Environnement idyllique, au vert et au calme, en Brabant Wallon, à 10 minutes à pied - en passant par le lac - de Louvain-la-Neuve centre. Louvain-la-Neuve est une ville universitaire très vivante et active, avec une activité culturelle et associative intense. L'été nous profitons beaucoup du lac et de Louvain-la-plage installée près du cinéma !
LLN dispose d'un centre sportif renommé, d'un théâtre, de deux musées dont celui d'Hergé (Tintin), d'un cinéma, de deux garndes piscines, d'un golf et de nombreux restaurants et magasins de toutes sortes. Le centre ville est piéton, ce qui est très agréable. De nombreux bus et trains font la jonction avec Bruxelles ( en 20 minutes !) et toutes les villes de Belgique via Ottignies. La mer du Nord est à une heure trente de train.

https://www.olln.be/fr/loisirs/culture/musee-l
https://www.olln.be/fr/loisirs/sports/piscines-de-blocry
https://uclouvain.be/fr/sites/louvain-la-neuve
https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louvain-la-Neuve

Idyllic, green and quiet environment, in Walloon Brabant, 10 minutes walk - via the lake - from the centre of Louvain-la-Neuve. Louvain-la-Neuve is a lively and active university town, with an intense cultural and associative activity. In the summer, we enjoy the lake and the Louvain-the-beach near the cinema !
LLN has a renowned sports centre, a theatre, two museums, including the Hergé museum (Tintin), a cinema, two swimming pools, a golf course and many restaurants and shops of all kinds. The city centre is pedestrian, which is very pleasant. Many buses and trains connect with Brussels (in 20 minutes !) and all Belgian cities via Ottignies. The North sea is an hour and a half away by train.

A few ideas for you to enjoy our country :

Some historic sites :

• Waterloo battle museum and site (20 min by car)
• Ieper Flanders fields museum WW I (1h30 by car)
• Bastogne WWII memorial (1h30 by car)

Amusement parks and families friendly musea (by car) :

• Train world in Schaerbeek, Brussels : old trains in a beautiful scenography (45 min by train - Schaerbeek station)

• Hergé museum : TINTIN ! in LLN centre

• Magritte museum in Brussels : Royal museum of Arts and History

• Walibi: Very close to the house. Great fun for families. Roller coasters, tropical swimming pool... A Belgian classic. www.walibi.be

• Pairi Daiza: Beautiful animal parc organized in worlds. Very different from traditional zoo's. www.pairidaiza.eu

• Grotte de Han: A belgian classic. Wonderful caves with a small animal parc located in the belgian ardennes. Ideal to discover the southern belgian countryside. www.grotte-de-han.be

• Mini Europe: Located in Brussels near the Atomium. Replicas of most iconic European buildings located in one site. www.minieurope.com

• Accrobranche: Very close to the house, located in Wavre. Nice tree adventure park where the family can have great fun safely. www.aventureparc.be

Cities (by train from Ottignies, with your bikes on the train ) :

• Leuven : the Belgian Cambridge. The University of Leuven was established in 1425. Great gothic architecture, lots of shops and restaurants. Close to the house.
• Gent: my favorite Flemish city. Impressive medieval castle located in the city historical center. Great architecture, museums, shops and restaurants.
• Bruges: the Venice of the North. World class historical center. Many tourists in summer.
• Antwerp: the largest Flemish city. Very cosmopolitan and fashionable. Great architecture, museums, shops and restaurants.
• Namur: capital of the Walloon region. Beautiful citadel build on a hill near the historical center, accessible by a cable car. Great architecture, museums, shops and restaurants.
• Mons: Located in French speaking Belgium. Great architecture, museums, shops and restaurants.

Bike trips :

Belgium has a long tradition of biking. Near the house, there are “Ravel circuits”, which are essentially old railways and towpaths transformed into bike routes. You can go to Ottignies, Court-St Etienne, Nivelles starting from the house. You can also drive by car and transport your bikes to other starting points like Namur. Biking in our cities is safe and good fun. www.ravel.wallonie.be

Brussels (by train) :

• Atomium : iconic monument dedicated to the first stage of the construction of the EU: the coal and steel treaty. Renovated recently. Hosts a restaurant. Nice views of Brussels.
• Grand Place et Manneken-Pis : a belgian classic truly beautiful at sunset. I do not recommend the restaurants around the Grand Place. Poor value for money.
• Marché des abattoirs de Cureghem : a very lage and very popular Sunday market where you can buy almost anything. Great food from Europe, North Africa and the Middle East.
• Le Piétonnier : the largest pedestrian avenue in Europe (according to the local Mayor). Close to the Grand Place. Street artists, shops and restaurants.
• Square Sainte Catherine: seafood restaurants which serve very nice mossels and fries, lovely buildings. A much beter place to eat than the Grand Place.
• Place du Sablon et marolles: Lots of great Chocolates stores, restaurants and Antique shops.
• Bozar “culture center” : best place in Brussels for an exhibition or a classic music show
• Flagey square : iconic art deco building where the Belgian TV was located until the 70’s. Lots of lively bars and restaurants. Ideal for a walk, next to the “Etangs d’Ixelles”.

The seaside (by train) :

• Oostende : beautiful beach. Lots of shops and restaurants. Try the “cuistax” with the kids. A shuttle boat takes you to the old harbour and the Napoleon Fort.

For Paris and Amsterdam (by train) :

International fast trains leave from Brussels South (Bruxelles-Midi) every hour for Paris and Amsterdam. The trips are short (1h30 min). There is a lot to do in both cities. So I would recommend a two days trip, even if a one day trip works.