Belgium....which of these smaller towns to spend the night?
Oct 10th, 2002, 12:41 PM
#1
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Belgium....which of these smaller towns to spend the night?
We will be driving from Trier, Germany to Bruges, Belgium and have a night to spend on the way (though I KNOW it would be an easy drive from Trier to Bruges in one day)/<BR>Would you suggest Durbuy, Waterloo, Dinant, Namur, or Tournai???....as an interesting, pretty place to experience another Belgium town.<BR>Thanks, and have you any hotel or B&B suggestions.?
Oct 10th, 2002, 12:46 PM
#2
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I really should look at a map to make sure that this suggestiona makes sense, but you might want to consider Maastricht (NL). Geographically, it darn nearly is in Belgium. Directly "on the way" between Brussels and Aachen/Koln.<BR><BR>Best wishes,<BR><BR>Rex<BR>
Oct 10th, 2002, 01:18 PM
#3
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Certainly not Waterloo. It is an interesting historical place (needs to be a little bit modernised).Beside the hill (la butte) with the lion, a few old museums, souvenirsshops, restaurant and the farms around, there is nothing.. It is not the right place for a B&B.<BR><BR>Dinant is nice. Namur too
Oct 10th, 2002, 01:30 PM
#5
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Another vote for Dinant. While you are there, make sure to visit the Citadelle fortress.<BR>Durbuy is a nice little town as well, though packed with tourists. <BR>Depending on when you will be going, take into account that from early October until about year end it's wild game season in the Belgian Ardennes which means that lots of hotelrooms will be booked for gastronomic weekends.<BR>Here's a website for B&B's in the Ardennes: http://194.78.138.189/b&b/e_bbard.htm
Oct 10th, 2002, 10:23 PM
#7
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Are you aware that this is a 3 hour drive? I live in the Ktown area and drive to Maastricht, Holland every now and again. The drive which is in the same direction is only 3 hours. Spend the nite somewhere for fun, but you can just as easily spend more time in Bruge. I hear that this town is quite lovely...have yet to get there. It is on my list of weekend or day trips. Have fun and bring a raincoat or umbrella.
Oct 11th, 2002, 09:48 AM
#9
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Mary: You are right. You will see a different Belgium in the towns mentioned.<BR>Nuff said about Waterloo as a place to stay. <BR>Namur, while it has the best Citidal, is a city not a town. Very busy, but interesting. <BR>Tournai has a pretty central plaza surrounded by medieval buildings (but then, Brugge and Ghent have this and even better) and the Cathedral is pretty spectacular. It is surrounded by miles of very industrial views.<BR>Durbuy is absolutly charming. Very artsy-craftsy. Very small. Not much to do at night. Better for a day trip.<BR>I think Dinant fits your description perfectly. Beautiful medieval village on the River Meuse. Citidal with awsome views up on the hill. Nightlife with casinos and music. Good restaurants.<BR>For a first-hand review of Belgium, go to www.jack-travel.com. He is Belgian, writes with passion and authority and offers good information about restaurants and hotels. I downloaded his whole Belgian Section and used it as a guide book. Have a great trip.<BR>
Oct 11th, 2002, 11:41 AM
#10
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Really...why is it that when someone asks for a Belgian recommendation, people immediately start recommending towns in other countries?? <BR>Maastricht is nice enough, but it is NOT in Belgium...I vote for Durbuy. I have been to Dinant a few times and frankly was not impressed. On a grey? rainy day, the town will look just as grey. More depressing than charming. Not to mention that a LOT of Dinant shuts down off season.<BR>Everyone pretty much agrees that Waterloo is not the best choice--for one thing it´s the main American expat community.<BR>BTilke (Brussels)
Oct 11th, 2002, 12:07 PM
#11
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BTilke, please don't feel offended about Maastricht. People also like to recommend it when asked about Dutch cities near Amsterdam or Dutch small towns, neither of which it is. They just want people to know that they've been there, whether or not it's relevant to the question. Oh, well.... Tot ziens.
Oct 11th, 2002, 01:56 PM
#12
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If you can take another day, Luxembourg City is a great stop (we want to stay the way we are). Bouillon is a good stop, nice fortress by Vauban. If you like F1, Stavelot, Francorchamps are a must and a maybe for Spa. I could spend a couple days driving the Ardennes, they are lovely!
Oct 11th, 2002, 03:57 PM
#13
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Mary, I believe you will love your liesurely drive through the Ardennes. It is truly a beautiful area. (As for me, I would bypass Lux City) Be sure to take in the area known as "petite suisse" just north of Trier in Luxembourg. You could pick up a picnic lunch at Echternacht, and drive into this rain forest type area. Vianden is like a movie set, the castle is a great tour. We had a great evening there at the Hotel Orangerie.<BR>Don't miss the strange little town of Esch-s-sure, located in the bend of the river.<BR>Drive across the plains through Bastogne to La Roche-en-Ardenne, an incredibly quaint little mideivel town with wicked pastry shops. You could continue west to Dinant / Namur, or north to the Vevey / Durbuy area. The later is a haven for European vacationers and tourists alike. Le Sanglier in Durbuy was recently written up in Bon Appetite Magazine, is also a hotel.<BR>Near La Roche, in the countryside outside of the little village of Aye, near Marche-en-Famenne, is Chateau Hassonville, A 16th century chateau and hunting lodge. A night there will feel like you've stepped back a couple of centuries. You will dine like royalty.<BR>We drove this area last year, and my regret is that we only took two days doing it. It deserved about 3 or 4. <BR>By the way, avoid driving through or around Liege. My advisor has indicated "hours of hell," referring to traffic around that city.<BR>We found the Ardenne area very peaceful and beautiful. I hope you do to.
Oct 11th, 2002, 09:15 PM
#15
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My family and I recently spent three days driving through the Belgian Ardennes and loved it. Of the cities you mentioned, I would recommend either Dinant (busier) or Durbuy (smaller). Depending on when you go it may be hunting season, hotels in Durbuy will be hard to find on weekends without reservations. We stayed at the Cote Cour in Durbuy (average) and ate at Le Moulin (excellent) Several towns you didn't mention are Bouillon (the Hotel de la Poste looked great - we would have stayed there but it was booked due to an mountain biking convention or something), which has a great castle and is very nice, and La Roche-en-Ardennes which is very small and very beautiful. One place not mentioned which should not be missed, however, is Ghent. Tournai is nice but Ghent is better. It's a good-sized city, but beautiful with so much history. Try the waterzooi! PS - We spent 4 days in Brugge and it was great!
Oct 12th, 2002, 02:31 AM
#16
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Praline, I'm not offended, but it's tiresome to see people like Rex, but not only him, treat Belgium and the Netherlands as interchangeable. They ARE two different countries and their cultures are NOT identical. When a poster asks about Dutch cities near Amsterdam and someone recommends Maastricht, at least they're still in the same country. <BR>Finally, what I would really suggest is staying at the Chateau du Lac along the pretty Genval lake in the small town of Genval. The hotel is luxurious, has a fantastic setting, on-site parking, and a great new restaurant, Genval les Bains. We were there the other day for dinner and everything--food, service, atmosphere--was simply terrific. The little town of La Hulpe next door is very attractive and charming and has a wonderful LARGE park (500+ acres and free entrance)on the grounds of the Chateau de la Hulpe with trails for walking, watching horseback riders, plus an interesting little Folon museum, and its own cafe. <BR>I can't imagine anyone being disappointed with a stay at the Chateau du Lac. One of the finest places to stay in Belgium.<BR>BTilke (Brussels)<BR>And FWIW, I think Leuven is nicer than Ghent. I spent a lot of time in Ghent on business and it left me cold. Leuven is just as interesting (I think more so) and much less touristed/touristy.
Oct 12th, 2002, 09:33 AM
#17
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I certainly did not man to suggest that Belgium is interchangeable with Holland - - and if anything, I "push" too often, the idea of including some time in Belgium as part of a trip to Paris in Italy (partly because of the advantages of flying from Brussels).<BR><BR>But Maastricht is GEOGRAPHICALLY one of several logical answers to the question originally asked by Mary.<BR><BR>Lots of people know of the reasons to g to Bruges; I think there are also a lot of good reasons to visit Ghent AND Leuven, and I look forward to having the time to get to know more of Antwerp, and other parts of Belgium - - especially rural Belgium in some future trip.<BR>
Oct 12th, 2002, 10:08 AM
#18
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We visited Ypres with our three boys (preteen & teen) during our week in Belgium. There is a wonderful museum regarding WWI and a very moving nightly event. There are several lovely hotels right on the square. I highly recommend a night here. (We also visited many of the recommended towns but Ypres was my favorite. It is quite close to Bruges.)
