Flanders for groups 2022/2023

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Flanders

For Groups

A Beau Business Media Publication

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All of Europe animated in miniature!

Be amazed !

Mini-Europe is a park situated at the gates of Brussels featuring all the wonders of Europe in miniature. Bonsai trees, flowery groves and dwarf trees embellish the monuments which have been meticulously reproduced in the finest detail.

NEW The Trevi Fountain

Spectacular !

A two-hour walk, that is both entertaining and educational, to learn about the member states of the European Union and the historical, architectural and cultural wealth of Europe.

Fun !

A trip full of surprises. Destroy a section of the Berlin wall, set off the eruption of the Vesuvius, launch an attack of legionnaires or scare the Vikings. Depending on what you fancy, operate the many interactive live action animations to (re)discover Europe as you’ve never done before.

All of Europe animated in miniature!

NEW

New exhibition SPIRIT of europe

Located at the end of the park, the ‘Spirit of Europe’ welcomes you into a large covered space where live action models, games and quizzes will give you the chance to test, enrich or perfect your knowledge of the member states of the European Union.

NEW

Medieval animations in miniature

Fascinating !

Have fun whilst learning! Behind the captivating universe of the miniature monuments, the dramatization and live action animations, relive our surprising common history with its values and heritage! From the origins of democracy to the enterprising spirit, from our Greek, Roman or Viking heritage to the political transformations of the 21st century, you will find commentary at every stage of the journey in the free catalogue that is teeming with information and anecdotes that will delight all children, inquisitives and history fanatics.

Unrivalled quality of artistry.

The park exhibits more than 350 monuments which were selected for their architectural quality and their European symbolism. They are reproduced to the finest detail. Many statues of the GrandPlace of Brussels are painted with real gold leaves. The Big Ben is 4 meters tall. At 13 meters, the Eiffel Tower is taller than a 3-storey building. Yet, all the buildings are on a scale of 1/25.

Mini-Europe is open every day from mid of March until the 1st week of January.

Novelties and events: www.minieurope.eu MINI-EUROPE - Bruparck, B-1020 Brussels Restaurant-cafetaria - info@minieurope.eu

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Foreword From Andrew Daines, Director (UK and Ireland) for Visit Flanders

After two years when our lives were somewhat curtailed due to the Covid pandemic, it feels exciting and invigorating to be writing once again about group travel.

For many of us, being able to travel and discover new places and different cultures – and to share these experiences with other like-minded people – is an essential part of who we are. It is also the case that when tourism is done well – when visitors integrate with communities in destinations, when they share passions and interests, then the visitor, effectively, becomes part of the community. Nowhere is this better illustrated than in Flanders Fields, the area in the west of the Flemish region of Belgium, where many of the fiercest battles of the First World War took place, and where the scars of this conflict survive to the present day.

Group tours to Flanders Fields began even before the end of the First World War, and the residents of this area have ever since been welcoming visitors wishing to pay their respects, to commemorate, and learn from these events. The two-year hiatus, without the many passionate visitors from the UK and other Commonwealth nations was tough; gardeners maintained the hundreds of Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemeteries as meticulously as ever, the buglers of the Last Post Association performed the daily ceremony every night as usual…but visitors from Britain and elsewhere were distinctly absent. It was a great privilege to be on one of the first coaches returning to Ypres earlier this year, not just to rediscover and

reacquaint myself with the museums and sights, cafés and bars, but to feel the huge welcome from the whole community – from the hotel reception, to the restaurants, and not least, to the wonderful tour guides who were so obviously happy to be sharing their knowledge and stories again – in English!

Of course, whilst the visitors have been away, this period has been put to good use, and much has been undertaken to renovate and improve, such as at the Passchendaele Museum and the Hooge Crater Museum, as well as at many of the hotels in the area.

Elsewhere in Flanders, there has been extensive development work too, not least in the city of Antwerp. In September, after over 11 years, the region’s flagship art gallery, the Royal Museum of Fine Arts (KMSKA) will finally reopen their doors, with an award-winning, and genuinely stunning, architectural design to display the largest and most important collection of art in Flanders. This further adds to the region’s offer for the culture seeker that also includes the new Mystic Lamb Visitor Centre at St Bavo’s Cathedral in Ghent, allowing visitors to take an augmented reality tour of the 16th century world of Jan van Eyck, and to inspect the intricate detail of his magnificent 12 panel altarpiece. The tour ends with the opportunity to witness the original work, in its original home, just as people were able to do when it was unveiled in 1532.

Across the region, our stunning cities are looking even more special, with so much to see and experience, and I can also attest that, when you’re back in Flanders, our local food and drink will taste even more delicious too! Flanders looks forward to the return of groups from the UK, with a welcome warmer than ever.

Andrew 3

Picture credits front cover Visit Flanders center picture Baibaz,Shutterstock unless marked other wise All other pictures Visit Flanders

Sales Hugh Cairns and Brett Kirby Tel: 0121 445 6961 Production: Laura Collins Design: Alexina Whittaker Beau Business Media Group Ltd Publishing House, Windrush, Ash Lane, Birmingham, B48 7TS Tel: 0121 445 6961 e-mail: beaubusinessmedia@gmail.com Thisis a controlled circulation publication and freely available to qualifying applicants. Care is taken to ensure that the information contained within the magazine is accurate. However, the publisher cannot accept liability for errors or omissions, no matter how they arise.

Readers are advised to get facts and statements confirmed by suppliers when making enquiries. The opinions of the author are not necessarily those as the publisher. All rights are reserved. No reproduction of any part of this magazine may be carried out without the consent of the publisher being obtained in the first instance.

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Visit Flanders

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Flanders

H

ugh Cairns looks at what makes Flanders so special to him

Like most people, the pesky pandemic put paid to any overseas travel plans I had for most of 2020 and 2021, in March this year, however, I dusted down my passport and went on a short jaunt over to Flanders. In many ways this was a fitting return to foreign travel, as I have visited the region on many, many occasions and know this most accessible part of Europe rather well. The trip came as a result of an invite from the kind folks at the London office of Tourism Flanders and I needed no second invitation.

Flanders is only a 90 minutes coach drive from Calais or Dunkirk, is easy to get to and offers so much to visitors, especially, those from the United Kingdom.

Everywhere you go the words, Welkom in Vlaanderen, will greet you, except, that’s not strictly true as pretty much everyone under the age 60 speaks English and as the age lowers the more proficient the level of bilingualism becomes...............the young, in particular, converse in English for fun, so it’s more likely to be Welcome to Flanders!

The genesis for this slightly truncated edition of the Guide To Flanders For UK Groups (now in its 18th year) came during the aforementioned trip and there were three main reasons. Firstly, it is clear that UK group travel organisers and coach operators are keen to get their groups back to Flanders.

The second is how keen Flanders based attractions and hotels are to welcome UK groups back, whilst the third driver is a little more personal. A fellow traveller on the three-day educational trip works for a group tour operator and this was her first trip to Flanders, as such, everything was new to her this got me thinking.

As nearly 20 years have elapsed since the first edition of the guide, there will be many new faces within the group travel industry who have not been to Flanders or know little about the region. With these people in mind,

for this year’s edition, the Guide To Flanders For UK Groups will go a little back to basics and give readers more of an introduction to the region and suggest attractions & accommodation providers that will most definitely have group appeal.

In land mass, think of a slightly enlarged Yorkshire and you’re about there, i.e. it’s ideal for a short break or, say, a week’s tour. Aside, perhaps, from France, those groups with an interest or passion for the Great War will find more historical landmarks and sites in Flanders than in any other European country. Only those with a heart of stone could not be moved by the intensely moving experience of hearing the Last Post every evening under the Menin Gate in Ypres. A stroll amongst the headstones at Tynecot Cemetary affords time for reflection and to consider the futility of a war when human life was horrendously expendable. Likewise, the Memorial Museum Passchendaele 1917 where your group will experience life in dugouts and trenches is hugely thought provoking.

Flanders is not just about WWI, of course, and UK groups can ‘lighten’ the experience by visting one of the many other attractions which are keen to welcome them. The coastline of Flanders is, as you would expect, reminiscent of England’s east coast and resorts such as Blankenberge, De Panne, and Ostend offer seaside charm to match anything this side of the North Sea. The city of Bruges holds it own against other on planet earth, Antwerp hosts many attractions and museums, the magnificent St Rumbold’s cathedral in Mechelen, Ghent with its medieval architecture are just some of the reasons to visit the region Brussels For those groups looking for the perfect citybreak, Brussels is usually high on the list not least as it can be reached easily by aeroplane, coach or, my favourite, Eurostar. With so many attractions ranging from the culturally highbrow to the more prosaic there is so much to see and do over, say, a two night/three day mini-break or as part of a bigger tour of Flanders. The architecturlly 6

shutterstock,Catarina Belova

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Visit Flanders

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tailor the approach of the visit and the commentary according to your group’s interests – booking is essential. With a seating capacity of 250, MiniEurope’s restaurant is the biggest in the Bruparck and usually offer a menu to any group’s taste and budget.

Groups with a minimum of 20 persons can enjoy a meal choosing one of the following options: a) The self-service option where your group can enjoy a warm snack or drink or b) Special menus for groups upon reservation only.

legionnaires or scare the Vikings. There’s also many interactive live action animations, from the Bells of Stockholm to the Windmills at Kinderdijk it’s a chance to ‘(re)discover Europe as they possibly might not have done before’.

With regards to facts and figures, Mini-Europe exhibits more than 350 monuments and animations which were selected for their architectural quality and their European symbolism. They are reproduced to the finest detail. The Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela alone required 24.000 hours of work. Many statues of the GrandPlace of Brussels are painted with real gold leaves.

In the Seville arena, 6.000 figurines were placed, one by one, to attend the bullfight.

The Big Ben is 4 meters tall.

At 13 meters, the Eiffel Tower is taller than a 3-storey building. Yet, all the buildings are on a scale of 1/25.

If you would like a more bespoke package for your group, a personalised guided tour is available and you can book a visit with a professional guide, who will

Brussels is, of course, not the biggest of capital cities and many other attractions can be found close by. As such, UK group visitors are encouraged to combine a trip to MiniEurope with any of the many other attractions on its doorstep; The Atomium, Brewery Timmermans, Planète Chocolat! or Trainworld – just to name a few. www. minieurope.com/en/ practical/group-rates/ Trainworld For obvious reasons, perhaps,

we in the United Kingdom have a love affair with the railways and railway based attractions are always popular with the groups market. Train World is the official museum of the National Railway Company of Belgium and is based in the preserved buildings of Schaarbeek railway station and a hangar built to its north. Based in the ‘heart’ of Europe it lies on the route of Belgium’s first train track, between Brussels and Mechelen. The station, is a fine example of Belgian railway architecture and is connected to the new (opened in 2015) hangar by the railway garden.

The history of the Belgian railways collection begins in the early days of the 1830s, where, following the lead of their English counterparts, Belgium looked to establish a railway service. The theme is brought up to date with the advent of Eurostar, where it is possible to travel from Brussels to London in only two hours UK groups are particularly welcome at Trainworld and a special group programme can offer; a thematic guided visit Anton Ivanov shutterstock

stunning Grand Place or Grote Markt with its Baroque Guildhalls offers a great ‘photo-opportunity’. Also (but don’t mention it to Mr Farage!) , the Parlamentarium or the European Parliament Visitors’ Centre is a fascinating insight into the workings of this political behemoth A long-time favourite Brussels attraction is Mini-Europe, a stone’s throw away from one of the capital’s most well-known sites, The Atomium.

If your group hasn’t been to Mini-Europe before, do try to include it in your next itinerary - if for no other reason than that it will bring out the child in all of them, irrespective of age. A twohour walk around Mini-Europe is both entertaining and educational and groups can learn about the member states of the European Union and the United Kingdom, their historical, architectural and cultural wealth. There’s live action, too, as your group could ‘destroy’ a section of the Berlin wall, set off the eruption of the Vesuvius, launch an attack of

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Only the scars in the landscape remain. The last echoes of WWI seem to have quietly died away. When memories start to fade, it is vital, more than ever, to keep it all in focus.

This is what In Flanders Fields Museum sets out to do, year after fading year.

UPDATED EXPERIENCE. Discover fresh exhibits and installations, new movies and objects, and even more profound personal stories. Choose the new audio guide with more in-depth insights for grown-ups or the child-friendly version.

WHEN MEMORIES START TO FADE FADE, IN FLANDERS FIELDS MUSEUM KEEPS IT ALL IN FOCUS.

Reserve your tickets on inflandersfields.be

TEMPORARY EXHIBITION Royals & Trains until 22.01.2023

TRAIN WORLD Schaarbeek railway station Princess Elisabeth square 5 1030 Brussels

Discover the railways of yesterday, today and tomorrow More info and reservations : www.trainworld.be | reservations@trainworld.be | +32 (0)2 224 75 88

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Visit Flanders

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Visit Flanders

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the temporary exhibition, Royals & Trains, a guided visit of the permanent collection and/or a mixed guided visit of both. The tour takes around two hours, the exhbition lasts until January 23 and numbers per tour must not exceed 20 A popular visit for groups is the one-day programme, where lunch can be taken at the brasserie, RN Express and packages are available pretty much every day except December 25th and January 1st The Trainworld shop offers souvenirs of a visit starting at only €1 and there are also the usual items such as books, posters and stamps etc. A Trainworld audio guide App can be downloaded which

gives access to complete content. Group rates begin for 15+ people and further information can be found at www.trainworld.be

include a visit to the city of Ieper/Ypres and its environs, as there is so much on offer and an ideal starting point is the In Flanders Fields Museum.

"Their name liveth for evermore' are the biblical words the famous writer Rudyard Kipling selected for Sir Edwin Lutyens' Stone of Remembrance. But can we commemorate for evermore?

Walking through the landscape of Flanders Fields, you inevitably come across the military cemeteries of the First World War. More than 100 years after the armistice and long after the persons who knew the fallen personally have passed away, the numerous war graves

As mentioned earlier in the guide, one is never far away from reminders of the Great War and out of posthumous respect to all of those who fell, perhaps it is best not to attach the label, ‘attraction’, to those sites which commemorate four of the darkest years in world history.

A journey to the region wouldn’t be complete without paying homage to one of those sites and here are some suggestions.

A trip to Flanders should 14

remain as last witnesses. In the temporary exhibition "For Evermore" (29/04/2023 18/02/2024), the In Flanders Fields Museum pays attention to the creation and evolution of the commemorative landscape but why do we commemorate the war primarily through its dead?

Despite the unpreparedness of the various powers at the outbreak of the war for the large number of war dead, there was an unprecedented massive use of individual burials. It led to the creation of numerous field graves and cemeteries in the war landscape. Although several organisations, such as the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, were

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Welcome at Peace Village

Where to find us?

Facilities

Messines, Belgium's smallest city, is steeped in history. Less than 10 km (15 minutes by car) from Ypres or the French border and with a view over the former battlefields, peaceful views are everywhere.

The Peace Village also houses a restaurant, several meeting rooms and a conference room for large events. All in all, ideally equipped for schools, youth groups or business conferences. In the evening, we can recommend you to try a local ale in our bar with game facilities and live sports.

Activities at Peace Village Besides our two football pitches, the facilities also include a netball field, pingpong, pool table and table football.

Campfires and karaoke are possible after reservation. Our local guides are happy to tailor your itinerary and in Flanders Fields, the cycling paradise is never far away.

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\Marina Datsenko Shutterstock

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can be found on the website www.inflandersfields.be

by side during the First World War. On site facilities include a restaurant and bar and the food served is healthy and sourced locally. The bar & restaurant each have a terrace overlooking the landscape and the hostel is surrounded by a large green area, ideal for playing or relaxing - each group is also issued with an free sports cupboard on arrival which contains all the required equipment for a fun day on the grounds. About 400 meters from the hostel, a second football pitch (Flanders Peace Field), a playground and a petanque lane can be found. The nearest ski & adventure park is 2 km away and the nearest swimming pool about 10 km.

Group rates apply for 15+ people and a few weeks before your group’s stay, you will be sent an e-mail with an overview of which rooms they have allocated your group to.

Through the rooming list, you can check the type of rooms as well as the number of beds per room.

The hostel has a large private parking for several cars and coaches.

For detailed information visit www.peacevillage.be

In Flanders Fields Museum. The focus of the Museum is on the human war experience, presenting hundreds of authentic objects and images in an experience-orientated setting..

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established, the concentration of these field graves and even smaller cemeteries was necessary. The exhibition highlights, among other things, the (changing) locations of cemeteries, the processes of concentration and the often forgotten mobility of the bodies that this entailed.

Moreover, the exhibition gives a prominent place to multivocality, a core value of the In Flanders Fields Museum. It raises the question of who is less or even not visible at all in the contemporary commemorative landscape, such as civilians, black fallen soldiers, those shot at dawn and non-European servicemen. In addition, the exhibition shows how contemporary commemorative tourism came into being and tells the story of the pilgrimages undertaken after the armistice by family members and veterans, among others.

The exhibition introduces you to a number of hidden gems in the landscape of Flanders Fields and the emotional stories that these places hold.

Despite the uniform appearance of the cemeteries, both a unique history and the personal style of the architect responsible characterize each cemetery.

"For Evermore" is the ideal starting point to discover the commemorative landscape of Flanders Fields with a backpack full of stories in the framework of the 2023-theme year ‘The stories of the landscape!’ . Furthermore, the additional podcast and the For Evermore app create an enhanced emotional experience in the former war landscape. More (practical) information about a group visit to the museum and the landscape of Flanders Fields

Whilst Ypres offers many hotels for visiting groups, an alternative can be found just a few miles away at the Peace Village in rural Messines and it’s a good base for exploring Flanders Fields and the Ypres Salient. The hostel overlooks the Messines ridge battlefield of Belgium's smallest city with landmarks such as the Island of Ireland Peace Park and the New Zealand Memorial to the Missing. The Hostel can accommodate both medium size and large groups. It can welcome up to 165 guests in 43 studios, each with their own living and sleeping area and en-suite facilities.

The history of the Peace Village starts with the inauguration of the Island of Ireland Peace Park in Messines. The memorial was officially opened on 11 November 1998 in the presence of HRH Queen Elizabeth II, Irish President McAleese and King of the Belgians Albert II. Another reason for founding the Peace Village Hostel was the presence of the 'International School for Peace Studies' which opened its doors in Messines in 2001. The goal was to bring Irish youngsters from different backgrounds together and talk about who their grandfathers fought side

group a little better.. a word of caution, though, from someone who has done it...Belgian beer can be much, much stronger than its UK counterpart!

At Bourgogne des Flandres in Brugge, groups can find out more about hops and the brewing process, learn how to tap beer digitally and take a bottle with your picture on it back home. Of course, at the end of the tour you will get a free Bourgogne des Flandres and enjoy a wonderful view of the Bruges canals www.anthonymartin.be/en/

For accommodation, all of the usual international hotel chains have sites throughout Flanders as well as smaller and privately owned hotels which may offer a little more character and charm.

Getting to Flanders could not be easier with three ferry providers, the train operators Eurotunnel/Eurostar and countless airlines offering flights to Brussels. For those travelling by coach, let your local coach operator or tour wholesaler organise things for you.

And finally...beer!

Beer and breweries are everywhere in Flanders – whether a multi-national giant such as Inbev (think Leffe, Stella) or a smaller affair such as St. Bernardus – this hoppy nectar is ubuiqitous. At Café Mort Subite (translate it, if you dare!) in Brussels they claim to have around 2000 beers on offer!

Breweries are always make for a great group visit and the tasting at the end of tour affords the opportunity to get to know everyone in the 18

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• Interactive design • Family friendly tour • Reconstructed dugout • Reconstructed trenches

Memorial Museum Passchendaele 1917 Berten Pilstraat 5A, BE-8980 Zonnebeke | +32(0) 51 77 04 41 www.passchendaele.be | info@passchendaele.be

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Flanders

Bourgogne des Flandres, Bruges

C

raft brewery honours Flemish tradition in the heart of the Venice of the north: Bruges

Bourgogne des Flandres is a Flemish Red beer, a renowned Belgian beer style. e beer has a low alcohol content, a dark colour and a complex flavour. Indeed, on top of its typical fruity character, Bourgogne des Flandres also has a sour character. is makes it a surprisingly refreshing beer that also tastes sweet, rich and fruity at the same time. "Bourgogne des Flandres is a typical example of the Flemish cut beer tradition where old and young beer are judiciously mixed until a perfect balance is achieved. is was used to be done by the numerous local brewers in Belgium, but today this practice has become very rare."

"At our brewery in Bruges, we brew Den Bruinen Os, a dark, sweet, rich and heavy beer. We then blend that beer with Lambic from the oldest lambic brewery in the world located in Itterbeek: Brouwerij Timmermans. is Lambic has matured for more than twelve months in wooden barrels and is known as the pinnacle of Belgian sour beer. anks to spontaneous fermentation and thus the presence of good bacteria from the air, it possesses a natural fruitiness without the

Belfry, which is why it appears on the labels. Over the years, however, more and more breweries moved away from Bruges, to the point where nothing at all was brewed in the city. Brewery Den Os was one of the last brewery to disappear, but the Bourgogne des Flandres brand remained.

Many years later, the beer came into the hands of John Martin, who decided to give Bourgogne des Flandres back its historical presence in the centre of Bruges in the form of a cra beer brewery and gin distillery with visitor centre.

addition of fruit," said the brewmaster omas Vandelanotte.

Historical presence in Bruges city centre e history of Bourgogne des Flandres goes back to 1825, when the son of brewer Corneille Van Houtryve opened brewery Den Os in Bruges' city centre. At that time, Bruges had a hugely rich brewing tradition. is is where Bourgogne des Flandres saw the light of day in the shadow of Bruges'

Unique cultural outing for the whole family rough the unique combination of a fully functional brewery and distillery with a visitor centre, you get there a special insight into both the history and character of the products and the actual production process.

You can see the brewer at 20

work with your own eyes and even ask him questions. In addition, you can taste one of beers on the beautiful terrace, with a view of the historic inner city and the canals. As the location is part of the UNESCO World Heritage, a visit to the brewery becomes an unforgettable cultural trip.

By the way, children can also have fun here thanks to a special trail where they have to search for moles!"

Want to know more? www.bourgognedesflandres.be

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"At our brewery in Bruges, we brew Den Bruinen Os, a dark, sweet, rich and heavy beer. We then blend that beer with Lambic from the oldest lambic brewery in the world located in Itterbeek: Brouwerij Timmermans”

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Brewery & Distillery

The real taste of BrugeS

Meet the brewer and experience the brewing process live !

E.R.: Anthony R. Martin • chaussée de Charleroi 591 • 1410 Waterloo • Belgium I SG11XXII

Y L D N E I R F S D I K

A fun and educational brewery and distillery tour to immerse you in the brewing history of Bruges.

Kartuizerinnenstraat 6 • 8000 Bruges (only 80 m from the belfry)

More info & opening hours : www.bourgognedesflandres.be Beer brewed carefully, to be consumed with care.