Surroundings

La Roche-en-Ardenne is also called the “pearl of the Ardennes” and during your visit you will undoubtedly quickly agree. The hills, forests and rivers in the area are beautiful, and the castle ruins form the unique decor that can’t be missed from all directions.In the many cozy restaurants and taverns you can have a nice meal or a drink.

bb-ardennen-bed-and-breakfast-la-roche-en-ardenne-wandelen-fietsen-mtb-wielrennen-motor-motorrijden-routes-arrangementen-diner-villa-le-monde-zicht-op-kasteel-3The accessibility is excellent and the village is therefore a perfect base to do the many activities and attractions nearby.
You can enjoy the peace and beauty of one of the most scenic areas of Western Europe.
La Roche-en-Ardenne has a microclimate. The city is indeed protected by the Plateau Des Tailles and enjoys in the valley of its excellent location. The temperature is higher than in the surrounding area and the town has to endure much less rain than the higher-lying towns and villages. There is a permanent mild climate while the top of the plateau lies under a thick layer of snow and the city is spared throughout the year of long periods of fog. Hence, perhaps this is why the people of La Roche-en-Ardenne have such a cheerful character.

Some useful links:
Map of La Roche-en-Ardenne:
www.la-roche-tourisme.com

Movie La Roche-en-Ardenne:
www.youtube.com

Calendar province Luxemburg:
www.wahren-ardennen.be

Surrounding La-Roche-en-Ardenne:
www.coeurdelardenne.be

Event calendar La Roche-en-Ardenne:
www.la-roche-tourisme.com

For sports enthusiasts:
• Nature in the surroundings of La Roche-en-Ardenne is very suitable for hiking, Nordic walking, fishing, mountain biking, cycling, horseback riding, riding the motorbike kayaking, climbing and abseiling, via Ferrata, paragliding, rafting, paintball, and more.

Every year, a number of special sporting events are organized that pass or happen in La Roche-en-Ardenne:
Velo Median Claudy Criquielion, Nature marathon, triathlon, MESA, Mountainbike Worldcup Houffalize, Liège-Bastogne-Liège, BEMC (Belgian Mountainbike Challenge)

Links: www.velomediane.be
www.sport-events.be
www.marche-mesa.com
www.adrenalinesports.net
www.arrangementenardennen.nl

The Belgian Mountainbike Challenge presented by Bike7, in short the bemc-mtb-ardennenBEMC, is a three-day race, which is open to racers and enthusiasts and will take place from 13 to May 15, 2016. The race is included on the UCI international calendar as a XCS S1 contest for ELITE MEN and ELITE WOMEN.
The BEMC differs from other multi-day events in the Benelux countries by the degree of difficulty of the course and the quality of the participants. Finishing the BeMC is an achievement of which both racers and recreational can truly be proud!
Link:
www.sportevents.be

The military waling-march Mesa is held annually in the Ardennes and the perfectly marked walks lead you through the beautiful nature of the Ardennes. (Tuesday, June 21, 2016 until Friday, June 24th, 2016).
Link:
www.marche-mesa.com

Golf: less than 25 kilometers is the perfect stay in Barvaux on the Durbuy golf courses. Also in Virton and in Méan (Five nations golf club), there are courses available.
Links:
www.1golf.eu
www.opengolfclub.com

bb-ardennen-bed-and-breakfast-la-roche-en-ardenne-wandelen-fietsen-mtb-wielrennen-motor-motorrijden-routes-arrangementen-diner-villa-le-monde-skien-langlaufen-ardennenSkiing and Nordic skiing when there is snow in winter-time. The highest regions of Belgium are only 15 km, just a 15’drive from La Roche-en-Ardenne away.
Links:
www.ardennen-sneeuw.be

Horseback riding in La Roche is also possible: tours of 2 hours, 3 hours or an entire day.
Suitable for beginners.
If needed: boots, helmet and raincoat available.
Map with six circuits available.
Link:
www.ardenne-adventure.be

Caves:
• Beautiful caves can be visited in Han, Rochefort, Dinant, grotten-ardennenRemouchamps and very nearby in Hotton.
Links:www.grotte-de-han.be
www.grotte-de-han.be
www.ardennes-etape.com
www.mondesauvage.be
www.grottesdehotton.be

Families, children, young-and-old:
• The Ghost of Berthe de La Roche: During certain nights, around sunset, one can see in the ruins of the castle the Countess Berthe de La Roche wandering on the site on the place where she died … From July 9 until August 20, around 10 pm (the ghost does not appear when it rains and / or when there is strong wind).
Link:
www.la-roche-tourisme.com

In La Roche-en-Ardenne there is an indoor swimming pool and at hotel / camping Floreal an outdoor swimming pool. Just outside the village you will find a wildlife park with playground.

In Houffalize you can find Houtopia, an educationally sound location with a playground.
Link:
www.houtopia.be

At only 8km from La Roche-en-Ardenne lies Parc L’O Vive. It is a fun and educational park for children. As the name of the park suggests it is all about “living water.” A bit deeper into the forest are more challenging climbing equipment. A high walkway and climbing rope and a quick zip wire. There is also a museum of animals in the forest itself. Here are displayed all the forest animals in the area and there is an obstacle course that kids can do balancing. All in all a nice getaway for active children for a decent price.
Link:
www.allesoverdeardennen.nl

plopsaland-cooPlopsaland Coo is only 45 minutes away by car.
Link:
www.plopsa.be

Parc Chlorophylle in Dochamps at 10 km from La Roche-en-Ardenne: The Park of 9 hectares, unique in its genre, gives the visitor the opportunity to discover the world of the forest in an original way. One of the main attractions of the Park Chlorophyll is the walkway that you can walk into the treetops. Children can explore the thematic playground adapted to the forest.
The different animations, consisting of wood are completely devoted to nature and environmental conservation. Next to each animation are bilingual educational wooden panels that inform the visitor. The park has a playground and a brasserie.
Link:
www.parcchlorophylle.com

Treasure-search in Durbuy.
Link:
www.durbuyadventure.be

Fourneau Saint Michel: on the edge of the Ardennes’ forest of Saint-Hubert and Nassogne, in a beautiful glade deep in the valley, is still a strange blast furnace dating back to the 18th-century, in addition to the field of Fourneau Saint Michel. Amidst a highly diversified and harmonious nature a walk brings you through nine Hamlets that get you acquainted with the traditional rural architecture: houses, farmhouses, chapel, school, workshops, barns, … a real exploration via forest trails.
Link:
www.saint-hubert-tourisme.be

Donkey rides in the area: Why do you have such big ears? Why do you ezelwandeling-ardennenhave such big ears? Why do you have such big teeth? … Because children love me as I am! You want to enjoy a walk in nature? Why not with a donkey? He keeps you company, he carries your luggage and children that weigh less than 40 kilos. The children will like to swing back and forth in the saddle, or to lead the donkey. There will always be a responsible from the Donkey Farm with you. Link: www.lafermevivante.be

Tourist Tramway of Aisne: do you want to travel like our ancestors did? The Aisne Tourist Tramway (TTA) takes you in antique trams along the beautiful un-spoilt countryside of the Ardennes. It is the perfect combination of natural beauty and authenticity. This age-old heir of the Ardennes neighborhood-tram leaves the station of Pont d’Érezée and rides along the river Aisne to the station of Forge à l’Aplez.
The departure station is equipped with a modern comfortable cafeteria and even a small museum.
Link: www.tta.be

Pottery Museum of La Roche-en-Ardenne: A specialty is the blue pottery, or the Grès de La Roche. In this museum you can see the old wood kiln, the factory and workshops and discover the long road from clay to pottery. This is also for children a nice museum.
Link:
www.la-roche-tourisme.com

Natural Splendor:
• Waterfall of Coo: Coo is located between Trois-Ponts and La Gleize, waterval-cooand is best known for its waterfall on the Amblève river with a height of 15 meters, the most important one in Belgium. At the foot of the waterfall there are many leisure activities such as go-karting or karting, miniature golf and kayak. The amusement park is open seasonally as well as the chair lift that brings you at height to the stunning vista that lets enjoy the valley of the Amblève.

Beavers: you can see these engineers of the water at several points around La Roche-en-Ardenne. Visiting sites in the Valley of the Ourthe where beavers can be observed (Ste Ode, Séviscourt, La Roche-en-Ardenne) can be organized.

Markets and local products:
• In the summer there is a market on Wednesday evening in Marcourt. Various local products can be tasted and there is live music in the background.
Link:
www.petit-train.be

The market in La Roche-en-Ardenne is on Friday.

On Sunday morning there is a market in Bomal-sur-Ourthe. The zondagmarkt-te-bomalliveliest market on Sunday in the Ardennes is certainly the one in Bomal-sur-Ourthe. Through its many stalls selling traditional Ardennes delicacies, Mediterranean olives and tapenades, giant paellas, you get the feeling you are on a Southern market. Stroll, taste, and later afterglow of typical Ardennes specialties. And if all this is not enough you can find at the end of the market in the sports center “Le Sassin” a flea market for everyone.

Confiturerie Saint-Amour in Durbuy: artisans from father to son. The workshop is open to the public.

Chocolaterie Cyril: artisan chocolate maker Y. Lemaire invites you to visit with a demonstration in the village Samrée on the hills of La Roche-en-Ardenne.
Link:
www.cyrilchocolat.be

Beers:
rochefort-trappisten-bier-ardennen
• Rochefort: after half an hour’s drive through the beautiful forest the Freyf via the small place Nassogne you reach Rochefort with its castle and you can taste the local pride, the Rochefort Trappist beer.

Brewery, Brasserie d’Achouffe: combine beer, a fish pond, a number of walks with a visit to the brewery and brasserie d’Achouffe which serves beers La Chouffe and Mc Chouffe (the beer with the gnome on the label). The place has a nice location with some nice taverns where one can imagine being in gnome land. An appointment needs to be made to visit the brewery.

Brewery Inter-Pol: a visit on Friday or Saturday can be arranged to the smallest official brewery of Belgium, perhaps the world.


History:

keltisch-fort-3• Celtic fortress: on the road from La Roche-en-Ardenne to Houffalize you will find at the road to the left into Borzée on the right a small path which leads you to the main Celtic excavation of Belgium. The camp is located approximately 80 m higher than the Ourthe and therefore gives a wonderful view over the surroundings.
Link:
www.coeurdelardenne.be

Celtic museum Libramont: The Celts Museum with its collection that is unique in Belgium, was opened at Libramont in June 1998. The collection is the result of over 30 years of excavations on various Celtic sites in the Ardennes. As for those discoveries, the region is among the richest in our country.
Link:
www.museedesceltes.be

The slate mine of Bertrix or Au Coeur de l’Ardoise was opened at the end of the nineteenth century and has been in use until 1977. You can visit in two different ways to the slate mine. First, you can visit the mine with a guide. However, it is also possible to do the visit only with an audio guide. Visiting the mine will take place at about twenty-five meters below ground.
Link:
www.aucoeurdelardoise.be

Megaliths and Dolmen: Weris is known for its relics from prehistoric dolmen-weristimes: dolmens (megalithic tombs) and menhirs. The sweet village is located in a green area within walking distance from the megalithic site and places with beautiful views. In the village itself you can visit the megalithic house for information about the walks and you can also visit the megalith museum with accompanying tavern.
Link:
www.weris-info.be

Battle of the Ardennes: the allies thought at the end of 1944 the war had almost ended, but the Germans did not give up and started a heavy battle in the Ardennes. Special battle tours can be ordered leading you through the beautiful countryside. Both in La Roche-en-Ardenne and in Berismenil, war museums can be found, but the largest and most famous is located in Bastogne.
Links:
www.batarden.be
www.bastognewarmuseum.be
www.grandmenil.com

Cities nearby worth visiting:
Durbuy including the Hare Krishna castle, Dinant, Bouillon, Redu, St Hubert, Liege
Links:

www.durbuyinfo.be
www.dinant-tourisme.com
www.bouillon-initiative.be
www.redu-villagedulivre.be
www.saint-hubert-tourisme.be
www.liege.be