Beveren

Beveren is municipality of 48,000 people (2018) between Ghent and Antwerp in East Flanders, Belgium. The municipality comprises the towns of Beveren proper, Doel, Haasdonk, Kallo, Kieldrecht, Melsele, Verrebroek and Vrasene. The port of the Waasland (Dutch: Waaslandhaven) is in Beveren, on the left bank of the Scheldt, facing the port of Antwerp on the other side of the river.

From Beveren it is possible to visit several historic towns and villages on the banks of river Schelde (Doel, Hulst, the villages on the Scheldt between Temse and Rupelmonde), and it offers a good starting point for cycling trips along the beautiful tidal landscapes on the river shores.

By train
Trains from Ghent and Antwerp run every hour, Ghent is 30 minutes away while Antwerp takes about 15 minutes. From Brussels there is no direct train, but it is very easy to go via Antwerp or Ghent, changing trains there. The trip from Brussels takes around 1 hour if the connection goes smooth. Finally, there are also direct trains to Beveren from the coast (Ostend) via Bruges (once an hour, takes 1 hr 20 min). Beveren's train station is 600 m from the centre.

By car
Beveren is located between the E34 (Antwerp - Knokke-Heist) and E17 (Antwerp - Ghent) on the N70. There are lots of free parking spaces in the centre of the municipality.

By tram
Tram line 3 takes you from the centre of Antwerp to a Park & Ride zone in Melsele, which is still 3.5 km from Beveren centre. You can take buses here.

By bus
Bus lines 81 through 85 and 89 take you from Antwerp to Beveren. Lines 81 and 82 go to Sint-Niklaas, Waasmunster and Lokeren, while 83, 84 and 85 take you to smaller villages in or near Beveren's municipality (such as Doel). Line 31 also takes you to Sint-Niklaas.

By taxi
Taxi Freddy, is a 24h taxi company headquartered in Melsele.

Get around
The centre of Beveren, which is not very big, is easily explored on foot. To get to know the region, cycling is recommended because there are lots of bike routes as well as a dense Cycle Node Network covering all of Flanders.

See

 * Beveren has kept several centuries-old houses, manors, chapels and churches.
 * Beveren has kept several centuries-old houses, manors, chapels and churches.
 * Beveren has kept several centuries-old houses, manors, chapels and churches.
 * Beveren has kept several centuries-old houses, manors, chapels and churches.

Eat
Look for restaurants, snackbars, fastfood places and fries shops ("Frituur") on the market square and adjacent streets.



Drink
Near the centre, at the market place, there are lots of pubs to choose from.

Connect

 * The local public library has Wi-Fi. It also has "internet computers". You might have to register as a member in order to use them.

Nearby

 * The village of Doel houses a 17th-century windmill, one of the oldest in Flanders (about 20 km north of Beveren).
 * The polders north of Beveren offer a unique landscape, reminiscent of the southern Netherlands (see also Fort liefkenshoek, Verdronken Land van Saeftinghe and Doel Nuclear Power Station).
 * Recreatiedomein De Ster - About 7 km southwest of the centre along the N70, this recreation area comprises a large artificial lake suitable for swimming and sailing. There is a sandy beach, a playground for children, a swimming pool, several outdoor sports courts, and a little tourist train running around the lake to connect all these places.
 * The Verdronken Land van Saeftinghe is a natural landscape on the border of Belgium and The Netherlands near the sea, at the mouth of the Scheldt river. It is 3580 hectares and is the biggest brackish water area in Europe. It is 20 km north of Beveren.

Go next

 * Antwerp and Sint-Niklaas are both about 10 km away, Antwerp being an international port-city of 500,000 inhibitants, while Sint-Niklaas has around 70,000 inhibitants and breathes more of a 'local' atmosphere.
 * Temse, Lokeren, Ghent, ...