UNUSUAL PLACES TO VISIT IN NAMUR - THE CAPITAL CITY OF WALLONIA, BELGIUM
When I say top things to do in Namur city, obviously it would mean exploring the Namur Citadel, seeing the Belfry and going on a cruise in Meuse. So I'm skipping those 3! Here are next top 5 places to visit & things to do in Namur. Just visiting these 8 places would be perfect for a day-trip from Brussels to Namur. Refer the Namur itineraries section below for more ideas to make it a weekend trip to Namur or longer!
If I have to go by what locals say, the people of Namur as so lazy and so slow, that, Djoseph (Joe) and Françwès (Frank) need to put a leash & cage on their snails, while they negotiate, so it doesn't 'run' away! Well.... You need to visit the city for yourself and find out how fast or slow the people are. I'm not going to comment on that! Haha.
The sculpture composition is by Suzanne Godard, made in 2000 CE. The concept of these 2 characters is the brainchild of Jean Legrand, an artist of the last century who was the son of this soil. The 2 are the characters of a comic strip created by him. You can find this sculpture in the Place d'Armes square.
The sculpture composition is by Suzanne Godard, made in 2000 CE. The concept of these 2 characters is the brainchild of Jean Legrand, an artist of the last century who was the son of this soil. The 2 are the characters of a comic strip created by him. You can find this sculpture in the Place d'Armes square.
Djoseph and Françwès Location (on Google Maps): Djoseph and Françwès (Snail sculpture)
Djoseph and Françwès (Snail Sculpture Namur) Tickets: Free
Joe & Frank (Snail Sculpture Namur) Opening Hours: 24x7
From Snail to a Turtle..... This sculpture is located half way through the flight of stairs (i.e., not the ramp route) that takes you to Namur Citadel. Its a huge bronze turtle, with a man seated on its back, overlooking the River Meuse and further towards the city. This was made by artist Jan Fabre and it was displayed in the city in 2015 as a part of an exhibition. However people of Namur fell in love so much with this sculpture that the city & residents bought it and displayed here permanently.
Searching for Utopia Location (on Google Maps): Searching for Utopia, Namur
Searching for Utopia Tickets: Free
Searching for Utopia Opening Hours: 8AM to 5PM/8PM in winters & summers
Quite amusingly, this very interesting contest happens during the Fêtes de Wallonie festival. This is located in Roi des Menteurs street.
The Liar Festival is a huge annual event in Moncrabeau in France, which has the so-called Academy of Liars (more like a folk society)! One of the founders of the society is Nicolas Bosret who belongs to Namur. So yeah, Namur has his sculpture and at its foot, the city's own 'throne' for the 'King of Liars'! Every year, the current 40 members of the society select the King of Liars who is enthroned on this throne!!!!!!!
The Liar Festival is a huge annual event in Moncrabeau in France, which has the so-called Academy of Liars (more like a folk society)! One of the founders of the society is Nicolas Bosret who belongs to Namur. So yeah, Namur has his sculpture and at its foot, the city's own 'throne' for the 'King of Liars'! Every year, the current 40 members of the society select the King of Liars who is enthroned on this throne!!!!!!!
King of Liars Throne Location (on Google Maps): King of Liars' Throne
King of Liars Throne Tickets: Free
King of Liars Throne Opening Hours: 24 x 7
This is also, half way through to Citadel. From outside it looks like a simple perfume shop, but it has a huge perfume manufacturing area inside which can be seen with a Guy Delforge Perfumery guided tour.
It is a 1hr tour that begins with a small movie about the whole process and their history. After the movie, the tour starts with the places where the manufacturing, filtering, storing of the perfumes happen. Beyond this is a huge collection of the various aromatic oils. We were given some to smell and find out what they were! This is followed by the most important place, the underground cellars of the citadel, which are used by the perfumery for aging the perfumes. The last part is where they tell you how to choose a perfume, where to apply a perfume and more!
Btw, did you know there are 3 types of perfumes? Eau de cologne which has 2-3% concentration of aromatic oils, Eau de toilette that has 7-8% and Eau de parfum which has 13-14%. Perfume as it is has a whooping 23-24% aromatic oil!!!
Guy Delforge Perfumery Location (on Google Maps): Guy Delforge Perfumery
Guy Delforge Perfumery Tour Tickets: €3.50
Guy Delforge Perfumery Tour Timings: Saturdays at 3:30PM (during school holidays, Mon-Sat 3:30PM). Guides usually speak French, Dutch, English, German, Spanish & Italian and for other languages, audio guide is given.
I call it the symbol garden. This is located inside Parc Louise-Marie. Its named after Jean Chalon, the 19th C Botanist, again, a son of this soil! First I was definitely confused that the entire park is the garden, but no - the garden is a very small part of the park and has specific opening timings, unlike the rest of the park.
The whole garden is filled with several symbolisms, beginning with a Maze and Grotto - on the floor is a maze and beyond it is a foliage canopied path to represent a cave/grotto. The garden is in the 2 sections - Esoteric Garden to the right and the Garden of Traditions to the left.
The Esoteric Garden is rather quirky with sections for elements of nature, numbers, shapes, astronomy, music and more. On the other side, the Garden of Traditions is more filled with trees, floral plants etc. It too has several symbols incl ying yang, assorted random symbols. Don't miss the little insect house here. (Btw, Belgium's largest Insect house is close to Namur as well, in Domaine de Han).
Jardin Jean Chalon Location (on Google Maps): Jean Chalon Garden
Jardin Jean Chalon Tickets: Free
Jardin Jean Chalon Opening Hours: Jul-Aug: Tue-Sun: 2PM to 6PM; Other months - Sat-Sun: 2PM to 6PM
Jardin Jean Chalon Guide book: Jean Chalon Garden Guide book (downloads/opens as PDF)
P.S: Click here to know what I wore in Namur - Day 2 Outfit, Day 3 Outfit
NAMUR HOTELS
Hotels at all price points are available in Namur. Check out my reviews of Hotel Les Tanneurs in Namur.
HOW TO REACH NAMUR
Namur, being the capital city of Wallonia region, is well connected with all other cities by train.
How to reach Namur from Brussels by car: 70km
How to reach Namur from Brussels by train: 1 hr journey. Direct trains frequently run from Brussels Nord/Central/Zuid/Schuman/Luxembourg
All these places mentioned in this post are walkable from Namur Railway Station.
All these places mentioned in this post are walkable from Namur Railway Station.
1 day itinerary in Namur: Visit Namur Citadel (incl Guy Delforge perfumery), visit Belfry and go on a cruise on river Meuse
2 days itinerary in Namur: Day 1 - as above; Day 2 - Draisines de la Molignee (railbiking), visit Les Jardin d'Annevoie, & Wepion Strawberry farm
3 days itinerary in Namur: Days 1&2 - as above; Day 3 - Daytrip to Dinant
MY COMPLETE NAMUR & DINANT TRAVELOGUE
Namur Citadel, Guy Delforge Perfumery, Jean Chalon Garden, Railbikes of Molignee, Domaine des Grotte de Han, Les Jardin d'Annevoie, Wepion Strawberry, Dinant Citadel & Notre dame Collegiale, Maison Leffe & Grotte Merveilleuse, Dinant Town
P.S: I was invited by Wallonia Tourism to experience the region for review purposes, however the opinions are my own and this post does not to advertise the product/service.
P.S: I was invited by Wallonia Tourism to experience the region for review purposes, however the opinions are my own and this post does not to advertise the product/service.
I love your post! I find it inviting to visit Namur. I tale about being the Namur people being lazy and slow is Amusing. Ha!And it seems they love slow things... I'm intrigued by the King of Liar's Throne. How do they determine the King?
ReplyDeleteIt is good that apart from exploring the Citadel, Belfry and going for a cruise in Meuse, you are presenting with some 5 best places in Namur. I loved the concept of snail sculpture and dedicated to the laid back attitude of locals in Namur. Now I have to visit this place to figure out how much slow or fast they are. Even the Turtle sculpture at top of hill is wonderful and interesting. The view of city and river Meuse from thsi turtle sculpture is really stunning.
ReplyDeleteLove that you are sharing the less known sights, rather than the top 3 that are already visited by everyone. Great mix of sights from sculptures with local stories, to the perfumery adn the pretty garden. Looks like a sweet place to visit.
ReplyDeleteWhat an interesting read, I've never knew about Namur! The Jean Chalon Garden: looks really pretty and the perfumery would definitely be top of my list. I need to take note of this cute place :)
ReplyDeleteI’m interested in Djoseph and Françwès one. Also, I love perfume sooooo much. I have plenty of perfume collection especially eau de toilette❤️ Guy Delforge Perfumery is a must-visit for me.
ReplyDeleteThe turtle sculpture is really nice and unique. This is the first time I saw something like this huge. Would love to have the opportunity to visit someday.
ReplyDeleteA visit to the Guy Delforge Perfumery would also be a wonderful experience.
wow the turtle sculpture is really cool and the view from up there seems to be amazing too :) Thanks for the detailed post with directions and prices. Namur is not that far away from my place in Germany so I might go there in summer next year :)
ReplyDeleteHi. I have to admit that Belgium wasn't one of our "must do" destinations but, sense we got a very cheap plane ticket, we started to search and, each day we get more interested in this country. Was just recently that we discover Namur and, now we really want to go and, we added it on our itinerary. And your top five choices are great, we have to do it all but, i have to say, that the giant turtle statue (Utopia) will be the best part of the day, spatially for our son :)
ReplyDeleteTo be honest I have never heard of this place but now its on my radar it looks pretty. I love spotting sculptures when walking around a town and love the turtle.
ReplyDeleteThank you for such a great post! I hadn't heard of Namur before reading your post, but it is now on my radar. The turtle statue is fantastic! I didn't realize there were three different types of perfumes and you could tour a facility to learn about them. I think that is a great attraction! I love being able to learn something new wherever I travel.
ReplyDeleteFirst time hearing about Namur. Quite interesting to know about the history of Snail cage and King of Liars throne. Wondering about Wallonie festival and the contest. Never knew 3 perfume types. I would love to go on Perfume tour and learn to differentiate the different smells.
ReplyDeleteI had no idea about Namur before reading this post!! One thing for sure that Namur has some of the most bizarre statues and sculptures I have heard and seen of. I particularly love the story behind Djoseph and Françwès (Snail sculpture) and I would like to see it by myself and it is so fascinating to know that the sculpture dates back to 2000 BC.
ReplyDeleteLove how you laid out less touristy activities to do to get off the beaten path! I love turtles so that guys really cute. And I'm a sucker for a nice smelling perfume. I will have to check it out when I finally get to Belgium!
ReplyDeleteOh, I've honestly never even heard of Namur before this. It does really like like a spot that I ought to add to my list. I'm loving that turtle sculpture at the top of the hill!
ReplyDeleteIt was great to learn about the 'next top' top places to see in Namur from your post. I can imagine some of these might easily get overlooked as visitors head off to the more well known sites but from your descriptions and photographs, these sites sure pack a whole lot of charm as well. Such a fun concept to put that adorable nail sculpture to symbolize the pace of life in the city. The view from the turtle sculpture overlooking the River Meuse is incredible. I wonder if they allow picnics near this turtle sculpture - how relaxing that must be!The Liar Festival sounds unique - I wonder how they end up choosing the King of Liars on that day!! Sounds hilarious. I'd love to visit the perfume manufacturing facility - I had visited one in Capri and it was a delightful experience so would love to see how this compares. Thanks for all the details.
ReplyDeleteI would love to visit the perfumery! I have never been to any place like that before. I would love to learn more about the process and try to guess what some of the scents are!
ReplyDeleteLove how you laid out less touristy activities to do to get off the beaten path! I love turtles so that guys really cute. And I'm a sucker for a nice smelling perfume. I will have to check it out when I finally get to Belgium!
ReplyDelete