The name Keukenhof literally means kitchen garden, and in the fifteenth century, that is exactly what it was. The land belonged to Slot Teylingen, a castle whose most noted resident was Countess Jacoba van Beieren, who lived from 1401 to 1436. She used the grounds as a source of game, fruit, and vegetables for her table. In 1638, the estate was purchased by Adriaen Maertensz Block, a captain and governor of the Dutch East India Company, who constructed a large manor house he named Keukenhof, now known as Castle Keukenhof. By 1857, the estate had passed to Baron and Baroness Van Pallandt, who hired landscape architects Jan David Zocher and his son Louis Paul Zocher to redesign the grounds. The Zochers had already designed Amsterdam's famous Vondelpark, and they brought the same English landscape style to Keukenhof, creating the parkland that still forms the foundation of today's gardens.

The transformation from private estate to public phenomenon began in 1949, when a consortium of bulb growers and flower exporters recognized an opportunity. The Dutch flower industry needed a showcase, a place where international buyers could see the quality and variety of Dutch bulbs in full bloom. Keukenhof was the answer. The gardens opened to the public in 1950 and drew 200,000 visitors in their first year. Today, over 100 growers donate bulbs to the park, which covers a substantial expanse in the Dune and Bulb Region between Haarlem and Leiden. While tulips are the main attraction, the gardens also feature hyacinths, daffodils, lilies, roses, carnations, and irises. The park operates without government subsidies, generating its revenue from ticket sales and on-site dining. In 2019, that revenue reached 25 million euros.

Planting begins in early October and finishes around December 5, just in time for Sinterklaas. The gardeners' task is not simply to create beauty but to engineer it for maximum duration. Three bulbs planted at each location, at different depths, ensure continuous bloom throughout the eight-week opening from mid-March to mid-May. The shallowest bulb flowers first, lasting about three weeks before giving way to the second layer, then the third. Flowerbeds are synchronized to different bulb varieties, each with its own flowering schedule. The result is a living calendar, changing week by week, with peak viewing typically arriving near mid-April depending on the weather. Beyond the tulip displays, visitors find an English landscape garden with winding paths and surprise vistas, a walled historical garden featuring archival varieties, a Nature Garden combining shrubs and perennials with bulbs, and a Japanese Country Garden in a non-traditional natural style.

In 2019, 1.5 million people visited Keukenhof, equivalent to 26,000 visitors per day during its brief opening window. By comparison, the Rijksmuseum receives about 8,000 daily visitors and the Efteling amusement park about 14,000. Only 20 percent of Keukenhof's visitors are Dutch. The rest come from around the world, with Germany, the United Kingdom, and Belgium accounting for about 40 percent. American visitors make up 10 percent, and Chinese tourists another 8 percent, both groups growing in recent years. Castle Keukenhof itself hosts classical music concerts and festivals throughout the year, including Castlefest, the Ladies Winternight, and a Christmas Fair. The 2020 season was canceled entirely due to the COVID-19 pandemic, costing an estimated 25 million dollars in lost revenue, a reminder of how dependent the gardens are on that eight-week window when the world comes to see the flowers.