-wales

Lavender Season

A lot of perfumes come from France and that’s because they have the right climate for growing different flower varieties year round. In winter, especially Aix-en-Provence, you’ll be able to get your new Facebook profile pic in front of the jaw-dropping fields of purple lavender.

lavender-france

Northern Lights

Winter is of course the perfect time to go Northern Light hunting! Head to Scandinavia, Canada and Iceland, and don’t forget your camera! We’ve written an extensive guide to spotting Aurora Borealis here if it’s the top of your bucket list.

northern-lights

Plitvice National Park

The blue green lakes of Plitvice National Park in Croatia are a hot spot in summer, but in winter they are totally transformed from tranquil pools into frosty, frozen bodies of water. The colour is completely different and it’s got such a different feel to it, trust us, you’ll love it just as much. If you’re into science, read about how Plitvice is formed here.

plitvice-lakes-croatia-winter