The 2008 Summit is taking place in Spalding, a small market town in the East of England. Spalding is situated in a region aptly called South Holland, because of its manmade network of canals and waterways. These were constructed by Dutch engineers to drain the area, as much of the natural landscape is below sea level. This change of landscape led to the region becoming a major horticultural and agricultural area and by the mid 1950s, thousands of acres of tulips were being grown. Firstly the tulip fields and then the Tulip Parade became major tourist attractions.

Whilst modern day South Holland no longer has many tulip growers - they have been replaced by food crop growers, daffodil growers, food processors and flower packers, the Tulip Parade has managed to survive, and all those involved with the special celebration events in 2008 look forward to welcoming everyone to the World Tulip Summit, the 50th Tulip Parade, and the 'TulipMania' Festival.

The venue for the Summit is the South Holland Centre, located in the centre of Spalding and ideally located for local facilities. It features modern air conditioned conference facilities in comfortable surroundings.