Why this ride
A 295 km round trip from Brussels - roughly 4 h 40 in the saddle. On the way it passes Béguinage de Lier, Stadhuis en Belforttoren, Maison Guiete and Beffroi de Gembloux. A steady touring day rather than a sprint.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Brussels day out · Beffroi de Gembloux
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 295 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 4 h 40
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Brussels
Brussels is a city that does not quite match its reputation. People think of meetings and regulations, and the capital of Europe is indeed full of both, but the town itself is full of odd, cheerful corners. The Grand-Place is the best-known, a cobbled square ringed by gilded guild houses and a lace-like town hall, and it is lovely at night when the lights come on. A few minutes' walk away, a small bronze boy relieves himself in a fountain and is regularly dressed in costumes by local clubs, which tells you something about the local sense of humour.
Read the complete Brussels write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Brussels is where the day begins. Next is Béguinage de Lier.
2. Béguinage de Lier
Through a gateway off a busy street in Lier, you step into another world. The béguinage is a small walled neighbourhood of narrow cobbled lanes, whitewashed brick houses and a baroque church, where for centuries communities of beguines lived. These were religious women who chose a life of prayer, work and service without taking the permanent vows of nuns, living independently in their own houses but sharing a communal life. The béguinages of Flanders, about a dozen of them, were listed by UNESCO in 1998, and the one in Lier, with its quiet lanes and doorways topped with statues of saints, is one of the most charming.
Read the complete Béguinage de Lier write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Béguinage de Lier comes up about 51 km into the recorded legs. Next is Stadhuis en Belforttoren.
3. Stadhuis en Belforttoren
Lier's Grote Markt is one of those squares that makes you slow down without being asked. In the middle stands an elegant eighteenth-century town hall in pale stone, and grafted onto its side is something much older: a slim Gothic belfry from the fourteenth century, its four corner turrets giving it the look of a castle chess piece. Together they belong to the group of Belgian and French belfries listed by UNESCO, symbols of the moment when medieval towns won their freedoms and built towers to prove it.
Read the complete Stadhuis en Belforttoren write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 52 km into the recorded legs you reach Stadhuis en Belforttoren. Next is Maison Guiete.
4. Maison Guiete
In a leafy residential street in the southern suburbs of Antwerp, there is a white house that looks as if it has walked in from a different century. The Maison Guiette, as it is usually spelled, was designed by Le Corbusier in 1926 for the painter René Guiette, and it was his first building in Belgium. Since 2016 it has been one of the sites in the UNESCO listing of Le Corbusier's architectural work, alongside the Villa Savoye, the Unité d'Habitation in Marseille and buildings on several continents.
Read the complete Maison Guiete write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Maison Guiete, about halfway. Next is Beffroi de Gembloux.
5. Beffroi de Gembloux
Gembloux grew up around a Benedictine abbey founded in the tenth century, and for most of its history the monks ran the show. The abbey buildings, rebuilt in a grand classical style in the eighteenth century, now house a university faculty of agricultural sciences, fitting for a town surrounded by some of the richest farmland in Belgium. The belfry, a solid tower that was once part of a church and later became the town's civic symbol, stands in the centre and is part of the UNESCO listing of belfries of Belgium and France. Climbing it gives views over the rooftops and across the open fields of the Hesbaye.
Read the complete Beffroi de Gembloux write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Beffroi de Gembloux sits at 163 km, about halfway. Next is back through Maison Guiete.
6. back through Maison Guiete
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Maison Guiete write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Maison Guiete comes up about 233 km into the recorded legs. Next is back through Stadhuis en Belforttoren.
7. back through Stadhuis en Belforttoren
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Stadhuis en Belforttoren write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 248 km into the recorded legs you reach back through Stadhuis en Belforttoren. Next is back through Béguinage de Lier.
8. back through Béguinage de Lier
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Béguinage de Lier write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Béguinage de Lier, late in the day. Next is Brussels.
9. Brussels
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Brussels write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The route ends here after 295 km.
Leg by leg
Brussels to Béguinage de Lier
Brussels → Béguinage de Lier is 51 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Stadhuis en Belforttoren to Maison Guiete
Stadhuis en Belforttoren → Maison Guiete is 16 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Maison Guiete to Beffroi de Gembloux
Maison Guiete → Beffroi de Gembloux is 82 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Beffroi de Gembloux to back through Maison Guiete
Beffroi de Gembloux → back through Maison Guiete is 83 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
back through Maison Guiete to back through Stadhuis en Belforttoren
back through Maison Guiete → back through Stadhuis en Belforttoren is 15 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Béguinage de Lier to Brussels
back through Béguinage de Lier → Brussels is 47 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.