Countless walking routes through inspiring scenery with numerous attractive cafés and restaurants for refreshment along the way!
We'd like to get your imagination going with a few of our toppers, but to discover ALL the Westhoek's hidden treasures, you would need to book serveral weekend trips to Ypres in order to see them all ;-)
An enjoyable and healthy way of getting to know our rolling landscape, the meadows, the hedgerows, rows of knotted willow trees, pools, woodland, pretty farms and typical villages and the renowned 'coleur locale' of our unique region.
All maps for routes described here, are for sale in our reception shop but if you would like to get your hands on a copy ahead of your stay, in order to plan out your route, then visit the Westtoer Webshop.
The rampart route connects the nicest parts along the ramparts, which at one time enclosed the whole town, leading you up on the walls themselves and then down to meander along the water-filled moat. The route also takes you to the areas in the north and north west of the town, where the ramparts used to be but have long since disappeared. You can join the route from any of five entry points, one of which lies just 600 metres from Ariane Hotel. The information panels along the route, describe the highlights of the ramparts' thousand-year history and explain how the natural landscape has evolved in that time.
The complete route takes a good 2 hours to complete. You can choose to do just one section of the walk or you can extend if further to take in three splendid neighbouring areas: the 'Ketelkwaad', with some playground features, part of the Hamilton Park to the west of the Majoorgracht (Major canal); the Hoornwerk Park to the east of the town; and the Verdronken Weide (Flooded Meadow) to the south of the town.
The folder containing the Rampart Route is available, free of charge, at reception.
During the First World War, Ypres suffered enormously and very quickly, many of the town's historic buildings were shleed and reduced to rubble. But the town was rebuilt and today, the Bell Tower and the gothic St Martin's Catherdral have World Heritage status and dominate the town centre once more.
Taking you through 'medieval' alleyways and shady town parks, the Town Walking Route guides you past impressive mansion houses, monumental gate ways and ramparts. The past is never far away.
The Town Walking Route is signposted by circular bronze plagues, set into the stone cobbles, you can find one right outside our front door!
Once you've entered the scenic and culturally historic kingdom of the woodlands to the south of Ypres, you'll never get enough of them! Around 100 km of largely traffic-free, unsurfaced footpaths join together to form this walking network.
Using the numbered 'junctions', you can map out your own walking tour in dot-to-dot fashion. Just choose where you want to start out from and walk for as long as far as you whish. The 'junctions' have signposts with arrows to guide you on your way and the handy map of the network will also help to keep you on track.
This route shines a spotlight on the landscape to the South of Ypres. The route takes you through the most wooded region of the Westhoek.
The Gasthuisbossen consist of 8 different woodlands spreading out across Zillebeke, Zandvoorde and Wijtschate. During the Middle Ages, they were the property of the Ypres 'Godshuizen' and 'Gasthuizen' - which provided medical care and alms to the poor. The woods dominate the scenery all along this route.
Find peace and tranquility surrounded by the rolling hills of West and French Flanders.
There are around 250 km virtually traffic-free, unsurfaced footpaths connecting together to form one walking network. Here it is again possible to map out your own route, using the numbered 'junctions'.
Choose your starting point and walk for as long as you like ... or until you come across a charming café, nestling against a hillside...
This route starts AND ends, as luck would have it ;-), at the Saint Sixtus Abbey of Westvleteren, one of the six trappist abbeys in Belgium.
You might be interested to know that it's only possible to buy a Westvleteren Trappist beer (many times voted Best Beer in the World), at the abbey and its nearby café.
The perfect way to enjoy these peaceful surroundings; this is a largely agricultural area that since ancient times has formed part of the hop-growing region of Poperinge. Following winding pathways through gently rolling countryside, you are often walking in the footsteps of generations of farming families who took the same footpaths to church each Sunday, across the fields and down narrow lanes. The route features woods, hop fields, fields of meadows.
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