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Belgium Under the Radar – Durbuy

Durbuy is a small city in the French-speaking province of Luxembourg. The city used to be known as ‘the smallest town in the world’, and its tourism board still advertises it as such.

It got the status of ‘city’ as early as 1331 and until 1977 it only had 400 inhabitants, so there was some truth to this claim. In 1977, however, the town joined with several surrounding towns into a single commune of about 10,000 residents. It’s an attractive slogan though, tourism-wise, which each year still draws tens of thousands of visitors.

While in medieval times the city’s main commercial activities were industry and trade, nowadays it focuses on recreation and tourism. Lying on the banks of the Ourthe River, at the edge of the hills and forests of the Ardennes, it’s a wonderful place for outdoorsy activities in summer.

The kayaking on the river is truly fantastic and there are adventure companies offering a wide range of activities. There are plenty of fine-dining restaurants and bistros, but what I loved most about this quaint little city were the dozens of craft shops and local specialty stores.

It’s a very small city; the car park is about as big as the rest of the town. Despite being so small, it’s possible to spend an entire day strolling through the medieval cobble stone alleyways, visiting the many shops and stores, having a Belgian beer (or two) and some world-class food. The houses with their gray stones are typical for the Ardennes region.

Castle of the Counts of Ursel

The castle of Durbuy is the most striking building in the city. It was built in the 11th century and rebuilt by the Ursel family in the 17th century on the ruins of the former feudal fortress.

Castle of the Counts of Ursel in Durbuy, Belgium

Castle of the Counts of Ursel besides the Ourthe River, great for kayaking

‘Roche de la Falize’

This straight and symmetrical rock formation is a fantastic example of the synclines and anticlines that were formed by tectonic movements. The region’s layers of dolomitic limestone can clearly be seen here. It’s shaped as a dome and lies just outside the city center, near the car park.

Roche de la Falize, Durbuy, Belgium

Roche de la Falize

Maze of Alleyways

The old town of Durbuy is a real maze of narrow cobble stone alleyways, stone houses with ornaments and many, many shops. It’s great fun to walk around and explore.

Cobble stone street in Durbuy, Belgium

A typical Durbuy street

Small shop in Durbuy, Belgium

Entrance door to one of the many cozy hotels

Houses in Durbuy, Belgium

Definitely a great place for pictures!

Wheat Hall of Durbuy, Belgium

The 16th-century ‘Wheat Hall’, red building on the right, is one of several important buildings in the city

Gray stone houses in Durbuy, Belgium

Typical gray stone houses of the Ardennes region

Local specialty shop in Durbuy, Belgium

Reflection in the window of a ginger bread, beer and jam shop

Cozy cobble stone street of Durbuy

Cozy narrow street with the Roche de la Falize in the background

A little square in the old town of Durbuy, Belgium

A little square in the old town of Durbuy

Quaint street in Durbuy, Belgium

That rusty old bicycle fits perfectly

Stone house in Durbuy, Belgium

A lantern, ornamental plants an an old pump

Durbuy, Belgium

Every corner has something worthy of a picture

Shop window in Durbuy, Belgium

One of the shop windows

Antique shop in Durbuy, Belgium

A door of one of the antique shops

Cobble stone streets in Durbuy, Belgium

A street panorama

Beautiful street in Durbuy, Belgium

Lastly, my favorite picture of them all!

Sources: Durbuy

Durbuy, Belgium

Other posts in this series are: LierTongeren, LeuvenDinantNamurYpres and Aalst.

Jennifer

Monday 31st of March 2014

Loving this series, Bram! This looks like a darling little town to visit and who doesn't want to say they've been to the smallest city in the world.

Bram Reusen

Monday 31st of March 2014

It is such a lovely little town, Jennifer. Pretty touristy though!

Devlin @ Marginal Boundaries

Wednesday 5th of March 2014

Really cool, places like this make we wanna go there, buy a hotel & become an innkeeper for the rest of my life.

Bram Reusen

Wednesday 5th of March 2014

I could definitely picture myself running a B&B some day. :-)

Freya

Tuesday 4th of March 2014

Another beautiful place. Belgium for sure has a lot to offer :-) I love those captures, great ones.

Bram Reusen

Wednesday 5th of March 2014

It's unreal how many places in Belgium are absolutely worth a visit.