Tag: tourism

Eco-Friendly Prague Journey: Culture, History, and Fun

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Experience the Magic of Prague’s Culture and Historic Charm

I’ve visited Prague multiple times before, but there’s always something new to discover that keeps the city intriguing. Next time I visit with my family, we’ll spend some time on Park Legií Island and explore the magnificent Prague Castle.

Day 1: Departure from Brussels

  • 19:22: Board the European Sleeper night train in Brussels, Antwerp, or from the Netherlands, heading directly to Berlin and Prague.
  • Accommodation: I stayed in a 5-bed couchette on the train for around €125-€150 one way.

Day 2: Exploring Prague

  • 10:56: Arrival at Praha main station after a scenic train ride with impressive views of the Elbe River and surrounding nature. After arrival I dropped my luggage at the hotel.
  • Lunch: For a culinary adventure, head to Havelská Koruna for a traditional Czech lunch.
  • Petřín Tower: Take the tram uphill to Petřín Park, then climb the stairs up Petřín Tower for breathtaking views of the city. It’s a nice activity to do towards sunset.
  • Prague Castle: Although I didn’t have time to visit the castle due to work appointments, it’s highly recommended. Even without paying for entry, you can see a lot by strolling around the grounds.
  • Dinner: Enjoy a delicious meal at the vegetarian restaurant Lehká Hlava.
  • Accommodation: I stayed at Hotel Metropolitan Old Town, a decent hotel costing €90 for a single room, with a rooftop bar and a good breakfast. I also considered spending a bit more on the Prague Carlo IV hotel, but finally decided to opt for a more central location and the rooftop.

Day 3: More Adventures in Prague

  • Morning Run: Along the Elbe River and through the Old Town.
  • Museum: After breakfast, I visited the House at the Stone Bell, where a modern art exhibition called “Group Therapy” was displayed. The museum offers a rich exhibition with social relevance, embracing Czech socialism history, rightist movements, LGBTQ+ awareness, and more.
  • Photo Exhibition: Later, I visited the Leica Gallery Prague for a fascinating photo exhibition.
  • Tea Time: Before heading back, me and a travel friend had tea at the beautiful bar in the former bank hall of Hotel NH Collection Prague Carlo IV—just a 5-minute walk from the main station. The drinks are priced similarly to those in the station but with a much better atmosphere.
  • 18:04: Board the train leaving Prague main station to return to Brussels, arriving the next day at 9:27.

Activities for Kids in Prague

  1. Petřín Hill and Observatory: Climb Petřín Hill via the funicular railway, perfect for an eco-friendly trip. Kids will love the Mirror Maze and the miniature Eiffel Tower!
  2. Letná Park: Rent bikes or have a picnic with stunning views of the Vltava River and Prague’s skyline.
  3. Vyšehrad: A historical fort with large green spaces, perfect for children to run around and enjoy nature.

Party Train to/from Prague

This trip was extra special—a 50th birthday party for one of the co-founders and some other employees took place on the ride from Prague back to Brussels! 🥳✨

If you’re planning something extraordinary with a larger group of friends (40-700 people), consider booking the party coaches from European Sleeper. It will be a train ride to remember!

Highlights:

  • Celebrate in Style: Imagine having an entire train coach dedicated to dancing and celebrating. The party train transforms your journey into an unforgettable event, filling the hours with joy and camaraderie.
  • Convenient and Eco-Friendly: Traveling by train is not only convenient but also a more environmentally friendly choice.

Discovering Sächsische Schweiz: Night Train Adventure from Brussels

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A couple of weeks ago, I discovered an impressive piece of nature only a night train away from Brussels—perfect for a long weekend trip immersed in breathtaking landscapes.

Have you ever heard about the National Park Sächsische Schweiz?

It’s a vast, mountainous forest filled with dramatic rock formations and stunning views at the German-Czech border. Let me take you there for a moment!

Family-Friendly Adventures and Thrilling Hikes

Visiting with Kids: There are plenty of charming, family-friendly routes to enjoy with the little ones. However, for those who crave adventure, I took a more challenging trail featuring metal ladders, narrow passages, and dramatic cliffs. No climbing gear is required! Here’s the GPX track I followed: Komoot Track

Safety Tips: If you choose one of the family routes, always keep your kids close, especially at the viewpoints. There are no fences, so hand-holding is essential.

Another great way to explore the park is by cycling—just remember to park your bike and take small hikes to reach those breathtaking viewpoints.

I took the walk during a Tuesday in June and was hoping to refill my water at a bar in the park… but found a closed door. Quite a disappointment since I finished my water at noon and did a detour of an hour hoping to refill at the refuge that was closed.

My 3-Day Ecological Travel Itinerary

Day 1: Departure from Brussels

  • 19:22: Board the European Sleeper night train, heading to Bad Schandau.
  • Accommodation: I stayed in a 5-bed couchette for around €125-€150 one way.

Day 2: Arrival and Hiking

  • 08:30: Arrive in Bad Schandau and grab picnic supplies at the railway station or supermarket accross the water.
  • Hike: An 8-hour hike through stunning spots like Carolafelsen, Panorama Heringsgrund and Goldsteinaussicht.
  • Accommodation: Found a cozy €35 cabin including breakfast at Zur alten Schule. Cancelled my €150 hotel room—great value for money!
  • Dinner: Enjoyed a vegetarian 4-course menu at Bio-Restaurant StrandGut.
  • Swim: After dinner I took a swim in the Elbe a couple of meters downstream from where the little ferry leaves. Beware there’s quite some current, which can be dangerous… but also nice so you can swim against the current and stay in the same spot for as long as you want.

Day 3: More Adventures & Travel to Prague

  • Hiking: Explored more of the park, with options including hiking, canoeing on the Elbe, and the tram ride into the forest. I took the ferry to cross the Elbe and hiked for an hour and a half from Schmilka to Bad Schandau’s railway station where I started the journey.
  • Swim: To cool down before getting into the train, I took another swim at the small Canoe beach just in front of the railway station.
  • Travel: Took the train to Prague, but you can also return to Brussels at 19:59, arriving at 9:30 the next day.

Schmilka is a tiny but beautiful village positioning itself as eco-village. There are multiple biological hotels and restaurants, a biological educational garden along the Elbe, eco-sauna, and hot-tubs, … we found the concept to be very appealing. Nevertheless, most of the initiative is driven by one entrepreneur that supposedly owns 40 of the 80 houses in the village, where he made hotel rooms or houses for tourism purposes. Still, its inspiring to see the business model seems to work.

Kids on trains – 5 tips & tricks

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Our 5 tips & tricks for train travel with babies or toddlers:

  1. Plan for the worst
  2. Bring a light foldable stroller – fold before boarding
  3. Bring a sleeping tent
  4. Walk around – benefit from the freedom
  5. Pack ultralight

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1. Plan for the worst

You need to come well prepared for all needs your kid might have along the journey: bring water, milk powder, food, fruit, extra diapers, fresh clothes, toilet paper, a light book, and some small toys,… and think about how you are going to easily access it on a shaky driving train, assuming there’s nowhere to heat food, now baby table or nothing. Mentally prepare yourself for some serious struggle. But to be clear: I rather have to take care of a kid for a full day in a driving train than in a driving car!

-> Think: exploded diaper while traveling alone in an old train… sh*t on your hands, his clothes… you’re happy if you have toilet paper at hand, and can access everything with one hand (pinning your little one to the train seat with the other hand) and asking for the help of the 2 grandmothers in your coupé.

2. Bring a light foldable stroller – fold it before boarding

Big strollers are a pain on almost every train, no matter if it’s the Belgian IC trains, the high-speed trains of Eurostar, or the night trains with extra small passageways. You need to invest in a (second-hand) light compact travel stroller like Yoyo or Hamilton by Yoop… or the old-school foldable strollers.

For departure, you want to fold on the platform. It’s not always easy to hold a kid and your luggage, but on most international trains boarding is stressful and you don’t have the space nor time on board of the train to take your kid and luggage out of the stroller. For arrival you can already prepare and if space allows prepare before getting off.

-> We bought our Hamilton by Yoop S1 second-hand via Facebook marketplace, the day before leaving on our night train trip to Nice earlier this year. It folds nicely and is small so you can store it above the seats. We stored a soft bag that holds all the stuff of August under the stroller, easy to take out when folding and always accessible. Read more about our night train trip with August here.

3. Bring a sleeping tent

Instead of a foldable sleeping bed, we used a little sleeping tent (Deryan baby tent) that is very compact and can be used anywhere on the ground or a bed in the night train. When traveling by night train, we ALWAYS ask for the lower bed. Even if you have other beds, ask fellow travelers to switch: you don’t want your baby or toddler to fall 1.5m high from a bunk bed in case of a bumpy ride or a wild baby. You should find a way to attach the tent to the bed or wall of your coupé so it can not roll off.

-> During our last trip to Nice, we forgot to attach the tent to the wall and August and his tent rolled off the bed (30cm high). Luckily he was laughing instead of crying… but you want to check if the tent can roll off and put your bags/jackets next to the bed just in case. I would never place my kid on the middle or upper bed, not even with the safety nets you get from SNCF Intercité, since they don’t cover the full width of the bed. #honestparenting

4. Walk around – benefit from the freedom

We all know how difficult it is to keep a kid seated on a chair. Contrary to airplanes, there’s quite a lot of space to walk up and down in the train, open doors (careful for little fingers!), go to the restaurant or bar car, and play on the ground. When August was smaller we used a carrying bag and would walk around in turns during longer train rides.

-> When traveling from Brussels to Sevilla by train, we would take turns and spend 1-2 hours in the bar car, letting August play on the ground with a couple of toys. He would take his naps in the carying bag. Don’t try to entertain the kid for too long in your seat: it often doesn’t work well, and after a while, your partner and neighbors start to get irritated anyway 🙂. More about our trip to Sevilla here.

5. Pack ultra-light

Determine in advance what bags you will take and reconsider everything you take until it fits… and not the other way around. Limit yourself in the space you can fill and pack accordingly. Worst case, you must buy additional things during your holiday or wash clothes or diapers a few times. For longer trips, we always pack assuming we will go to a supermarket on day 1 and wash clothes every 3 days.

When traveling to Nice for 5 days last Autumn, we had:

  • One backpack for Tine and my clothes / books / laptop,
  • One bag with August stuff (sleeping bag, (re-usable)diapers, milk powder for exactly 5 days, clothes, one meal, two water bottles, hygiene stuff) that fit under the stroller
  • A foldable stroller
  • A sleeping tent

Brussels-Lisbon by train – seat61.com

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When traveling to the World Aviation Festival to hold a presentation on Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), I wanted to make a statement. That’s where I needed the website of The Man in Seat 61 to guide me towards the best train itinerary to get to Lisbon. For more info on why I was at the World Aviation Festival, check out the video at https://www.green-trail.eu/

I would have taken my first flight in 4 years, only if I could buy a ticket with truly transparent SAF certificates… which was not possible. I tried all I could to buy fuel straight from different producers, but none were capable of selling it to me within the first 6 months. So I decided to go to Lisbon by train!

It took me two full days to go and another two to get back. It was a beautiful trip, but a tiring one. Before Covid, I would have been able to travel to Madrid on day 1, and the same evening take a night train, waking up in Lisbon the next day… but that train has been canceled leading to a hilarious situation: it takes 3 trains with transfers in the middle of nowhere to get from one capital to the next. All details of the trip can be found here on Seat61.com. I took a stopover in Madrid where I slept in the Latroupe Prado hostel and had some good tapas in El Alambic around the corner.

It’s important to mention that for the return journey, the transfer time in Badajoz is too tight with only 10 minutes in between, while the bus-like train that takes you there always has a delay of 10 minutes or more. We were very lucky that the high-speed train to Madrid waited for us and that we arrived just 13 minutes late… since the train would have left 2 minutes after anyway, with no more options to make it to Madrid that night except for a 500 EUR taxi or a hitchhiking adventure.

I went to Portugal for work and spent some days in Ericeira and Lisbon. For 9 days I took a small backpack and my folding bike… and given the many train connections to get, I would definitely recommend packing light. If you are not in a hurry, you certainly want to split the travel into 2 or 3 segments so you can enjoy it more. Possible stops are Barcelona, Madrid, Entroncamento, or Badajoz.

Recommendations in Lisbon

  • Miradouro da Senhora do Monte – nice views for sunset
  • Secret garden – bar with concerts and basic restaurant, just under Miradouro da Senhora do Monte
  • Sao Vicente de Fora – monastery
  • Parque Eduardo VII – a nice big park in the city center
  • Jardim do Torel – also with nice views
  • Viewpoints from Largo Portas do Sol
  • Ruta de Sao Pedro de Alcantara – for the famous tramway going uphill
  • Santa Justa Lift – take cash or you don’t get in!
  • Praça do Comercio – big square on the waterfront

Recommendations in Ericeira

  • Getting there: you can get there easily by taking the direct bus from Lisbon Campo Grande to Ericeira.
  • Selina hostel: If you’re traveling alone, stay in the Selina hostel with yoga in the morning, a small swimming pool, a healthy breakfast, and a good restaurant.
  • Surf: There are plenty of surf schools. Depending on the swell, beginner classes get canceled on some beaches. You might want to consult multiple schools and ask for the maximum number of students per teacher, which should be 4 or 5 max and not 10 per teacher… leading to a lot of frustration.
  • Mountainbike: we rented mountain bikes, and did an incredibly beautiful tour with a guide from Take Off e-bike for 35 euros per person only.
  • Skatepark & halfpipe: Boardriders Quiksilver Roxy flagship store has its own huge halfpipe and skatepark. They also offer all kinds of surf and skate courses.
  • Sunset locations:
    • Mar das Latas – wine bar with perfect views for sunset
    • Praia da Empa / Pedra Branca reserve – views from the top of the rocks for sunset
  • Restaurants:
    • La Popular Taberna
    • Mar d’Areia – fish restaurant
    • Howm by Maikai
    • Mar das Latas – need to reserve, always full

So, Brussels to Lisbon by train is an option if you have some time. If you need to rush it in the shortest possible time frame it soon feels like a bit too much. Perfect for a holiday trip, less perfect for work 😉

A weekend in Ostend

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Just over an hour away from our Belgian capital there’s a small version of Brussels by the sea: Ostend. A city with a lot of history and a rough edge reflected in its architecture and diversity of people. Expect a bit of old past glory, hipsterness and heritage. There’s a lot of cultural activities: musea, photography exhibitions and a huge number of good restaurants.

It’s the end of the railway line to the coast. It was the place where people stranded from inland or arrived from sea. Stranded people stayed in Ostend, and at some point even an American with a cocain addiction: Marvin Gaye. He’s said to have written Sexual Healing here.

In this article we’ll share some of our personal highlights in Ostend, split in 4 categories: 1. Food & drinks, 2. Cultural highlights, 3. Nature, 4. Sports & relax

I originate from Gistel, next to Ostend, but it’s only in the last years we really started discovering and appreciating the city. Ostend invested a lot in its revival and cultural offering. Since our parents got an apartment in Ostend, we started going a lot. The direct connection from Brussels makes it a relaxing journey. Except during the warmest summer weekends where you can expect queuing and crowded trains… but during those weekends you can expect stressful traffic jams on the high-way as well.

With NMBS you can have weekend tickets (half price) or a 10 pass card so that going to Ostend and back should cost you no more then €17. Perfect for a day trip or weekend, both in winter and in summertime.

1. Our highlights for food & drinks:

  • Brasserie Albert – for fish and beautiful architectural heritage (€€)
  • Terras Venetiaanse Gaanderijen – for a beautiful lunch setting and good fish (€€)
  • Albrecht – for brunch (€)
  • Frenchette – for a fancy dinner (€€€)
  • Mosselhuis – for a cosy place and good basic food (€)
  • De grote post (€)
  • Kaap – bar next to the beach (€)
  • Hotel du Parc – for shrimp croquettes (€)
  • Bistro Mathilda (€€)
  • The Catch (€)
  • Chamonix – for waffles and pancakes in an old American diner style interior (€)
  • Lizette (€)
  • Passe-vite (€)
  • Oesterput (€€€) – for oysters, lobster and other good seafood
  • Vistrap to buy fish or shrimps (not to eat there)
  • Et Alors (€€) for brunch

In general you need to reserve in advance for almost all of the above restaurants.

2. Our cultural highlights:

  • Muzee
  • James Ensor museum
  • The Crystal Ship – wandeling met street art
  • De Grote Post
  • Mercator
  • Atlantic wall & vissersdorp Anno 1465
  • Venetiaanse galerij met wisselende foto tentoonstellingen
  • Midnight Love Tour van Marvin Gaye – wandeling met app

3. Our nature highlights:

  • Fort Napoleon & Oosteroever – take the little free boat crossing the harbor
  • Japanese garden
  • Cycling het groen lint
  • Atlantik wall
  • Duinenkerkje in Mariakerke – with some dunes, the grave of James Ensor and a lovely little chapel
  • Maria Hendrikapark

4. Sports & relax:

  • Running on the beach
  • Swimming in the sea
  • Gokart = billekar – for rent in many places at the seaside
  • Qi Gong – Sundays / Wednesdays on beach
  • Massage & meditation
  • Zwembad Brigitte Becue
  • Blokart / landsailing

If you enjoy seeing the glory of Ostend in the old days when it had a busy harbour with boats leaving to the UK and some glory of the past, then have a look at the digital image database here.

A small selection from “beeldbank”:

So if you’re looking for a fun and diverse day or weekendtrip from Brussels, you definitely need to visit Ostend!

Sevilla by train from Brussels

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In September we attended the wedding of our good friends Victoria & Karel in Sevilla. The obvious transport mode would have been the airplane, have tons of delays and cancelations and arrive all stressed out. Instead we adventured the other option: going by high-speed train, enjoying the scenery of France, from mountains to the mediterranean and all the way south through Spanish nature. We read books, played with August, slept, ate our picknick, meditated, talked, played games and dreamed away…

The trajectory was simple but expensive: 275 EUR per person one way.

  • Brussels – Paris Nord (D1 – 29 EUR)
  • Paris Gare Lyon – Barcelona (D1 – 122 EUR)
  • Barcelona – Sevilla (D2 – 124 EUR)

We booked the trip via sncf-connect.com (where you should get a “carte avantage adulte” to get more discounts!). You can do this exact same trajectory in a single day, leaving Brussels around 6h30 in the morning and arriving in Sevilla around 22pm in the evening. The connections are tight but possible if there’s no major delays.

There’s also an option with a night train between Paris and Perpignan, but since we had August, our one year old baby with us, we chose to split the trip in two each time and stay for the night in Barcelona. It was a good opportunity for Tine to see some friends back and take a rest.

To enjoy the trip we took the baby carrier (draagzak) instead of the stroller. We spent a lot of time in the bar car where August could play on the floor with a couple of simple toys, or sleep in the carrier on our breast.

Since the journey was quite long, spread over two days, we decided to stay longer than just the weekend and added a yoga retreat in Suryalila and a visit to Cadiz. For those who enjoy veggie food, yoga and nature: this is heaven! We stayed in the glamping tents, did yoga every morning at 8am, enjoyed the best all-inclusive veggie buffet I have ever seen, read books by the pool, went for walks and just enjoyed life at its purest.

Our highlights in Sevilla:

  • Real Alcazar
  • Catedral de Sevilla (and the view from its tower)
  • Setas de Sevilla
  • Plaza de Espana
  • Restaurants: El Disparate (& rooftop); Espacio Eslava

Our Highlights in Cadiz

  • Torre Tavira (amazing view and camera obscura guided tour)
  • Restaurante Contraseña
  • Breakfast in Restaurante Café Royalty
  • Jardines de Alameda Apodaca

For August we brought most of his stuff in our backpacks and bought extra milk and food in the local bio stores in Sevilla. To sleep we have a little 2″ baby tent that is way more portable than most of the travel beds for babies. We would certainly recommend this instead of a normal travel bed to anyone that likes to go on adventures. The baby carrier came in really handy, but when we arrived in Sevilla we did have a stroller that my parents brought along in their camper.

Stay tuned for our next adventure: The night train to Briançon with little August along… we are very curious ourselves if August will be able to sleep or will keep the fellow travellers awake all night…

Lustin safari

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Some months ago I booked a surprise weekend in Lustin, close to Namur. To get there we jumped on the direct train from Brussels-Schuman to Lustin and took our folding bikes along. It took only 1h13 minutes to get from Brussels into this lovely spot in nature.

With a weekend ticket you pay only 12,20 EUR p.p. going and back, only downside is that it requires you to leave Brussels after 19pm on Friday evening.

We stayed in La Fête au Palais, a small hotel on top of the hills next to the Maas river. The boss kindly picked us up at the railway station to bring us up the hill (inform him in advance). The hotel is no-nonsense and nice. The rooms with terrace towards the river are a pleasure to hang out and cost 109 EUR/night. You want to reserve well in advance since it’s fully booked most of the year. The restaurant of the hotel has a beautiful terrace so on Friday evening we ate at the restaurant of the hotel.

While going on a hike on Friday afternoon we encountered a small snake and some lovely shiny cockroaches… The big surprise came in the evening in front of our room when we heard some nibbling noises and got to see some beautiful racoons. They are a true ecological problem in Europe since they are an exotic species disbalancing nature by killing too many birds, squirrels and lots of fruits and plants. Apparently there’s hundreds of them in the Belgian Ardennes.

After a good breakfast in the hotel, we filled our Saturday with a nice hike and a long cycling trip along the Maas river. We cycled from the hotel all the way to Namur. Made a stop to picknick, chilled at the local hipster beach bar ‘The Flow‘ and cycled back. In the evening we ate at Pizzeria Venezzia, the local restaurant in Lustin, which is at walking distance from the hotel, following a small hiking trail.

On Sunday we first took a walk in nature, following the local tracks indicated through the woods. In the afternoon we took our bags from the hotel and rolled down the hill by bike.

As you might remember from other blogposts, I enjoy swimming in rivers… The Maas river is a very beautiful and calm river to swim in, with stairs all along the riverbanks.

We followed the Maas river until we got to Yvoir where we took the train back to Brussels (eating vegi takeaway on the train from Jin Xiu next to the station).

All in all, it’s an easy trip from Brussels and a perfect escape into nature both in summer and wintertime. There are also airbnb’s around the railway line from Brussels-Schuman to Lustin. On the hills around the Maas there’s a lot of forests with hiking routes to discover. No excuses to stay in the city!

Cycling the Eurovelo along the Rhine (1/2)

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This year was different. All travel plans were impacted, and so were ours. So what is more flexible then not planning anything, except for packing your bags and putting them on your bicycle?

With the Eurovelo network of long distance cycling routes in mind we could go any possible direction depending on the weather and the number of covid cases. We started on the Eurovelo 3 from Eupen until we reached the Rhine river after a big day of cycling. From there we followed Eurovelo 15 for multiple days, all the way to Karlsruhe.

Arrival in Mehlem, where Eurovelo 3 joins Eurovelo 15

Figure that for many of our Belgian grandparents, a trip to the Rhine was their first holiday destination. Tourism around the Rhine started as early as 1830.

We followed Eurovelo 3 until Mehlem, and from there we followed Eurovelo 15 for 6 days:

  • Eupen (start)
  • Heimbach
  • Mehlem
  • Koblenz
  • Boppard
  • Oberwesel
  • Mainz
  • Worms
  • Speyer
  • Karlsruhe

We mixed sleeping in campgrounds, camping in the wild and staying in hotels to have a little comfort. The first night we took a camping in the neigborhood of Heimbach, next to a lake. From there we just took on the following rhythm: cycle until we see something interesting or we want to chill. No clear daily goals in mind. Whenever we get tired we either pitch our tent in the bushes or search the internet for a hotel or a campground.

Mehlem with Eurovelo 15 next to the Rhine
One of the many small ferry’s over the Rhine

With so many historic villages, nature reserves and wineries there’s always something to visit or to do wherever you are.

Side branch of the Rhine in Bad Honef

It was incredibly hot almost every day. Whenever we felt like it, we parked the bikes and swam in the Rhine to cool down. We were quite surprised to find proper sand beaches in many places, including naked sunbathers.

In an other occasion, we pitched our tent on the side of a lake. We went swimming in the evening before going to bed, and swam again the next morning to wake up.

We packed our cycling bags with camping gear, some clothes and a good bag of food: nuts, granola, fruits, canned fish, crackers, boiled eggs,… Whenever we passed a restaurant at lunch or dinner time, we would opt for a terrace and a good meal, but whenever there was nothing around we would always have our backup food with us.

Since there’s lots of vineyards along the Rhine, all restaurants have good local wines on the menu.

Most of the route was in nature or passing along smaller villages next to the Rhine, but once in a while we had to cross a big city worth visiting. Koblenz was one of them. Worms, Speyer and Karlsruhe were also totally worth spending a full day, doing some culture and enjoying a decent restaurant. On those days we would only cycle about 2 hours and hit the road in the late afternoon.

Koblenz view from the Ehrenbreitstein fortress

Whenever we were sick of cycling we would lock our bike, leave our bags in a hotel (or tent on a camping) and start walking. In Koblenz the hike up to the Ehrenbreitstein fortress is worth the detour. If you’re lucky you can enjoy one of the concerts with impressive views in the background. If you want to keep it cheap you can also stay in the hostel inside this fortress.

Worms – One of the oldest cities in North-Europe with pre-Roman foundations
Speyer – Another city with Roman history

Since the Eurovelo 15 passes both nature and some interesting historic cities along the Rhine, it allows for a very diverse holiday. If you want to cycle more, you just skip more cities and cruise straight to Switzerland. If you need more relaxing, you go slower and can easily have an interesting place to visit every hour or two.

After a full week of cycling around the Rhine, we chose to change the rhythm and dive into the Black Forest for some cycling in hilly nature. You can read all about it in part 2, the next blogpost.

Dreaming of the Snow train

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Just before the Corona crisis started to break through we took a train to the Alps. Let’s just dream away to what will be possible again after this is all over.

Leaving Belgium to go skiing was easy. Tickets for the Thalys from Brussels to Paris are sold as from 25 EUR (or 7 EUR with the Izy). Our friends took the direct Thalys from Antwerp to Paris. A nice bed in the night train from Paris to Briançon is sold as from 25 EUR as well… So if you’re really short on cash and flexible in the timing you can get to the Alps for 64 EUR going and back. That’s not bad, right?

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We left Brussels in the late afternoon around 17h starting with an apero in the train. At 20h10 the night train left Paris Austerlitz where we enjoyed our pick-nick dinner and a bottle of wine with friends. The next morning we woke up with the sun in our cabin and the mountains sliding by.

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Arriving in Briançon you end up at a 10 minute walk from the telecabine and the ski slopes. There’s plenty of airbnb and hotel options around so that shouldn’t be a problem either.

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And since Sofie and Bart were there for four days only we hit the slopes of Serre Chevalier the very same morning. If you go for skiing it doesn’t promise to be a cheap holidays: around 50 euros per day for the ski pass and 25 euros for the material.

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The slopes of Serre Chevalier are maintained very well (or we were very lucky with the snow and weather conditions). Only minor point was that “due to the wind”, a crucial ski lift was closed multiple times, so at closure time we couldn’t go back to our starting point without taking the bus.

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This must have been more or less the point where we washed our hands that often to avoid Corona, that it started to hurt.

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With enough sun it was a pleasure to relax on the many chalet terraces. Contrary to the big après-ski scene in Austria or other resorts, we kind of had to stick to the “during”-ski terraces here.

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Even though Brainçon might not be known for the après-ski, it has many good restaurants:

  • Chez Maria (always fully booked, so reserve in advance)
  • Le Pied de la Gargouille (an impressive menu based on local products only, from the close-by vegetable producers, wine makers, cheese makers, …)
  • Restaurant L’Etage
  • Maison de Catherine (Puy-Saint-Pierre, also the place where I stayed last time when I came to Briançon)

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After four days our friends returned home with the night train and we spent another three days enjoying the Alps in a different way: relaxing, reading, hiking and some bathing.

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On day 5 we hiked uphill from Puy-Saint-Pierre, through hiking trails into nature.

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Day 6 we hiked next to a small canal on the hillside. From village to village in the direction of Le Monêtier-les-Bains. Hiking trails can be easily find online and most of the trails on the Komoot application are accessible also in winter. With the snow still there we went quite a bit slower then normal, so we didn’t make it all the way and took a bus for the last part.

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In Les Grands Bains we enjoyed the natural hot-springs with all kinds of outside and inside pools and hammam’s. Three hours of pure relaxing after the hike.

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On day 7 we did a bit of culture: We visited the cité Vauban (the old fortified city center) and hiked over the Pont d’Asfeld all the way up to the Fort des Têtes. If you want to visit the insides of the fortress you have to visit Briançon during summertime, but the just the surroundings and the views are already worth it.

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Inside the cité Vauban you can go up into the Fort du Chateau to catch the last sun of the day before you dive into one of the local bars or restaurants.

Leaving Belgium to go skiing was easy. Taking the night train back to Belgium in Corona times was quite a mental challenge though. We were happy to be back home in our safe apartment. Washing hands. A lot.

We agreed with Tine that we will visit the Alps every single year. The relaxing train trip and nature in the mountains are the perfect mix for our holidays.

Paalkamperen in Belgium & other concepts that make cycling trips better

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Next to sharing a cycling route, I want to share a couple of logic principles that I realised while cycling around in Flanders during my last trip. Find the three key concepts at the end of the article.

For this trip I randomly searched a route to go from Brussels to the desolated village of Doel. Then I continued to the closest camping spot and from there the next day to another campsite not too far from Brussels, so I could make it to Grimbergen on time for Christmas evening.

Planning the trip, I soon saw that on day 1 I could follow a very long part of the Schelde river, and on day 2 I could follow the Dender. In between I found the network of old railroads that are now cycling routes.

Day 1: 95km. After leaving Brussels, it takes a couple of kilometers before you end up in the countryside, but as soon as you reach the banks of the Schelde in Briel it’s all nature. You cycle past Sint-Amands on a perfect trail that continues for kilometers.

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Depending on the time you have, you can take a straight route to Doel from Temse, or continue until Kruibeke. Before arriving in the desolated city of Doel, you cycle through the Port of Antwerp, along railroads, cranes and industry. In rainy weather it has something moody but beautiful.

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From far away you see the nuclear power plant of Doel as a landmark on the horizon.

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A couple of kilometers further you enter into the main street of Doel. There you find almost all houses locked up and spooky. This is where a controversial story starts of the extension plans of the Port of Antwerp.

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If you do not know the story, just search for ‘Doel’ in Wikipedia. A long story short (sorry): the whole village had to disappear to construct a new dock for large ships, property has been bought and villagers left. The construction permit was not granted and plans were not executed. Very few people stayed, but some new people live there now, with very low rental prices. Nevertheless, the place is very desolated and looks like a ghost town.

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After visiting the village, I cycled to the camping spot of “Bivakzone Stropersbos”. Just before entering into the woods, I warmed myself with a good diner in De Boshoeve. It had been raining all day, my feet were soaked and in the tent it wouldn’t get any warmer. DSC04519

The campsite is located in the middle of the forest with rivers and lots of water surrounding it. It had been raining for days in a row, so I was lucky to find 2 square meters that were not muddy to pitch my tent. With a good winter sleeping bag I managed to stay warm during the rainy night.

Day 2: 60km. On the second day I followed the old railroad to Sint-Niklaas. From Dendermonde to Okegem, I took the route following the Dender river. This route is at least as beautiful as the one next to the Schelde.

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I camped at the campsite of Neighembos with views over the Dender valley. It’s located in the back of a private garden, but with an SMS reservation you can stay there for free.

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The open air toilet certainly has its charm, but on rainy days you don’t stay there very long.

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Day 3: 40km. It sounds like a very short route, but with ripped plastic bags in my shoes and wet feet for three days in a row, I was happy I wasn’t at the other side of Belgium. Again a good lesson learned: proper gear does help. Either rain covers for the shoes, or rainproof shoes.

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Cycling around in the neighbourhood is fun: villages with the names of “Woestijn” (= desert) and “Drie-Egypten” made me frown, but the place is beautiful.

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On my way back I circled around Brussels to go to Grimbergen.

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Before getting to Grimbergen I discovered one of the most beautiful views on the skyline of Brussels: de Heirbaan in Meise. While cycling through nature you see all the landmarks of Brussels in a tiny version next to you, which makes Brussels look very small.

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To conclude, this was a nice route, getting lost on my tour bike, camping in nature and reading books in the tent while it’s raining and 3°C. I’ll do this route again during the summertime.

The three concepts that can make your cycling trip a blast, no matter if it’s a one day trip or a full week holiday:

1. Paalkamperen: plenty of beautiful nature camping spots spread over Belgium. You can use them for free all year round. If you start planning a cycling-camping trip, it’s a good way to start planning around some good sleeping locations. All of them have a dry-toilet, a dedicated camping zone, some have a fire pit or a bbq. Check out the map on bivakzone.be. A similar system exists in The Netherlands.

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2. Old railway lines: you might have found out yourself already that all over Europe old railway lines have been converted to cycling paths. Most of them cross nature in a safe and efficient way, so if you use them for longer distances it ensures you of a nice trip. Check out this overview for Belgium or if you want to try it out in another country: UK railway lines. If you would rather cross Europe on even longer distances, than make sure to have a look on Eurovelo. You can find routes that go straight from Brussels, over the Alps all the way to the heel of Italy (Eurovelo 5).

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3. Canals: take a map, see if there’s a waterway and chances are big there’s a nice cycling path next to it. I cycled along the Schelde and Dender rivers for hours. It’s fast and it’s beautiful.

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