This off-the-beaten-track road trip itinerary explores the Flanders and Brussels regions of Belgium, combining the must-see city sights with adventurous abandoned urbex destinations that Belgium is famous for.
Table of Contents:
- Day 1 – Duisburg (Germany)
- Day 2 – Doel ghost town & Antwerp
- Day 3 – Charleroi cooling tower / Villers Abbey ruins / Hallerbos Forest & Brussels
- Day 4 – Bruges, Ghent & Brussels
- Day 5 – Brussels
- Map
- Detailed Itinerary
Day 1 – Duisburg (Germany)
In April, cherry blossoms bloom at the base of the Duisburg-Nord Landschaftspark factory
Neon lights color the factory as the sun begins to go down
The industrial view from the top of the Duisburg-Nord Landschaftspark factory
The public is free to wander in nearly all areas of the factory, even at night thanks to the colorful lights
Don’t forget to take a step back and appreciate this steampunk wonder from a distance
Find your way out through the red neon-lit tunnels
If you will be starting your Belgium road trip from Northern Germany, the Duisburg-Nord Landschaftspark is definitely worth a visit – day or night. Because we started our trip from Berlin, Duisburg made for a good mid-way stop after about a 5.5 hour drive with a only short 2 hour drive left for the morning to Antwerp.
The Duisburg-Nord Landschaftpark factory is a beautiful disused steel and coal production plant with elaborate knots of gigantic pipes, ladders and contraptions. Truly the most steampunk place I’ve ever found myself in; the place feels like a movie set. In person, I enjoyed it more during the daylight, however, it photographs far better at night after the colored lights come on.
The place is safe and open to the public, yet you are allowed a surprising amount of access to the factory’s nooks and crannies. The ladders are steep and I admit I even got the spin of vertigo near the top – and I’m not even scared of heights! It’s all worth it though to watch the sunset from the highest platform.
Where would you be starting your trip from? Would this be worth going out of your way for?
Day 2 – Doel Ghost Town & Antwerp
We drove 2 hours from Duisburg to the Antwerp area and decided to go directly to the Doel ghost town before checking into our accommodation in Antwerp; it’s only about a 20 minute drive out of the city.
Doel Ghost Town
Take a stroll down the main street of the ghost town of Doel, Belgium
I always appreciate abandoned places that have more than just tags
Visit on Easter weekend and you might catch a glimpse of the Easter bunnies
What are you lookin’ at?
The dystopian scene is completed by the looming nuclear plant
Beautiful graffiti is hidden all over Doel
A hearse drives slowly away from the still functioning Doel church
![Graffiti murals adorn the sides of abandoned houses](https://itinerarytown.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/IMG_3720.jpg")
Graffiti murals adorn the sides of abandoned houses
How to get to Doel
[A car is required to get to Doel]
Doel is separated from Antwerp by a huge industrial port land area. The port lands are like a maze and are quite difficult to navigate; they send you in spirals and trap you at dead ends. While the easiest way to find Doel is to take the longer route around the industrial area, the port lands are, in themselves, a sight to see. Picture
Itinerary:
- Day 1 – DUISBURG (Germany)
- Drive Berlin to Duisburg [5.5 hours]
- Check-in
- Duisburg Oldtown
- Dinner
- Sunset at Duisburg-Nord Landschaftspark
- Day 2 – DOEL & ANTWERP
- Check-out
- Drive Duisburg to Doel [2 hours]
- Explore Doel ghost town [2 hours]
- Drive Doel to Antwerp [30 min]
- Check-in in Zuid area
- Lunch
- Walk along Kloosterstraat
- St. Anna’s Tunnel
- Oldtown
- Central Station
- Chinatown
- Dinner
- Parkbrug
- Sunset at Museum aan de Stoorm rooftop
- Day 3 – CHARLEROI COOLING TOWER / VILLERS ABBEY / HALLERBOS FOREST & BRUSSELS
- Check-out, breakfast in Antwerp
- Drive Antwerp to Destination south of Brussels [1 – 1.5 hours]
- Explore Cooling tower AND/OR Villers Abbey ruins AND/OR Hallerbos Forest [2 hours]
- Drive to Brussels, Check-in [1 hour]
- Late lunch
- Explore Brussels oldtown
- Dinner & Drinks
- Day 4 – BRUGES & GHENT
- Breakfast in Brussels
- Drive Brussels to Bruges [1.5 hours]
- Minnewater park, the Beguineages
- Follow water until Oldtown
- Lunch
- Explore Oldtown
- Langestraat
- Windmills
- Loop back to car
- Drive Bruges to Ghent [45 min]
- Explore Ghent
- Dinner
- Drive Ghent to Brussels [1 hour]
- Drinks in Brussels
- Day 5 – BRUSSELS
- Breakfast in Brussels
- Brussels to Berlin [7.5 hours]