City route in Belgium

In Belgian Limburg you can enjoy all the beauty that the area has to offer: natural beauty, delicious regional products and monumental buildings. You drive through a rolling landscape in which open fields, hedgerows, forests, orchards and stream valleys alternate. It is almost unbelievable how incredibly quiet it still is in this beautiful area.

Genoels-Elderen Wine Castle is the first attraction on your route. The castle was first mentioned in 1265. The core of the current building dates from the beginning of the eighteenth century. This wine castle, the only one in Belgium, is located on the old highway that connected Tongeren with Cologne. With 22 hectares of vineyards, this is the largest wine estate in the country. Guided tours of the thirteenth-century wine cellars, among others, can be booked by appointment.

Grand Commandery Alden Biesen is also worth a visit. This complex was built by the German knighthood from the thirteenth to the nineteenth century . The impressive castle complex has now been beautifully restored and transformed into a cultural center of the Flemish Government. A visit to the castle takes you far back in time. Almost the entire domain, including the English park, can be visited freely.

Just like in Dutch Limburg, you can also experience the Burgundian way of life in Belgian Limburg. In Bilzen, for example, you can enjoy a beer from the local craft brewery Den Toetëlèr. Or you can try a regional dish, such as rabbit or farm chicken in Bilzer style. You leave Bilzen in a southerly direction via the natural Demer Valley and drive through picturesque villages such as Werm and Riksingen. In the distance you can see Tongeren appearing on the horizon.

Tongeren started out as a Gallo-Roman civilian settlement in the year 15 BC. In the following centuries, Tongeren played an increasingly important role in the history of the Low Countries. The town obtained market rights in the second century and a seat of the first diocese in the third century. Nowadays Tongeren is a tourist attraction where beautiful churches, a beguinage and Roman remains can be admired. There are plenty of nice restaurants to satisfy your hunger.