Interest in the District of Columbia’s first Tulip Day event was so strong, the signup website crashed as tickets sold out.
The colorful day is scheduled to run from 11:15 a.m. to 4:15 p.m. on March 15.
People who signed up can go to the National Mall and pick as many as 10 tulips from a selection of over 150,000.
The signup for tickets began at 8 a.m. Monday, according to Maryland’s WDVM-TV, but it sold out quickly.
Only 12,500 tickets were available and sold out by 9:30 a.m. Monday, Tulip Day spokeswoman Courtney Winter told Washington’s WRC-TV.
A message on the event’s website explains that “due to the enormous influx of people, both the website and the ticketing system were overloaded several times.”
Attendees who managed to get tickets will be able to select from orange, pink, red, white and yellow tulips. The bulbs were sent to the U.S. from Europe and grew into full flowering at sites in Virginia and New Jersey.
The event, put on by the embassy of the Netherlands and the Dutch flower growers’ trade association Royal Anthos, will also feature a display honoring America’s upcoming 250th birthday.
• Brad Matthews can be reached at bmatthews@washingtontimes.com.
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