Spring’s first few flowers give us hope for seasonal renewal, but it’s the super bloom that signals the world’s full-blown transition to warmth. Saturated fields of color and floral biodiversity explode, lifting spirits, triggering allergies and motivating petal-obsessed travelers.
As with fall, the seasonal shift catalyzes travelers eager to witness spring’s biological renewal. You’ve likely had your share of moisture this April, and now spring’s second wave of flowers is blooming around the hemisphere.
Flip through the gallery for the best destinations for marveling at flowers, and don’t forget to pack your allergy meds.
1. Carlsbad photo by MR MAO PICS, CC BY 2.0. 2. Hitachi Seaside Park photo by temaki, CC BY 2.0. 3. Joshua Tree photo by Robb Hannawacker. 4. 5. Texas hill country photo by Sandy Horvath-Dori, CC BY 2.0 5. Ecuador hoto by Wolfgang Kaehler/Getty 6. British Columbia photo by Shazron, CC BY 2.0 7. Tuscany photo by Caporali Stefano/Getty. 8.Yúnnán photo by Ronald Tagra, CC BY 2.0
Sarra Sedghi is the assistant editor of Paste’s food and science sections.
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Carlsbad, California: Carlsbad's famed Flower Fields at Carlsbad Ranch is comprised of rows of Tecolote ranunculus in a dazzling spectrum of shades. The fields are only open until mid-May, though, so go ahead and get those tickets.
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Hitachi Seaside Park, Japan:
Hitachi Seaside Park is best known for its wave of nemophila that blooms from late April to early May. Once you're through standing in a sea of flowers, make a detour to see the park's poppies and roses.
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Joshua Tree, California: Joshua Tree National Park is known for its distinctive and diverse plant life, and its springs do not disappoint. At this time of year, poppies, asters, desert sage, verbena and joshua tree hit their peak blooming season.
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Texas Hill Country: The arrival of warmer weather turns Texas blue as bluebonnets pop up around the state - petal peepers even stop to take pictures on the side of the road. A word of caution, though: picking the Texan wildflowers is illegal.
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Ecuador: With its year-round tropical climate and proximity to the Amazon Basin, Ecuador boasts an incredible biodiversity and grants travelers the opportunity to glimpse at rare flowers. In fact, much of the country's tourism is geared towards flower finds.
Photo by Wolfgang Kaehler/LightRocket via Getty Images
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British Columbia: Tulips may be most famously associated with the Netherlands, but you can find huge clusters of these bulbed beauties without having to cross the Atlantic. In addition to flowers, a number of tulip festivals pop up around the province in April and May.
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Tuscany, Italy: Tuscany is associated with a lot of things - food, wine, Renaissance art and romantic comedies - but it's also one of the world's best spots to see sunflowers. Tuscany, Umbria and Le Marche's sunflowers typically bloom in July and August, although other regions bloom as early as May.
Photo by: Caporali Stefano/AGF/UIG via Getty Images
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Yúnnán Province, China: China's Yúnnán province is a leader in Southeast Asia's flower industry, and it's easy to see why - the area has some of the greatest biodiversity in the Northern Hemisphere. Perhaps the most iconic of these plants is Luoping's canola flower fields that draw hordes of enthusiasts every spring.