Valley of Daffodils

On a flat meadow near Khust, at only about two hundred metres above sea level, narcissus poeticus grows wild in enormous numbers and flowers for a week or two in early May. The species normally belongs to mountain meadows, and this population is a relic left behind as the climate warmed, surviving because the ground stays cold and wet. The meadow, some 256 hectares at Kireshi, is protected as part of the Carpathian Biosphere Reserve, with boardwalks across it.

What you'll find

• The flowering - millions of wild narcissus across the meadow in early May.
• The relic population - a mountain species surviving at two hundred metres.
• The boardwalks - raised paths keeping visitors off the flowering ground.
• The wet meadow - the boggy conditions that let the population survive.

When to go

Early May is the flowering and the only time to come; the window is a week or two and the date moves with the spring. Outside it the meadow is ordinary grass. Weekends during the bloom are extremely crowded.

What to expect

The flowering window is short and easy to miss by a week. Crowds during the bloom are heavy. The meadow has shrunk considerably from drainage over the last century.

Nearby

Khust is a few kilometres away, and Iza is nearby.

Key facts