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Easter trip around Belgium

Hello Esansar#1 and @BayCatOne
Esandar#1 said:
Tyne Cot
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you are absolutely right, a moving experience.
And also a 'must see'.
Bruges is very touristic, that is true. For a quiet relaxed walk, take the narrow streets away from the main streets, there are a lot of them. Then you'll see how many people still live in the old town. If you have time, there's also the 'vesten' around town which are a beautiful walk. You can start at the 'kruispoort' and walk to 'katelijnebrug'. Or further. This is a lovely piece of the 'vesten'. The 'kruispoort' is also the gate (poort) closest to campsite memling.
@Esandar#1 : the nearby swimming pool, good tip for everyone fancy a swim and taking the bus is a good way to get into town.
Greetings and if anyone of you (and of course any other member of the forum) would stay at memling, if you want, you can sent me a message, if possible, I'll come and say hellow :)
 
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Thanks to the both of you.

I’ve already spotted the swimming pool and we’ll likely visit it as both kids will enjoy that. Is sauna a thing in Belgium?

Thanks to the replies we’ve adjusted our plan to camp and visit Antwerp for one day and going to stay two days at Memling instead and the Brugge area. Don’t know yet if Antwerp will be on the campsite or at a friends driveway.

Edit: All highways in Sweden are like that. Free and empty until you hit Stockholm and a few other places.
 
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BayCatOne said:
Thanks to the both of you.

I’ve already spotted the swimming pool and we’ll likely visit it as both kids will enjoy that. Is sauna a thing in Belgium?

Thanks to the replies we’ve adjusted our plan to camp and visit Antwerp for one day and going to stay two days at Memling instead and the Brugge area. Don’t know yet if Antwerp will be on the campsite or at a friends driveway.

Edit: All highways in Sweden are like that. Free and empty until you hit Stockholm and a few other places.
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Hi @BayCatOne and @calibusje,

I cannot say for Belgium, but sauna is definitely not done in Britain with the great European attitude! Shame on us!!! English 'motorways' are free but many can get busy. Scottish and Welse ones are generally quieter (except bits between big cities). We live in Bristol which is a really great city that you should visit - and it has a really good central campsite which is walking distance to so many good central areas. Camp and walk...! Bristol is also the 'gateway to the 'South West' meaning the main access roads from the North, Wales and Central South & East all converge around Bristol where the M5 gives access to Devon and Cornwall. Both are amazing with endless coastline and beaches that most North / Cental European countries just don't have. We are lucky to live here and yet also unlucky, as it is such a long way to everywhere else in Europe, and espacillay the mountains for skiing! If the sun shines and we have warm weather, it is a stunning pace to live. Send us a note if you are coming to Bristol and we will welcome you! If anyone is reading this - who lives in a ski resort - we should trade houses once a week every year!!!
 
BayCatOne said:
Anything we 'must know' about Belgium? Tips and tricks so to say.
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I'm a Brit who has lived in Belgium for 14 years - now also with a 'get out of Brexit free' card: Belgian citizenship. I bought a new Ocean last June to replace my T3 Westfalia.

I love Belgium and Belgians, so my comments should not be taken as those of a whinging expat (apologies in advance to Hotel California).
Driving in Belgium. (Every country has a different driving culture).
They have retained the 'priorité à droit' (priority to the right) rule, which the French wisely dropped many years ago. You must be aware of it as cars will often shoot out from small side roads (from the right) without hesitation, sometimes without looking. Its more prevalent in towns and villages. It doesn't apply to all side roads, only those which do NOT have a line of a white triangles. where it meets the road you are on. Also, the inferior type of white road paint used here - which quickly wears off - means road markings are often near invisible.
By law, you should stop for pedestrians at zebra crossings. But most drivers don't. So the car behind you will not be expecting you to. And the pedestrians are always so surprised if you stop, they'll wave a little 'thank you'.
As people, Belgians are typically polite and non-confrontational. But they can change when they are in charge of a car. They are reluctant to give away their priority - for example, to let you pull out of a side road, or filter in. And if you give away your priority, they are not very good at thanking you!
Many drivers do not use their indicators, and will slow up in front of you to turn without warning.
Unlike the UK, for road parking, you are required to park in the direction of traffic. Be careful to look out for any signs defining parking rules.

I will give some positive tips on Belgium in a separate entry. Its a great country to visit.
 
PeterE said:
I'm a Brit who has lived in Belgium for 14 years - now also with a 'get out of boris bike free' card: Belgian citizenship. I bought a new Ocean last June to replace my T3 Westfalia.

I love Belgium and Belgians, so my comments should not be taken as those of a whinging expat (apologies in advance to Hotel California).
Driving in Belgium. (Every country has a different driving culture).
They have retained the 'priorité à droit' (priority to the right) rule, which the French wisely dropped many years ago. You must be aware of it as cars will often shoot out from small side roads (from the right) without hesitation, sometimes without looking. Its more prevalent in towns and villages. It doesn't apply to all side roads, only those which do NOT have a line of a white triangles. where it meets the road you are on. Also, the inferior type of white road paint used here - which quickly wears off - means road markings are often near invisible.
By law, you should stop for pedestrians at zebra crossings. But most drivers don't. So the car behind you will not be expecting you to. And the pedestrians are always so surprised if you stop, they'll wave a little 'thank you'.
As people, Belgians are typically polite and non-confrontational. But they can change when they are in charge of a car. They are reluctant to give away their priority - for example, to let you pull out of a side road, or filter in. And if you give away your priority, they are not very good at thanking you!
Many drivers do not use their indicators, and will slow up in front of you to turn without warning.
Unlike the UK, for road parking, you are required to park in the direction of traffic. Be careful to look out for any signs defining parking rules.

I will give some positive tips on Belgium in a separate entry. Its a great country to visit.
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This is pretty much the same in Sweden :)
 
Camping:
A very nice mini campsite near Spa: L'Escargot
http://www.lescargot.be/fr/
(for some reason, it still shows Dutch language on the 'French' version.
Not cheap starting at around 30 Euros per night, but a nice cozy site on a hill, with beautiful spotless sanitary facilities. And you can rent a spa pool. Nice country walks nearby, nearby town of Theux is pretty and just a few km from Spa.
There are many campsites in the Ardennes, many run by, and popular with the Dutch (mostly from Netherlands) which is why many of the websites are in Dutch.
Another nice one, near a river you can swim or paddle in, with a pool and kids play facilities: Relxi http://campingrelaxi.be/
I think around 10km from Han.
 
Beer and chocolate - and towns:

If you like chocolate, a great place for deals is the Neuhaus factory shop, just west of Brussels.
https://www.neuhauschocolates.com/e...boutique/neuhaus-vlezenbeek---chocolate-shop/
Open Mon-Sat 9 to 18 hrs. Neuhaus is considered one of the top brands. It has easy parking on site. You can chocolate from around 25 Euros per kilo.

Beer. If you don't know about trappist beers, look it up. Best is Westmalle Triple (strong blond 9.5%). The best 'clean' filtered beer is Duval - also strong blond 8%. You need to be careful because their taste does not give away their strength. Flanders is best for pub-style old bars. Look out for the 'estaminets' which refers to the small traditional bars.

Towns: I prefer Ghent/Gent to Brugges. Old centre on a river, but more of a living city. Antwerp is great. Lier and Louvain very pretty. Namur is a nice old city in Wallonie. Avoid Charleroi, except for its world class photography museum. Mons is pretty, with a world class art gallery http://en.bam.mons.be/
Lille (though in France) is also a beautiful old Flemish city.
 
Camping de Molen is a great location for Antwerp, the site is a little tired and the facilities are too but it's right on the river, walking distance to a couple of good restaurants and a slighter longer walk to the free ferry across the river to the old town (get directions to avoid going the wrong way like we did).

Bruges we stayed at Memling, nice site good facilities a little more closed in but we met some very nice people and had a lovely time. A good walk into town although if you have bikes everyone cycles here.
 
PeterE said:
Beer and chocolate - and towns:

If you like chocolate, a great place for deals is the Neuhaus factory shop, just west of Brussels.
https://www.neuhauschocolates.com/e...boutique/neuhaus-vlezenbeek---chocolate-shop/
Open Mon-Sat 9 to 18 hrs. Neuhaus is considered one of the top brands. It has easy parking on site. You can chocolate from around 25 Euros per kilo.

Beer. If you don't know about trappist beers, look it up. Best is Westmalle Triple (strong blond 9.5%). The best 'clean' filtered beer is Duval - also strong blond 8%. You need to be careful because their taste does not give away their strength. Flanders is best for pub-style old bars. Look out for the 'estaminets' which refers to the small traditional bars.

Towns: I prefer Ghent/Gent to Brugges. Old center on a river, but more of a living city. Antwerp is great. Lier and Louvain very pretty. Namur is a nice old city in Wallonie. Avoid Charleroi, except for its world class photography museum. Mons is pretty, with a world class art gallery http://en.bam.mons.be/
Lille (though in France) is also a beautiful old Flemish city.
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My personal opinions:
If you like chocolate, don't go for budget. I have my office in THE Chocolate street in Brussels, at 10 m from Manneken Pis. Full busses of (mostly Asian) tourists are driven like cattle into cheap shops here, where Asian hosts sell packages of imported Chinese chocolate (so almost without cacao) to take them back home. As said here above Neuhaus (the inventor of the praline) is good, the white ones from Leonidas too, best for me is Marcolini. Their boxes and flavors are like collector's items.
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Beer: Try out our Oude Geuze beers (wild yeast; 'Oude' stands here for the Unesco classified authentic production method ). For years it has been the favorite beer of one of the most renown worldwide beer-experts Michael Jackson (the one with a beard ;)). In fact, try out all 3000 of them here, just to be sure! :happy
oude-beersel-geuze-with-corks-.jpg
Brugge is like Venice: marvelous in low-season. Gent is more alive, Antwerp is a terrace, Brussels a secret.
IMG_1525.jpg
Countryside: look for the "Vlaamse Ardennen" or "Pajottenland", and of course the Walloon Ardennes, with its old small stone villages and castles.
IMG_E0760.jpg DIycrLSXgAAjOte.jpgIMG_1154.jpg
 
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From camping De Molen you are in walking distance (about a mile) from the beautiful Sint Anna Tunnel under the river Schelde. 1930’s architecture. Only for pedestrians and bicycles. You go down with a rattling elevator and you cross the river right into the heart of Antwerp.

Regards from Amsterdam,

Marc.

MattBW said:
Camping de Molen is a great location for Antwerp, the site is a little tired and the facilities are too but it's right on the river, walking distance to a couple of good restaurants and a slighter longer walk to the free ferry across the river to the old town (get directions to avoid going the wrong way like we did)..
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It was sadly closed when we went but the ferry was free of charge.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 
Thanks for all the tips on places so far. Beer will be had, not so much chocolate for myself though. But if they have some good ol' vegan chocolate then I'll have it :)
 
Are there any good bathhouses in Belgium close to our route that's also a good fit for kids? I know of a few municipality ones close to the campsites but are there any 'extra extra' ones?
 
Looks like an amazing trip - do post some pics and let us know how you got on :cheers
 
Alright so we're soon off to Belgium and here's the updated travel plan.

aZMrJyR.png

  1. Jönköping - Malmö - Schleswig (674km)
  2. Schleswig - Amserfoort - Apeldoorn/Arnhem (583km)
  3. Apeldoorn/Arnhem - Liège - La Glieize (261km)
  4. La Glieize - Foy - Bastogne - Domain of the Caves of Han (126km)
  5. Domain of the Caves of Han
  6. Domain of the Caves of Han, Euro Space Center (40km)
  7. Domain of the Caves of Han - Brussels - Bruges (320km)
  8. Bruges
  9. Bruges- Wilhelmshaven (541km)
  10. Wilhelmshaven - Rømø (453km)
  11. Rømø - Jönköping (642km)

Thank you all so much for all the input
 
Say hi to the guys @CCN in Amersfoort , keep us updated (pictures?)
 
I'll do that!
Will document this trip in some way, shape and form - probably pictures :)
 
We live close to campsite Memling and if you are there and we are at home, let us know and I'll say hellow.
Enjoy your travel!
Greetings
Calibusje
 
Thanks for all the tips we got prior to leaving home. We’re now at the Memling Campsite outside Bruges and literally surrounded by VW busses, old and new. The first campsite that we give the ordinary camper vans a run for the money.
35D7B4CA-4FDF-45CE-BA4A-1DD6B46BC413.jpeg
 
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