Wading through
Boots, a lamp and arched stone tunnels — a real adventure.
Bert76 — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Bert76 — CC0 · Dmitry Djouce — CC BY 2.0
De Ruien is Antwerp hidden underground: the network of medieval canals and streams (the "ruien") that were the city's open arteries — for shipping, defence and drainage — then vaulted over between the sixteenth and nineteenth centuries when they became stinking sewers, leaving a city beneath the city of kilometres of arched stone tunnels, with buried bridges and arches and the foundations of medieval houses. The tour is a real adventure: you wear tall rubber boots and a coat (provided) and wade through shallow water beneath the old town with a lamp, or ride a small boat in the deeper sections, with a guide telling the city's history from below — from plagues to smugglers to the modern restoration. Tours in several languages including English, and a shorter self-guided audio tour. The entrance is near the Grote Markt — among Antwerp's most singular experiences, for the adventurous rather than the claustrophobic. Book ahead — numbers are limited.
Boots, a lamp and arched stone tunnels — a real adventure.
Medieval arches and bridges beneath the streets.
The deeper sections by small boat in the dark.
Suikerrui 21, 2000 Antwerp
DIVA Diamond and Jewellery MuseumDIVA is Antwerp's museum of diamonds, jewellery and silver — the world's diamond1 minute walk4.2
Grote Markt and Brabo FountainThe Grote Markt is Antwerp's great square and historic heart: an irregular trian1 minute walk4.5
Eugeen Van Mieghem MuseumA small museum devoted to the Belgian painter Eugeen Van Mieghem (1875-1930), a 1 minute walk4.3
Antwerp City HallAntwerp's City Hall is the first great Renaissance building in the Low Countries1 minute walk4.6
Vlaeykensgang AlleyThe Vlaeykensgang is a secret sixteenth-century alley steps from the cathedral: 2 minutes walk4.7They were sewers, but modern drainage now runs in separate pipes, so the canals carry only rainwater — damp, dark and earthy-smelling, not foul. The tall boots and coat protect you completely. The experience is closer to exploring an urban cave than a sewer. Children from about 8 and brave hearts.