Norfolk Hospice Tapping House's tulip fields fundraiser near Sandringham welcomes thousands of visitors from all over country

Thousands of visitors from all over the country have taken in the sight of 6.3million brightly coloured tulips on fields in West Norfolk.

The Tulips for Tapping event, which fundraises for The Norfolk Hospice, Tapping House, started welcoming guests on Thursday after a record number of tickets were sold.

A total of 25,000 tickets sold out within 90 minutes of going on sale earlier this month - with the ticket-only event being held by flower grower Mark Eves in fields located off the A148 near Sandringham.

Tulips for Tapping, which offers people the rare chance to wander around these fields, continues until next Monday (April 29).

Thousands of people have already enjoyed the sight of the bright tulips, with some believed to have travelled from outside of the UK to get a glimpse of them.

Chloe Garrett, marketing and communications officer at The Norfolk Hospice, said: “Overall it’s been a great reaction so far, our visitors have enjoyed walking through the tulips and taking in the sea of colour within the field.

“It’s lovely to see the people come in and see their reactions - and the outfits have been amazing too.”

Last year the event raised more than £140,000 for the Hillington-based hospice, which needs more than £3million a year to run its free end-of-life care services.

Chloe said that the amount raised last year would pay for 17 days of care on the nine-bed inpatient unit.

A total of 23% of the charity’s funding comes from the government, and so the team needs to raise around £2.5million to be able to keep the hospice providing the vital care service it does.

Niki Ellis, the hospice’s chief executive, said: “We are thrilled by the demand for Tulips for Tapping, this event provides us with an incredible opportunity to talk about the amazing work we do here at The Norfolk Hospice, Tapping House.

“The demand for this event has blown us away, with tickets selling out in 90 minutes and people travelling from all over the country to visit the beautiful display of tulips.

“The event has been a great success so far with a few more days to go, we look forward to welcoming the final ticket holders over the weekend. The event finishes on Monday. Once again this event would not be possible without the support of Norfolk Tulips and Roydon Hall Farms.”

Tulip grower Mr Eves, from Norfolk Tulips, has previously said: “We are once again overwhelmed by the support of our Tulips for Tapping event.

“We are proud to support the vital work that The Norfolk Hospice provides to the local community.

“We work tirelessly to make sure the tulips are ready for ticket holders on opening day and all we need now is for the sun to shine! We would like to remind everyone this is a ticket-only event and we look forward to welcoming you to our tulip field.”

There are no plans to release extra tickets and there is no waiting list to obtain tickets. The Norfolk Hospice has advised against buying tickets from secondhand selling sites due to reported scams.

Anyone who wants to support The Norfolk Hospice can donate on the website at www.norfolkhospice.org.uk

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