Walzin, the citadel and Chimay: Daniel's Dinant day, September 2024

A week ago, on Monday 2 September, Daniel R. and his travel companion from California spent the day with me. They had booked the day on Viator. The plan went south, to the castles, the town of Dinant and an abbey near the French border.

Coffee by Walzin

We started with a short walk to a quiet spot across the Lesse from Château de Walzin. The castle is private and still lived in, so you see it from across the water. I laid out coffee by the river, and the morning started slowly.

The citadel and the church of Our Lady

Then we drove into Dinant. The town sits squeezed between the Meuse and a wall of rock. On top of the rock stands the citadel, more than 100 metres above the river. From up there you look down the whole valley.

At the foot of the rock is the collegiate church of Notre-Dame, with its pear-shaped bell tower. In 1227 a piece of the cliff fell onto the old church, and the town rebuilt it. Daniel and his companion visited both.

A lunch that was not rushed

Lunch was quick to serve but never hurried, with a beer taster on the side. That is on purpose. On a long day, lunch is where you sit down, taste something and talk.

The Belgian sandwich

Lunch that day was Belgian sandwiches, and guests love them. It sounds simple. It is not.

It starts with the bread. A good Belgian sandwich roll has a firm, crisp crust and a soft inside. The best known is the pistolet, a small round roll with a crust that cracks when you bite it. For many Belgian families, a Sunday morning means a bag of warm pistolets on the breakfast table.

The most typical filling is the smos. A smos is a sandwich with ham and cheese, or one of the two, plus lettuce, tomato, boiled egg and mayonnaise. In Flanders you order it by name: a smos hesp for ham, a smos kaas for cheese, or a smos hesp-kaas for both.

What makes it work is the balance: a crust that crunches, soft bread, cold ham, mild cheese, fresh salad and a layer of Belgian mayonnaise holding it all together. With a beer taster on the side, it is a very Belgian lunch.

Scourmont Abbey and Chimay

The last stop was Chimay. The monks of Scourmont Abbey brew it, and it is one of the five Belgian Trappist beers.

Dinner at the Auberge de Poteaupré

We ended the day with dinner at the Auberge de Poteaupré, at Espace Chimay near the abbey. It is the pub, restaurant and small hotel where visitors meet the Chimay beers and cheeses. Inside, the dining room is built around a big copper brewing kettle.

Our waiter there is Joshua, and he always makes the same joke. If you are in Chimay, he says, you cannot drink Chimay. Otherwise there will be none left for him. He makes it every time.

It is a good way to end the day: a Trappist beer and local food, a short walk from the abbey that brews it.

Much of it is the drive

Daniel wrote it well in his review: much of a day like this is me getting you there and letting you see the places. The valleys around Dinant are spread out. So the drive is where I tell you about the area, the food and the beer, and lunch is where we taste them.

In Daniel’s words

Daniel posted this review on TripAdvisor on the day itself, as Dan R.

Overall a very enjoyable tour. If you are looking for a tour off the beaten path and see some amazing view as well as some not so crowded amazing tour site this is the tour. The first stop was a secluded spot with a short walk to some amazing views of Walzin Castle and a restful coffee break along the river Lesse, the second for us was the tour of Citadelle de Dinant and Collegiate Church of our Lady, Dinant. The stop for a quick lunch and a beer taster was relaxing and not rushed as many tours would have. The last stop was at the Scourmont Abbey where they run the Chimay Brewer and dinner nearby. Overalll best tour of our trip. […] Joris thank you for the very enjoyable day. Most of the tour is Joris getting us there and letting us see the sites. He though provides enough of the insight of the area, food, and beer during the drive and lunch to give you that special tour feel.

Dan R., on TripAdvisor, September 2024

The stop for a quick lunch and a beer taster was relaxing and not rushed as many tours would have.

Dan R., on TripAdvisor

A day like this

This day suits travellers who want castles, a river town and an abbey beer in one day, without rushing any of it. It suits you less if you want long guided visits at every stop: on this day, the places do most of the talking.

What would a day like this cost today? Read what a private day in Belgium costs, and what is in it.

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