6-nights in eastern Belgium, Mosel Valley, and Luxembourg
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6-nights in eastern Belgium, Mosel Valley, and Luxembourg
My husband and I will be visiting the Benelux area for almost 3 weeks at the end of August into early September. We have a place rented in Amsterdam for a week to start off, which we'll use as a base for some day trips to other places in the Netherlands. Then we'll train to Brussels for a couple of nights, followed by a couple of nights in Brugge. We want to see some of the countryside with our remaining 6 days, so we've rented a car for pickup in Brugge on the 28th and drop-off in Namur the morning of Sept. 3 We'll take the train from Namur to Amsterdam and spend one last night there before flying back to the States the next morning.
So we have 6 nights that we're looking to fit into some kind of itinerary. At first we thought about just winging it and staying wherever moves us when we get there, wherever there is, but now we're thinking about having a more structured itinerary and making reservations in 3 places, 2 nights each. We've pondered a lot of places and read a bunch of postings and guidebooks about highlights of the Ardennes and the Mosel and have come up with this:
--Drive from Brugge to Trier on the 28th (4+ hours).
--Stay 2 nights in Trier, Germany--explore the town the afternoon we get there and do a day trip along the Mosel to Bernkastel and perhaps even to Cochem.
--Drive to Vianden in Luxembourg and stay there 2 nights, using it as a base to explore Diekirch and Ekternach.
--Drive to La Roche en Ardenne in Belgium and stay there 2 nights, visiting Bastogne and maybe doing some kayaking on the Ourthe.
--Drive from La Roche to Namur the morning of Sept. 3, drop the car, and take the train to Amsterdam.
Does this sound reasonable? Would you suggest a different itinerary, or different towns as bases?
We'd like to see picturesque towns, visit some WWII areas (my dad was in the Battle of the Bulge and I have all his letters to my mom from that time), and possibly do some kayaking or abother kind of boating. Oh--and wine drinking along the Mosel would be nice too. Feedback appreciated!
So we have 6 nights that we're looking to fit into some kind of itinerary. At first we thought about just winging it and staying wherever moves us when we get there, wherever there is, but now we're thinking about having a more structured itinerary and making reservations in 3 places, 2 nights each. We've pondered a lot of places and read a bunch of postings and guidebooks about highlights of the Ardennes and the Mosel and have come up with this:
--Drive from Brugge to Trier on the 28th (4+ hours).
--Stay 2 nights in Trier, Germany--explore the town the afternoon we get there and do a day trip along the Mosel to Bernkastel and perhaps even to Cochem.
--Drive to Vianden in Luxembourg and stay there 2 nights, using it as a base to explore Diekirch and Ekternach.
--Drive to La Roche en Ardenne in Belgium and stay there 2 nights, visiting Bastogne and maybe doing some kayaking on the Ourthe.
--Drive from La Roche to Namur the morning of Sept. 3, drop the car, and take the train to Amsterdam.
Does this sound reasonable? Would you suggest a different itinerary, or different towns as bases?
We'd like to see picturesque towns, visit some WWII areas (my dad was in the Battle of the Bulge and I have all his letters to my mom from that time), and possibly do some kayaking or abother kind of boating. Oh--and wine drinking along the Mosel would be nice too. Feedback appreciated!
#3
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Sounds like a lovely trip! You already have some picturesque towns picked out - La Roche is lovely. I've never been to Bastogne (I'm not American so don't have the same urge to see that history) but would be interested to hear a trip report after you get back. It sounds like you already have you time planned quite well, but here are some other thoughts:
*Also in the same area is Bouillon; it's actually on the Semois River, at the French border. There is an impressive medieval chateau there. That's a little further afield than
*Rochefort (pretty) and Han-sur-Lesse (caves, but not the best I've ever seen; they finish off your visit with a cannon blast which resounds in the caves.)
* beer brewing at Ciney and Rochefort also (you can sample these in a cafe in La Roche)
*I've done kayaking on the Lesse near Dinant (Houyet - Anseremme). One word of advice (no mater which river, or which company): if they offer you a bucket with a sealed lid for your belongings, even if it costs a bit extra, take it. We had hooligans along the way tipping buckets of water over people. Fine if you're paddling in a swimsuit, a little annoying if all your belongings are in the kayak at your feet. I didn't get too wet but some people did. Also some boats have a slow leak, not enough to take the boat out of action but enough to soak your belongings.
Have a great trip!!
Lavandula
*Also in the same area is Bouillon; it's actually on the Semois River, at the French border. There is an impressive medieval chateau there. That's a little further afield than
*Rochefort (pretty) and Han-sur-Lesse (caves, but not the best I've ever seen; they finish off your visit with a cannon blast which resounds in the caves.)
* beer brewing at Ciney and Rochefort also (you can sample these in a cafe in La Roche)
*I've done kayaking on the Lesse near Dinant (Houyet - Anseremme). One word of advice (no mater which river, or which company): if they offer you a bucket with a sealed lid for your belongings, even if it costs a bit extra, take it. We had hooligans along the way tipping buckets of water over people. Fine if you're paddling in a swimsuit, a little annoying if all your belongings are in the kayak at your feet. I didn't get too wet but some people did. Also some boats have a slow leak, not enough to take the boat out of action but enough to soak your belongings.
Have a great trip!!
Lavandula
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Thanks so much for these comments and the additional places to keep in mind. We found some nice places to stay (we hope they're nice anyway) in the 3 areas and so now we're set. I'll write up a trip report when we get back, but in the meantime if anyone else has any advice, would love to hear it.