On Saturday 27 September 2025, a special heritage train will operate across the Netherlands and Belgium to mark the approaching withdrawal of the last Intercityrijtuig (ICR) coaches from regular service.
Tag: Essen
Antwerp-Berchem Railway Station up for major revamp
Antwerp-Berchem Railway Station and its surroundings are set for a major renovation, beginning with the refurbishment of the railway bridge over the Ring in August 2028 and 2029, Het Nieuwsblad reports. The City of Antwerp is participating in a study on a new station building and the redevelopment of the surrounding area.
Arriva Tri-Country Train between Maastricht, Liège and Aachen will start on Sunday 9 June 2024 without OV-chipkaart
From 9 June 2024, Arriva‘s Tri-Country Train will connect Liège (Luik, Lüttich) in Belgium in to Maastricht in the Netherlands and Aachen (Aken, Aix-la-Chapelle) in Germany, after years of preparation. Contrary to previous announcements, the Dutch OV-chipkaart or public transport chip card will not be accepted as a valid ticket on the Belgian leg of…
Discovering Belgium and the Netherlands in COVID times
March 2020. The world learns the words coronavirus and COVID-19. Lockdowns, travel restrictions, restrictions of other kinds, social distancing and other new dynamics which have become more or less natural since. No foreign travel meant staying in Belgium. So in 2020 and 2021 we did quite a few domestic excursions to still our hunger for…
Green Stop: Essen – Heide Hike ft. Kalmthoutse Heide
At the end of October, the Federal Government put Belgium in a second term of lockdown. To be fair, it’s not a full lockdown. People are allowed to go outside. For example, to go hiking. On Armistice Day, Thanh and I did the Stationstapper Essen – Heide hike featuring the Kalmthoutse Heide or Kalmthout Heath…