North West

Fashion plays a major role in Antwerp – so if you happen to be a fashionista, make Antwerp Fashion Museum, home to the largest collection of contemporary Belgium fashion. Or visit the permanent exhibition »3,500 Years of Textile Art« at HeadquARTers and admire the architecture and the city’s monumental, contemporary artwork! If you’re interested in architecture, go straight on to Maison Guiette, the last remaining work by Le Corbusier in Belgium, or add a group tour of Port House to your itinerary. Keep your eyes open for Street Art on your journey through town. After getting a bite to eat at Native, admire the oldest printing press in the world at Plantin-Moretus Museum, visit the FOMU | FotoMuseum, the Museum for Contemporary Art Antwerp or have a chat with the artists themselves at Dalek Art Gallery. Then go for a walk through the Saint Anna Tunnel and use the original escalators there that date back to 1933! If you still have space in your suitcase, why not take a look at Kabinet Unique (upcycling), Rewind (recycling) or Think Twice (second hand). In the summer, you can spend an evening at one of the summer bars (Koerwud, Bar Paniek). There’s also a wide range of things to do in the evenings: how about a bit of jazz music (De Muze, Bar d’Henri), the Swaajp Improv Theatre, a concert or another cultural event at Het Bos or a beer at Witzli-Poetzli, where you could get chatting to artists, art students, writers and musicians?

Trains leave every two to three hours to the next stop on your journey: Maastricht (fastest travel time: 2 hours, 19 minutes).

Start your stay in Maastricht with breakfast at De Brandweerkantine, located in a former fire station, before joining a tour through the Kasematten at Fort Saint Pieter. If you’re looking for more action, follow this with a trip to ENCI Quarry or enjoy the view from Lichtenberg Castle Ruins . Alternatively, visit one of the exciting museums in the city, for example the Museum of the Art of Printing, the Cube Design Museum, Bonnefanten with its collections of old and contemporary art, the Fotomuseum aan het Vrijthof or Bureau Europa, which organises exhibitions, lectures and city tours revolving around the subjects of architecture, urban development and design. There are also fascinating regular exhibitions at Centre Céramique and Marres House for Contemporary Culture. If you happen to be in Maastricht at the right time in the spring, don’t miss the TEFAF Art Fairs events. Afterwards, relax with coffee and cake at at Dominicane Book Shop cafe, which is located in the oldest Gothic church in the Netherlands and is considered to be one of the most beautiful book shops in the world. Follow that with a trip to Valkenburg Coal Mine, where you can experience mining machinery in action. Or head over to the old Sphinx industrial site, where 30,000 tiles tell the story of the ceramics company Sphinx at Sphinx-Passage. In the evening, enjoy street food tapas from all around the world at Clichée before watching a film at Kino Lumière or savouring the view over the city in the evening from the rooftop bar at The Student Hotel.

Take one of the trains that leave once or twice an hour to the next stop in your journey: Essen (fastest travel time: 2 hours, 14 minutes).

An absolute must during your stay in Essen: a visit to Zeche Zollverein Industrial Complex, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and an architectural and industrial monument. Learn not only about the history of a colliery that was one of the largest in the world in its day, but also visit the Ruhr Museum to find out about the natural and cultural history of the Ruhr Region, or take in one of the many other cultural events. For example, you can’t miss Red Dot Design Museum, home to the largest exhibition of contemporary art. Take in all these impressions over some delicious ice cream at Eis Casal or coffee, cakes and books at Café Livres. Then visit Museum Folkwang, which displays both modern art and collections of graphic and photographic works, and the German Poster Museum. If you’re interested in architecture, head over to Ronald McDonald House in the Gruga Park or to Margarethenhöhe, constructed between 1909 and 1934/38 as a garden city for Krupp Company employees. Or why not follow the Bauhaus tracks in the Ruhr Region? We also recommend taking a walk through Deilbachtal Valley Cultural Landscape, which displays the origins of the iron and metal industries in the Ruhr Region with its pre-industrial and early industrial monuments. Or take a different walk through the historical quarters of Essen-Kettwig and Essen-Werden or through the sculpture park Arboretum Trautmann. Relax for the rest of the day at Unperfekthaus »Artists’ Village« or strike up a conversation with others over table tennis or table football.

There are about two trains each hour to the next stop on your journey: Kassel (fastest travel time: 2 hours and 43 minutes).

Every five years, Kassel hosts one of the most important exhibitions of contemporary art in the world: documenta. If you don’t happen to be in Kassel at the right time, you can still discover works of art from previous years as you tour around the city. You’ll also want to walk through Treppenstrasse, Germany’s first pedestrian zone. After that, there’s even more modern art to be seen at Fridericianum. You might also be interested in the Technikmuseum, dedicated to the history of technology and industry in Kassel and North Hesse. Then, grab something to eat at Markthalle –like a snack or two at Hos Sostrene--before setting off for Bergpark Wilhelmshöhe. Here, you can enjoy the beauty of this UNESCO world cultural heritage site as well as admire the view over the city and, with a bit of luck, even see one of the regular summer fountain shows. Back in the city centre, why not stop by Kollektivcafé Kurbad or Eislust. Another must-see: Grimm World, an interactive multimedia display of the works and lives of the Brothers Grimm. Directly below the museum building lies the vineyard, which is criss-crossed with tunnels and passages. Why not take part in a tour of the vineyard bunker? And, if you still have enough energy, take a look at Kasseler Stadthonig or Soki, where they produce and sell upcycled underwear made of old bedding. In the evening, enjoy a beer at Braumanufaktur Steckenpferd or a concert at Kulturzentrum Schlachthof.

For the last stage of your trip to Weimar, take one of the trains that leave once or twice an hour (fastest travel time: 1 hour and 53 minutes). You have now reached the end of your journey – and are about to start experiencing the next exciting highlights!