What to Know
- The Flower Fields at Carlsbad Ranch
- $23 adult (other ticketing tiers are available); tickets go on sale on Jan. 16, 2024; "Spring Into Color" is this year's theme
- March 1 through Mother's Day; peak bloom often happens around mid-April, though each season is a bit different
Icy blasts are icing up sizable swaths of the United States as we reach the mid-point of January 2024, but things are taking a springier spin in Southern California.
True, our days are still brisk and nights remain chilly around the region. But one of the state's showiest symbols of the coming warmer weather is coming into view rather quickly.
We're talking about The Flower Fields at Carlsbad Ranch, and while the opening day remains the same — it is always March 1, each year — we do have an early chance to "spring" for tickets, months in advance.
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Admission to the eye-popping attraction goes on sale on Tuesday, Jan. 16.
Weekends are always busy around the bloom-packed spot, which rambles over dozens of hilly, ocean-close acres about 45 minutes north of San Diego.
Well, the fields aren't right up against the sand, but you can spy the Pacific in the distance from points around the fields, adding to the destination's flower-meets-foam allure.
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And April? That can also be pretty full, people-wise, thanks to the fact that the cultivated flowers often reach their peak bloom around the middle-to-middle-end-ish of the month.
Mother's Day also fills up at The Flower Fields, given the glad-hearted go-out nature of the occasion. Also, the second Sunday in May is the final day to spy the Giant Tecolote Ranunculus in pretty profusion.
That's the sizable and lush flower ethereally associated with the scenic spot, but there are other blossoms to admire, like the popular spread of sunflowers and the fragrant sweet peas that line a wander-ready maze.
"The color that The Flower Fields brings each spring extends far beyond our rows of rainbow ranunculus," says Fred Clarke, general manager of The Flower Fields at Carlsbad Ranch.
"From the brightly painted wagons that bring visitors into the fields, to vendors serving eye-catching lemonade and ice-cream dipped in sprinkles to the blueberry picking, Sea of Sunflowers and various gardens, color truly abounds at every turn."
An adult ticket to The Flower Fields is $23, but there are other ticketing tiers; check them out, and plan your airy adventure, by roaming this site now.
