OVERVIEW:  Strong graphic compositions complimented by blazes of color will be a prominent feature of this trip. We’ll make the best of the early and late light at the best spots, and take in area highlights during the day. ‘Tulipomania’ was a term given to the craze over Tulips in Holland during the period from 1634-37. We now invite you to invest in your own colorful ‘Tulipomania’ via some striking and graphically strong photography of the Tulip fields that light up the Skagit Valley, Washington each April. In addition to the Tulip bonanza you’ll have the opportunity to photograph Whidbey Island and the Seattle skyline at dusk.

TRAVEL TO THE GATEWAY AIRPORT
o It is recommended that clients arrive a day early to be fresh for the trip, and to also counteract possible flight delays.
o Early arrival also enables you to explore the gateway city should you wish to do so.
o When booking flights, add a day for overnight travel or two days if also crossing the Pacific Ocean/International Dateline.
o The last day of the trip is the date you should arrange your flight home unless you plan to stay on. Thank you!

DAY 1  |  To WASHINGTON STATE
Your midday flight into Seattle, Washington will be met by John, and on-route to La Connor, we’ll detour into Seattle for a photo-walk around the Pike Street Market which was featured in the movie ‘Sleepless in Seattle’. On north for our first look at the vibrant swaths of color beyond the Skagit River.
FIDALGO ISLAND, 3 nights

DAYS 2 and 3  |  TULIP FESTIVAL
During the next two days we'll explore the many Skagit valley lanes for those striking images with good ‘compositional strength’.  Besides the Tulips . . . Daffodils and hopefully Iris’s will be present, though please note that all the blooms will be at the mercy of creation’s timetable. We’ll obviously pursue plenty of macro images, but for landscapes you’ll be able to include various old barns, and the Cascade mountain range to the east in your viewfinders.  We’ll also be on the look-out for workers out in the fields, who will afford us some ‘human interest’ perspectives as we add to our array of impressions of the region. We'll also spend time in the tulip fields of Tulip town and Roozengaarde, the region's largest tulip growers. Added to this, we’ll break away to photograph Anacortes and Whidbey island, the latter including Deception Pass State Park. The Skagit Valley Tulip Festival is the photographer’s limitless palette of color, and you’re sure to return home with images beyond your expectations . . . guaranteed.

DAY 4  |  The TULIP FESTIVAL and SEATTLE
We’ll ‘mop-up’ our photography at the Tulip Festival this morning with a last early start for the warm light as it falls upon the dormant sentinels of a million flowers. You’d have to go to Holland to match the array in Skagit Valley. After breakfast we’ll set off south down Whidbey Island for photography at Fort Casey where the Admiralty Head lighthouse stands. Then to quaint Langley prior to a ferry ride to Mukilteo, and on south to Seattle. We’ll check into our hotel, and following dinner we'll shoot Seattle’s skyline at twilight.
SEATTLE, 1 night

DAY 5  |  Flights home
Late morning flights are recommended from Sea-Tac airport. Free transport is available to those folk continuing on to my Mendocino Coast, California. We will of course make photography stops along the way.

PHOTOGRAPHY TOUR FEES

TRIP COST:  $1,667 per person double occupancy

SINGLE ROOM SUPPLEMENT: 14% of the trip cost

SMALL GROUP SUPPLEMENT:
For groups of 3 only: Add 10% of the trip cost above.
For 1 and 2-person ‘groups’ only, the rate is negotiable.

INCLUDED IN THE TRIP COST: The following items are included in the trip cost: personalized photography instruction throughout the trip by John; all accommodations; all breakfasts; on-vehicle snacks and bottled water; all ground transportation; airport transfers on the first and last days of the trip only; entrance fees for sites and activities listed below under ‘Admissions’; and following the trip, field notes describing the time, place and subject of each photo stop, and a disc containing images of clients 'in action' on the trip.

NOT INCLUDED IN THE TRIP COST: The costs for these items are the responsibility of each participant: airfare; travel costs between your home and the gateway airport and return; any transportation or travel costs incurred prior to or after the tour’s inclusive dates; pre-tour and/or post-tour accommodation; lunches and dinners; alcoholic beverages; entrance fees or costs related to optional sites or activities not included in the itinerary or a part of the trip; excess baggage charges; medical costs; personal items; incidental charges incurred at our accommodations such as internet access, phone calls or laundry; baggage and/or travel insurance; passport or visa expenses; and airport departure taxes.

ADMISSIONS: Entry into Tulip town and Roozengaarde is include in the trip fees.

ENROLLMENT