Haven't you missed it? Meeting in person with like-minded professionals from the industry that we all love so much? This is an overview of where to go, plus what you can expect to see and do in the first week of November. This is all you need to know about the Horti Week.
What is the Horti Week?
The Horti Week is a collective name of all that is happening in the Dutch horticultural industry in the first week of November. A long long time ago there was one exhibition in the building of the Aalsmeer Flower Auction. Nowadays there are three flower exhibitions, plenty of in-house shows, and one online trade fair. Does a flower professional need more reasons to come to the Netherlands?
Trade Fair Aalsmeer
Trade Fair Aalsmeer is also commonly known as the FloraHolland Trade Fair, of FHTF. The around 750 exhibitors are mainly Dutch, but the visitors come from all over the world to see the latest developments in flowers, plants, and product concepts. This is a good place to maintain or expand your network within the flower industry, be updated on the latest innovations, make direct deals for the coming seasons, or simply indulge yourself in the atmosphere of the floral world coming together again.
Here is a video impression of the last edition of the Aalsmeer Trade Fair in 2019: Venue address: Royal FloraHolland Legmeerdijk 313, 1431 GB Aalsmeer, Netherlands Opening hours: Wednesday 3 November: 10.00 - 17.00 Thursday 4 November: 10.00 - 17.00 Friday 5 November: 10.00 - 15.00 COVID-19 restrictions: For access to the exhibition floor, you must be able to show the Corona admission ticket with a valid ID, and your proof of vaccination, valid negative COVID test (maximum validity 24 hours), or valid proof of recovery. This exhibition has time slots that you need to pre-order when applying for your ticket online. Registration required: Yes Attending the Aalsmeer Trade Fair as a visitor is free of charge, but you will need to register online to obtain an entry ticket. Click here to go to the registration form.
International Floriculture Trade Fair (IFTF)
IFTF is truly an international fair. Next to the Dutch exhibitors, the organization welcomes more than 130 participants from all over the world. For instance from Italy, France, Denmark, Ecuador, Colombia, Kenya, China, and Japan. Expect to see the latest from renowned breeders and growers. Especially the number of international attendees is important for this 11th edition of this exhibition. It is a clear sign that travel restrictions are easing quickly, giving food to the expectation that this year's edition might well become an even better one than already expected. Don't forget to visit Thursd at IFTF in booth C3.08!
Venue address: Expo Haarlemmermeer Stelling 1, 2141 SB Vijfhuizen, Vijfhuizen, Netherlands Opening hours: Wednesday 3 November: 10.00 - 19.00 Thursday 4 November: 10.00 - 19.00 Friday 5 November: 10.00 - 17.00 COVID-19 restrictions: For access to the exhibition floor, you must be able to show your admission ticket with a valid ID, and your proof of vaccination, valid negative COVID test (maximum validity 24 hours), or valid proof of recovery. You can show an (EU) Digital COVID Certificate (DCC), or a valid paper version (not a yellow vaccination booklet!) from your country (English/Dutch). Statement of health: At the entrance, we will ask you five health questions. This exhibition has no specific time slots. Registration required: Yes Attending the IFTF as a visitor is free of charge, but you will need to register online to obtain an entry ticket.
In-house-Shows
With everyone in the floriculture business opening up again, there will be plenty of in-house shows and meet & greet events again this year to catch up with what's going on at breeders, growers, and traders. So, where's the party? If you did not get a personal invitation from your Dutch supplier, you might check for yourself if it is worthwhile visiting to follow the developments of your favorite suppliers. 
Some venue addresses for in-house shows: - Waterdrinker GTC (Green Trade Days), Sierteeltstraat 129, 1431 GM Aalsmeer, Netherlands. Further info and opening hours here. - Interplant Roses House Show, Hugo de Vriesweg 4a, 3481 JA Harmelen, Netherlands. Further info and opening hours here. - Dümmen Orange Experience Week - Open House, Hoofdweg 119, 1424 PE De Kwakel, Netherlands. Next to their booth at the Aalsmeer Trade Fair, you are welcome in their nearby facilities in De Kwakel. From Tuesday 1 to Thursday 4 November doors are open from 9:00 am to 6:00 pm. Further info here. - De Ruiter will not be at the IFTF in Vijfhuizen this year. However, they have decided to receive and celebrate their business relations at a House Show in Amstelveen. The Open Days are from Monday 1 to Friday 5 November, every day from 9:00 am to 6:00 pm and there are many cut roses on display from, of course, the European, African, and South American regions. Their pot rose collection and rose hips will not be missing. Please inform De Ruiter of your visit in advance. Further info here.
Thursd Online Trade Fair (TOTF)
The Thursd Online Trade Fair (TOTF) is an online-only fair. From the very first edition, it has become apparent that large breeders, growers, and floriculture-related companies increasingly want to have more and a better online presence. This trend had already started before the corona pandemic and is only reinforced by the new way of networking that now happens largely online. Thursd expects to present a large number of great names again. TOTF2021 will be a fall edition, and is, therefore, an ideal place for suppliers of seasonal products. An additional advantage of an online fair is that it is not broken down after three days; all web pages remain findable on Thursd, also after the TOTF, and are thus well indexed by Google. Thursd's editors pay a lot of attention to a perfect SEO on every page. There are also options for extra publicity in the Thursd newsletters and on the social channels. 
Venue address: Worldwide access via www.thursd.com. Opening hours: At the Thursd homepage from Thursday 28 October until Sunday 7 November After this, the online booths will be forever findable on the Thursd platform. COVID-19 restrictions: This is an online event, so no COVID restrictions are necessary. Registration required: No The whole world has free entrance to TOTF.
Enjoy your Horti Week!
