Why this ride
292 km from Sint-Truiden to Sint-Truiden, about 4 h 55 of riding. It goes by way of Sint-Pieterskerk / Belfort, Maison & Atelier Horta, Belfort en Schepenhuis / Beffroi et maison and Hôtel Tassel. It suits an unhurried touring pace.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Stadhuis met Toren and Hôtel Tassel
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 292 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 4 h 55
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
The recorded total and the leg detail need reconciliation. Inspect the leg notes before using this record for timing or navigation. 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. Stadhuis met Toren
Sint-Truiden's Grote Markt is one of the largest market squares in Belgium, and at its centre stands the town hall with its belfry, a tower that has watched over the town since the Middle Ages and been rebuilt and remodelled several times. The belfry, with its carillon, is part of the UNESCO listing of the Belfries of Belgium and France, inscribed in 1999 to honour these civic towers that symbolised the freedom and wealth of the medieval towns. Climb it if you can, and you will see the whole of the Haspengouw region spread out around you, a gently rolling landscape of orchards and fields.
Read the complete Stadhuis met Toren write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Stadhuis met Toren is where the day begins. Next is Sint-Pieterskerk / Belfort.
2. Sint-Pieterskerk / Belfort
Leuven is a university town through and through. Its university, founded in 1425, is the oldest in the Low Countries, and its students fill the streets, cafés and squares, giving the city a youthful energy. At its heart is the Grote Markt, dominated by two buildings: the Town Hall, a Gothic masterpiece covered in hundreds of statues, and opposite it, the Church of St Peter, a great Gothic church whose tower was never finished but which is part of the UNESCO-listed Belfries of Belgium and France.
Read the complete Sint-Pieterskerk / Belfort write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Sint-Pieterskerk / Belfort comes up 38 km in. Next is Maison & Atelier Horta.
3. Maison & Atelier Horta
From the street, the house at Rue Américaine in Saint-Gilles is pleasant but unassuming, a narrow town house of stone and iron among many others. Inside, it becomes something else entirely: a flowing space of curving wrought iron, stained glass, mosaic floors and woodwork that seems to grow like plant tendrils, all bathed in light from a glass roof over the stairwell. Victor Horta, one of the founders of Art Nouveau, built it as his home and studio between 1898 and 1901, and it is now a museum dedicated to his work. In 2000, it was listed by UNESCO together with three other Horta town houses in Brussels, including the Hôtel Tassel, often cited as the first true Art Nouveau building.
Read the complete Maison & Atelier Horta write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
75 km in you reach Maison & Atelier Horta. Next is Belfort en Schepenhuis / Beffroi et maison.
4. Belfort en Schepenhuis / Beffroi et maison
Aalst's Schepenhuis, the old aldermen's house on the Grote Markt, is reckoned to be the oldest surviving town hall in the Low Countries, its oldest parts going back to the thirteenth century, and its belfry, added later, carries the bells that once regulated the town's life. Together they are part of the UNESCO listing of the Belfries of Belgium and France. In front of them stands a statue of Dirk Martens, who set up one of the first printing presses in the Southern Netherlands here in the 1470s and later printed works by Erasmus and Thomas More.
Read the complete Belfort en Schepenhuis / Beffroi et maison write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Belfort en Schepenhuis / Beffroi et maison, about halfway. Next is Hôtel Tassel.
5. Hôtel Tassel
In 1893, a young architect named Victor Horta finished a town house in Brussels for a professor called Emile Tassel, and in doing so he changed the course of European design. The Hotel Tassel is generally regarded as the first true Art Nouveau building. Its facade looks restrained from the street, with a curved bay window and a bit of ironwork, but inside, the staircase is a revelation. Slim iron columns split into whiplash curves that spread across the walls and ceiling, mosaics ripple across the floor, and the whole space seems to grow like a plant.
Read the complete Hôtel Tassel write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Hôtel Tassel sits at 151 km, about halfway. Next is back through Belfort en Schepenhuis / Beffroi et maison.
6. back through Belfort en Schepenhuis / Beffroi et maison
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Belfort en Schepenhuis / Beffroi et maison write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Belfort en Schepenhuis / Beffroi et maison comes up 188 km in. Next is back through Maison & Atelier Horta.
7. back through Maison & Atelier Horta
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Maison & Atelier Horta write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
226 km in you reach back through Maison & Atelier Horta. Next is back through Sint-Pieterskerk / Belfort.
8. back through Sint-Pieterskerk / Belfort
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Sint-Pieterskerk / Belfort write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Sint-Pieterskerk / Belfort, late in the day. Next is Stadhuis met Toren.
9. Stadhuis met Toren
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Stadhuis met Toren 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 292 km.
Leg by leg
Stadhuis met Toren to Sint-Pieterskerk / Belfort
Stadhuis met Toren → Sint-Pieterskerk / Belfort is 47 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Sint-Pieterskerk / Belfort to Maison & Atelier Horta
Sint-Pieterskerk / Belfort → Maison & Atelier Horta is 34 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Maison & Atelier Horta to Belfort en Schepenhuis / Beffroi et maison
Maison & Atelier Horta → Belfort en Schepenhuis / Beffroi et maison is 35 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Belfort en Schepenhuis / Beffroi et maison to Hôtel Tassel
Belfort en Schepenhuis / Beffroi et maison → Hôtel Tassel is 35 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Hôtel Tassel to back through Belfort en Schepenhuis / Beffroi et maison
Hôtel Tassel → back through Belfort en Schepenhuis / Beffroi et maison is 35 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Belfort en Schepenhuis / Beffroi et maison to back through Maison & Atelier Horta
back through Belfort en Schepenhuis / Beffroi et maison → back through Maison & Atelier Horta is 35 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Maison & Atelier Horta to back through Sint-Pieterskerk / Belfort
back through Maison & Atelier Horta → back through Sint-Pieterskerk / Belfort is 34 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Sint-Pieterskerk / Belfort to Stadhuis met Toren
back through Sint-Pieterskerk / Belfort → Stadhuis met Toren is 47 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.