681850 From nature to culture in Turnhout

Turnhout is the capital of the Kempen, the city of beguines, fens and bunkers. This walk takes you through the rich history of this beautiful city: along the robust fortress, wide canal and the impressive castle of the Dukes of Brabant. Outside the city you can wander through a rugged fen area, hidden for years under dull coniferous forest.

Silence in the city

The picturesque beguinage dates from the 14th century. In this oasis of peace in the middle of the center you will find cozy houses, authentic cobblestones, green hedges, old water pumps and wrought iron street lamps. Only the chirping of birds does not make this a completely silent place. The beguinage, together with sixteen other Flemish beguinages, was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1998. The last beguine died here in 2002. You will find a museum there to learn more about the beguine culture.

Heather and fens

The walk also takes you outside the city walls. The municipality is doing everything it can to restore the heathland and fen landscape. Monotonous coniferous trees are cut down, as is the American oak. The open landscape is increasingly resembling what it looked like here before the twentieth century. Beyond the Koeven you wander alternately through corn fields and rough grassland. And along the Bels Lijntje, the former railway line to Tilburg, there is a whopper of a watchtower. At the top you are rewarded with a view of an open landscape with woolly dots in the distance, just like a sheep painting.

Directions

#	Description	Distance
	2300, Turnhout, Flanders, Belgium	0.00 km
79	79 (2300, Turnhout, Flanders, Belgium)	1.92 km
80	80 (2300, Turnhout, Flanders, Belgium)	2.42 km
80	80 (2300, Turnhout, Flanders, Belgium)	2.44 km
	Stadsboerderij (Stadsboerderij, 2300, Turnhout, Flanders, Belgium)	2.74 km
78	78 (2300, Turnhout, Flanders, Belgium)	3.46 km

Sights

Stadsboerderij

Stadsboerderij 10
2300 Turnhout

The Stadsboerderij is a place where you can relive farm life. You can go there for a self-harvesting garden, the food teams and room rental. There is also an event on time.

Klein Engelandhoeve

Dombergstraat 29
2300 Turnhout

This farm is the ideal starting point for walks in the Vennengbied. It reaches the Zwart Water, the Grote and Kleine Klotteraard and the Zandhoven. It is a melting pot of nature experience, tourism, countryside and agriculture, social employment, underprivileged, landscape management and cultural history.

Kijktoren Bels Lijntje

Uitkijktoren Bels Lijntje
2300 Turnhout

A watchtower allows you to enjoy all the natural splendor that the Vennen area has. At the same time, it is an extension of years of nature development project. This twelve and a half meter high tower consists of a steel construction, clad and floored with durable oak and cedar. Copyright photo: Mie De Backer

Kasteel van de hertogen van Brabant

Kasteel van de Hertogen van Brabant 1
2300 Turnhout

The impressive castle dates from the 12th century and has had many functions over the centuries. Originally it was a hunting lodge of the first duke of Brabant. After that, the impressive building was renamed, among other things, as a prison, city warehouse, pumper's house and weaver's school.

Begijnhof

Begijnhof 56
2300 Turnhout

The beguinage is a well-preserved place of tranquility in the city center. Cozy houses, cobblestones, hedges, water pumps and wrought iron street lamps form a beautiful backdrop. If you want to relive the flowering period of the beguines, then a visit to the Beguinage Museum is an absolute must.

Taxandriamuseum

Begijnenstraat 28
2300 Turnhout

A visit to the Taxandria Museum will transport you through hundreds of years of history. The renovated 16th century museum building is worth seeing in itself, not to mention the remarkable garden. In the museum you explore the history of the rich Kempen life and Turnhout. Copyright photo: Mie De Backer

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From nature to culture in Turnhout