Walking through Poperinge

During this walking route of over 11 kilometers you will get to know the West Flemish Poperinge, the city known for hop cultivation.

Hop Museum and Talbot House
The start of this route takes place at the Horse Market in Poperinge in West Flanders. Just after you're on your way, you walk past The Hop Museum. Poperinge is known for its hop fields. But how did they start this cultivation? And which beers are brewed with it? A gigantic collection of more than two thousand beers shows you which beers are brewed in Belgium. Shortly afterwards you will pass Talbot House, a 19th century mansion of a local hop merchant. The house was a place where soldiers could relax away from the front. Today it is a museum with guesthouse.

Weeuwhof
In 1769, Canon Ferdinand Proventier had twelve houses built for poor widows (wows in the dialect) in Sint-Annastraat (side street of Casselstraat). A facade stone with a flaming heart and a cross still reminds us of the foundation. In 1782, 9 more houses were built, creating a completely enclosed courtyard and it is called the Weeuwhof. The low brick houses under a tiled gable roof are characteristic examples of simple 18th century housing.

Viscount Frimout Park
At the end of the route you walk past Burggraaf Frimout Park. This city park was constructed in 2002. It was named after Dirk Frimout, the first Belgian astronaut in space, who was born in Poperinge. The Poperingevaart, a waterway that connected Poperinge with the IJzer and therefore with the sea, flows through the park. The park forms the green lung of the center and is divided into recreational zones, play zones, ecological zones and an assortment of gardens.