Culture and Landmarks

• Visit the historic centre, the University buildings and the St. Peters Church on the Grand Place. Information and guided tours can be found at the Tourist Information Desk.

• Visit the Grand Béguinage, a UNESCO World Heritage site. Easily reachable by bus.

• Leuven currently does not have a Museum, since the former one is currently being restored. The new museum 'M' should open in September 2009. Arts and culture can also be seen in the St. Peter's Church and City Hall.

• Leuven has a cultural organization called 30CC that organizes all kinds of cultural activities around the year, for example in the City Theater on the Bondgenotenlaan. Less frequent during Summer.

• A City Tour Bus leaves for sightseeing around the city from the Fochplein, situated right next to the Grand Place and City Hall.

Summer Events

• Visit the summer events Beleuvenissen (Every Friday in July), Hapje Tapje (First Sunday of August) and Leuven Kermis (Leuven Carnival) (September).
  • Beleuvenissen is a musical and cultural festival on the squares in the city centre.
  • Hapje Tapje is the one day in the year all bars and restaurants put stalls outside to promote their goods.
  • Leuven Kermis is a carnival situated on the Ladeuzeplein and the Hooverplein (just next to it).

• Visit the Jaarmarkt (Year Market) the first Monday of Leuven Kermis (Leuven Carnival, see above) early September: The entire city centre is transformed into one big market. Cattle is also sold in the streets surrounding the Sint-Jacobsplein, 500m from the Grand Place, which is quite the spectacle.

Green

• Have a pick-nick in the Sint-Donatuspark in the city centre, 50m from the Ladeuzeplein.

• Make a walk or have a bike ride in Meerdaalwoud or Heverleebos, the green lungs of the city in the suburbs Heverlee and Oud-Heverlee easily reachable by bike or bus (15 minutes). Many good walking paths. Some parts of the forest are still untouched. A good starting point are the "Zoete Waters" - a series of small lakes in Oud-Heverlee. Take bus line 337 at the Train Station and ask the driver to tell you when you've reached your destination.

• Take a boat trip down the Vaart, the Leuven-Mechelen channel. More information on the boat tour website. Step aboard in the small port in Northern Leuven, 500m from the railway station.

Markets

• Visit the market every Friday on the Ladeuze- and Hooverplein, flea market every Saturday in the vicinity of the Grand Place (Mechelsestraat), and flower market in the pedestrian-only part of the Brusselsestraat (the street leading away from the Grand Place), every Saturday as well.

• Visit the Christmas market: shop for Christmas gifts, taste local specialties and drink a glass of Glühwein or brandy. In December on the Ladeuze- and Hooverplein.

Other

• Visit Inbev's main Belgian beer factory (Vaartstraat 94, ph 0032 (0)16 247 111, fax 0032 (0)16 247 497), which produces such famous names as Stella Artois, Vieux Temps and Leffe Radieuse.

• Sports can be practiced in the city Sports Centre SportOase, with a swimming pool, fitness centre, squash courts and more.

• Cheer on the Leuven teams:
  • Oud-Heverlee Leuven Football Club (OHL)
  • Spotter Leuven Basketball Club (BGL)
  • Leuven Chiefs Icehockey Team (IHCL)

You can get more information about these sites and more at the Tourist Information Desk, situated on the Grand Place, near City Hall, or on the Tourism Website.

• Gothic City Hall
• The small port of Leuven
• University Library
• Fonske, the "fountain of wisdom", on the Fochplein.
• Lakenhal, administrative centre of K.U.Leuven.
• Beguinage , UNESCO world heritage.
• Park abbey
• Collegium Trilingue
• The Law Court, in the Rijschoolstraat.
• St.Peter's Church
• Castle of Arenberg, in the suburb Heverlee.
• British Military Cemetery De Jacht
• Oude Markt / Old Market
• Kruidtuin / Botanical Garden
• Monument for those who have fallen in WWI and WWII, on the Martelarenplein (Martyrs square).

By plane

Land at Brussels National Airport, which services Europe, America, Africa and Asia. The airport is quite busy and also has a lot of low-cost carriers.

There is a train and bus station on the Airport itself - follow the signs! The Airport Express Train to Brussels leaves every 30 minutes, but there are direct trains to Leuven as well, every hour (half hour during rush hour). Taxi's wait at the arrivals area.

Travel time to Leuven is about 20' by car (with little traffic) and 13' by train.

More low-cost carriers arrive at Brussels South Charleroi Airport but travel time to Brussels (and Leuven) is considerably longer (1,5h). More information on their website.

By car

Leuven can be conveniently reached by car. The E40 highway runs from Brussels via Leuven to Liège, whereas the E314 highway links Leuven with the province of Limburg and with Maastricht and Aachen, at about 1 hour distance. The city has recently installed a Parking Guidance System that guides you to the larger parkings in the city centre. Look for the electronic signs on the city ring road.

It is advised not to start looking for a free parking spot on the street, since it's expensive and the many one-way streets can be a real maze when you're driving.

By train

Leuven's railway station is one of the busiest of Belgium. There are frequent trains to and from:

• Brussels International Airport (13 minutes)
• Brussels (Brussels North: 18 minutes; Brussels Central: 24 minutes; Brussels Midi/Zuid: 30 minutes)
• Ghent (1 hour)
• Antwerp (50 minutes)
• Mechelen (20 minutes)
• Liege (1 hour)
• Bruges (1 hour 20 minutes),
• The Belgian coast, Ostende (1 hour 30 minutes)
• Mons (1 hour 30 minutes).

Almost all cities can be reached by train through the Brussels North or Brussels Midi/Zuid hub. Thalys and Eurostar trains depart from Brussels Midi/Zuid.

By bus

There are bus lines from the major cities and towns around Leuven, but connections by train are usually faster and cost about the same.

By taxi

Licensed taxi's have yellow-and-blue (or the older red-and-white) colors on top. They can be found mostly at the airport. One-way to Leuven usually takes 20' (if traffic isn't dense) and costs about €55.

The city has recently installed several new touristic road signs and city maps at several locations, which make getting around in the city a lot easier. Don't be afraid to ask people on the street for information, as they are usually very open and helpful towards tourists - some will even walk you to your destination.

Public transportation

The public transport company De Lijn has a number of bus lines through Leuven. Centre of their network is the Train Station and the stop at the Fochplein. Since distances are not that big, you won't really need public transport unless you're going to Meerdaalwoud, Heverleebos, Campus Arenberg' or the hospital Gasthuisberg. There is no subway or tram line.

On foot

When arriving in Leuven by train, walk to the Martelarenplein in front of the Station and walk down the Bondgenotenlaan in order to get to the city centre: the Grote Markt (Grand Place) where the tourist information desk is situated. Discover the rest of the historic city centre from there. Note that you can also take the Diestsestraat, which is a pedestrian-only street.

By bike

The city has many special areas for cyclers and most - but not all (beware of police controls) - 1-way roads can be accessed in both ways for cycles. It's very easy and comfortable. Make sure to lock your bike to a fixed object or the bike will be stolen, it's sort of a sport among students. You can also rent bicycles. More information at the Tourist Information Desk (near City Hall).

By thumb

In the city centre, it will prove quite difficult to get around by thumb, since most streets and squares are car-free. If you want to thumb out of the city, pick a spot on the city ring road and hope for a quick pick-up. Be advised most traffic is local or headed for Brussels. The Koning Boudewijnlaan is a good spot as well, since it leads to the offramp to Brussels and Liège.

Remember to hold up a sign with your final destination, as most people will not 'just' pick up hitchhikers.

By taxi

Licensed taxi's can be identified by the blue-and-yellow/red-and-white symbol and can be found near the Fochplein and the Martelarenplein. Although you probably won't need one, given the perfect railway connection, they're probably the easiest way to get to the Airport, for example at night.

Shopping in Leuven is easy: you can pick one of the two main roads both starting at the Train Station and ending at the Grand Place, near City Hall and St. Peter's Church. Stores usually close around 6pm, and at 8pm on Thursday. Supermarkets are usually open until 8pm, 9pm on Friday.

• The Diestsestraat is the most important shopping street in Leuven. It has been recently changed to be for pedestrians only for the total length of the street (about 1km!). This street also has two small shopping malls, one of them housing the Kinepolis movie theatres.

• The Bondgenotenlaan also features a lot of shops, but is also the main road between the railwaystation area and the centre.

• Leuven has a lot of clothing stores, jewellers, some fine bookshops and of course a few chocolatiers where you can buy genuine Belgian Chocolate.

• Seasonal sales provide discounts up to 70% in January and July. Expect the city to be extremely busy, especially on week-ends.

• There are many good eateries and a great atmosphere (eating outside during the Summer is a can't-miss!) in the Muntstraat, very different styles from classical French Belgian cuisine to Mexican, Italian, Vietnamese, Chinese and Japanese.

• More common, bigger restaurants can be found right next to City Hall on the Grand Place.

• The area around the Oude Markt (Old Market) and Parijsstraat has many smaller restaurants and bars, the Old Market is sometimes jokingly called the longest bar in Europe.

• The Martelarenplein houses a lot of restaurants and bars just a stone's throw away from the railway station.

• Look for cheaper restaurants on the Old Market, as that's where the student population mostly enjoys their meal.

• Try fresh North Sea Mussels, during their season (roughly August-March). Every year, you'll see the big signs announcing their arrival in front of many restaurants.

Smoking is not allowed in restaurants.

Festivals

Attend the nearby and world renowned Rock Werchter music festival in late June/early July, or Marktrock in the city centre, around August 15th.

Bars and Clubs

Leuven is truly a beer city, with the world's largest brewery Inbev being founded here. Try the many tasty beers, but beware, some have much higher alcohol levels than in the rest of the world! Rates are relatively cheap, depending on which brand you want. Most bars are entrance-free and prices are relatively low.

• Domus small homebrewery and tavern, the beer they brew is only sold there for consumption.

• The area around the Tiensestraat, where there are bars owned by student organisations (Huis der Rechten for the law students, Politika for the political scientists, Pavlov for the psychology students, Dulci for the economics students, Fak Letteren for the arts students and Délibéré for the industrial engineers) and other bars filled with young people ( LaPaz, The Seven Oaks, Ron Blacks). You can find drinks at very low rates here.

• You can visit the many bars around the Old Market every night, but expect a lot more ambiance on Wednesday and Thursday during the Academic Year, when the student population is in the city (late September until early June).

Most parties take place in clubs in the city centre (and require a small entrance fee):

• Der Machine (Naamsestraat, 100m from City Hall)
• Lido (Bogaardenstraat, right next to the Ladeuzeplein)
• Musicafé (Muntstraat)

Larger venues are situated outside the city centre, and have a slightly higher entrance fee (€5-€9) and drinks cost a bit more.

• Club Silo, near the small port of Leuven, about 500m from the Station. Lively all year long on Friday and Saturday.

• Club Room, about 2km from the city centre in the suburb Herent. Open on Friday and Saturday, offering theme evenings such as a gay-friendly evening every first Friday of the month.