Maastricht

Hotel De La Bourse Maastricht : A Great Room At A Great Price!

Updated on January 3, 2021May 31, 2012attractions Europe holiday Maastricht Places of Interest River Maas The Netherlands Travel Travel Blog Travel Tips vacation

River Maas Maastricht : Enjoy the sights along this famous river

The river Maas is the main river of Holland that passes many states and provinces. Yes, it passes through Maastricht as well!

As we walked along river Maas (aka Meuse), we enjoyed all the sights that the walk along the river has to offer. Here are some of the more notable sights along the river…

Sint Servaasbrug

Sint Servaasbrug is one of the bridges that connects from the train station side of the city to the old city/city centre itself (i.e. east to west side of the city). The bridge is characterised by the limestones used in its construction as well as the arches of channels that it has under it.

Hoge Brug

Hoge Brug is the bridge between the Sint Servaasbrug and JFK bridge. It is characterised by its modern single arch stretching from one side of the river to the other.

Medieval Remnants

There is no actual name for this remnant along the river (or is there? can the locals tell us?) but as with the other medieval fortifications in Maastricht, it is a great area to have a picturesque photo along the river.

Beluga Restaurant Maastricht

Beluga is one of the most famous Michelin restaurants in Maastricht. Given its location as well as the excellent choice of foods that it serves, Beluga draws visitors and locals alike to its premise.

Charles Eyck Park

As you continue to walk along the river (southwards), you will come across the Charles Eyck Park. It is a nice little area to chill, enjoy the views of the river as well as the bridges that spans the river Maas.

Bonnefanten Museum

Strange as it looks, Bonnefanten Museum is one of the most famous museums in Maastricht. Today, it houses one of the most interesting collections of old art as well as contemporary art.

The sunshine, sounds of the river as well as the cool atmosphere concocts a relaxing holiday, waiting for you to enjoy, here in Maastricht!

We shall now leave you with the sights and sounds along the river Maas (Meuse) in Maastricht!

Birds cruising along the river Maas in Maastricht

Sights along the river Maas in Maastricht

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Things To Do And Attractions In Maastricht : Day 2 And 3 Of Europe Trip

River Maas Maastricht : Enjoy The Sights Along This Famous River

Stadsomwalling And Helpoort – City Fortifications Of Maastricht

Hotel De La Bourse Maastricht : A Great Room At A Great Price!

Updated on January 3, 2021May 26, 2012attractions Europe holiday Maastricht Places of Interest The Netherlands Travel Travel Blog Travel Tips vacation Vrijthof Square

Vrijthof Square Maastricht : Time to Chillax!

Vrijthof Square is one of the 2 most prominent squares in Maastricht. The other being Markt or Market Square.

Vrijthof Square Maastricht

The video above shows the entire square taken at its centre. It shows the Sint Servaasbasiliek…

and the Sint Janskerk with its notably red coloured coating…

Besides the churches, you may also notice strange looking trees, somewhat like the bulbous trees. These trees form paths beside the pubs and restaurants lining the sides of this square.

To enjoy the sights and sounds of Vrijthof square, we recommend taking a seat along one of the restaurants (on the outside, of course). This we did at Grand Cafe Nieuw Bruin!

Outside eating at Grand Cafe Nieuw Bruin Maastricht

Kate had a coffee for $2.75euro

Coffee at Grand Cafe Nieuw Bruin, Vrijthof Square Maastricht (2.75 euros)

Menu of Grand Cafe Nieuw Bruin, Vrijthof Square Maastricht

Tom ordered the Gulpener Lager (served on draft) and the coolest thing about being seated outside is that it keeps the beer cold (because of the cool temperature)! So you can really just enjoy your beer without being afraid that it’ll turn warm.

After taking a look at the menu, we decided to stay for dinner as the 4 course dinner costs only $19.95euro. We also ordered the house favourite – Mussels in white wine for $21.50euro!

Gulpener Lager brought into cafe for dinner

Beef Steak Grand Cafe Nieuw Bruin Maastricht

Creme Brulee Grand Cafe Nieuw Bruin Maastricht

There was also a tea selection at the end of the meal!

We thoroughly enjoyed the mussels in white wine. The mussels were really fresh and the taste was enhanced by the wine sauce. Yum! The creme brulee was also simple, light yet marvelously smooth!

We started our meal around 7ish and ended close to 9. This should have been the busiest time of any restaurant. However, there were only 2 other tables being served this whole time! Since the food was relatively good, we kay poh a bit (busy body) and asked the waiter why this was so.

It was actually because of the low season (end of winter was still considered low season). He mentioned that during the summer months, the ENTIRE restaurant would be packed!

Vrijthof square is definitely worth a visit and why not have a drink or 2 while reveling in the life of a local!

For your convenience, we have arranged for the best hotel deals in Maastricht right here!

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Things To Do And Attractions In Maastricht : Day 2 And 3 Of Europe Trip

River Maas Maastricht : Enjoy The Sights Along This Famous River

Stadsomwalling And Helpoort – City Fortifications Of Maastricht

Hotel De La Bourse Maastricht : A Great Room At A Great Price!

Updated on January 3, 2021May 25, 2012attractions Europe holiday Maastricht Michelin Restaurants Places of Interest The Netherlands Travel Travel Blog Travel Tips vacation

Michelin Restaurants in Maastricht

One of the attractions at Maastricht has got to be its Michelin restaurants. Some statistics (not sure whether its genuine) suggests that Maastricht has the most number of Michelin restaurants per square mile in the world! Either that or the most number of Michelin restaurants for a given city/population size. Anyway…

After we checked into our hotel at Hotel De La Bourse, we asked our friendly receptionist about the Michelin restaurants in Maastricht.

She pointed us to 2…

Beluga

Beluga is located close to the river Maas close to the Sint Servaasbrug. It is actually one of the most popular and famous Micheline restaurants here in Maastricht.

Toine Hermsen

Toine Hersen is more like a family-styled Michelin restaurant tucked away on Bernardus Straat.

Toine Hersen on bernardustraat Michelin restaurant closed on Sundays

Here is a shot of the menu for the autumn/winter period…

Menu of Toine Hermsen Michelin Restaurant Maastricht

The 5 course meal costs $100Euro while the 4 course meal costs $80Euro. The Toine Hermsen is actually not an easy place to find. The best way to locate it is to walk towards Helpoort…

If you are able to find Helpoort, you are very close to the restaurant. We were actually unable to locate it on the map and had to turn to the locals – all of whom knew where the restaurant was!

The saddest part about this post is that BOTH RESTAURANTS WERE CLOSED ON THE SUNDAY WHEN WE WERE THERE!! Unfortunately, we were unable to taste the gourmet spread at either of the Michelin restaurants.

Any of our readers been there? Share with us your experience in the comments section below!

For your convenience, we have arranged for the best hotel deals in Maastricht right here!

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Things To Do And Attractions In Maastricht : Day 2 And 3 Of Europe Trip

River Maas Maastricht : Enjoy The Sights Along This Famous River

Stadsomwalling And Helpoort – City Fortifications Of Maastricht

Hotel De La Bourse Maastricht : A Great Room At A Great Price!

Updated on January 3, 2021May 19, 2012attractions Europe holiday Maastricht Markt Places of Interest The Netherlands Travel Travel Blog Travel Tips vacation

Markt aka the market square in Maastricht

The Markt is one of the 2 squares in Maastricht. The other being Vrijthof square.

The Markt is of course where our hotel was – The Hotel De La Bourse. There are some interesting structures and buildings which we want to bring to your attention…

Statue of Johannes Petrus Minckelers in Maastricht- guy who invented gas light

The “Eternal Burning Flame” is a statue in the middle of Markt Square in Maastricht that remembers Johannes Petrus Minckelers (aka Jean-Pierre Minckelers) as the inventor of illuminating gas. It shows him holding a torch that is lighted with fire. You can actually feel the heat when you stand close to it.

The other noteworthy structure has got to be the City Hall aka Stadhuis. The bells of the city hall chimes on the hour and we managed to catch the last bit of it here…

Bell chimes from the City Hall in Maastricht

There’s another statue of an old lady here in the Markt. Anyone knows who she is and what she stands for? There are also trucks that park at the side of the Markt and sell sandwiches and fish, somewhat like a mini market. The sides of the square are also lined with shops ranging from restaurants to boutiques.

We will now leave you with a video that covers the entire Markt Square. Hope it brings you the feel and vibe of the Markt in Maastricht!

For your convenience, we have arranged for the best hotel deals in Maastricht right here!

In and around Markt Square Maastricht

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Things To Do And Attractions In Maastricht : Day 2 And 3 Of Europe Trip

River Maas Maastricht : Enjoy The Sights Along This Famous River

Stadsomwalling And Helpoort – City Fortifications Of Maastricht

Hotel De La Bourse Maastricht : A Great Room At A Great Price!

Updated on January 3, 2021May 18, 2012attractions Europe holiday Hotel De La Bourse Maastricht Places of Interest The Netherlands Travel Travel Blog Travel Tips vacation

Hotel De La Bourse Maastricht : A great room at a great price!

Hotel De La Bourse is a quaint little hotel located at the corner of the Markt or market square in Maastricht. The location of the hotel is excellent because it is just a short walk from the Maastricht train station.

We knew that Hotel De La Bourse was located at the Markt. However, we had some minor difficulty locating the hotel at first. So after we crossed the bridge from the train station, we took our lunch at MacDonald’s and wanted to ask the cashier about the exact location of Hotel De La Bourse. To our horror, the staff at Macs did not know of the location of the hotel as well! Hence, Tom was sent as a scout to the other side of the Markt while Kate waited in Macs with our stuff.

The good thing was it was actually just tucked away at the corner of the Markt and if you can find Macs, it is just diagonally across the square.

We thoroughly enjoyed our stay because of 2 reasons

1. Price
2. Service

Price

At 70 Euros a night, Hotel De La Bourse was a steal! There was a TV with cable channels in the room…

Double Room at Hotel De La Bourse - 70Euro a night — Double Room at Hotel De La Bourse – 70Euro a night

The toilet was also well concealed with its entrance like that of a cupboard…

Concealed toilet of double room at Hotel De La Bourse

The shower also came with hot water at high pressure (not the weak/dripping kind)

Interior of Toilet at Hotel De La Bourse

The beds were very comfortable and the room was themed with a welcoming effect…

The room came with a nice view of the Markt as well!

With breakfast included!

Breakfast at Hotel De La Bourse Maastricht

Service

We also strongly recommend Hotel De La Bourse because of its service. The old lady at the cashier (wasted, did not take her name) was amicable and welcomed us as we entered the hotel. She was running both the hotel as well as the restaurant downstairs (this area is also where breakfast is served). Not only did she show us the way to our rooms, she also spent time to show us the map about town!

When we came down from our room to ask for directions to the Michelin star restaurants (Maastricht is also famous for its Michelin restaurants), she recommended 2 and even showed us the detailed directions to these venues.

Coupled with the great price, excellent location and impeccable service, Hotel De La Bourse is definitely a recommended hotel for your stay at Maastricht when you visit Holland the next time you’re there!

For your convenience, we have arranged for the best hotel deals in Maastricht right here!

If you enjoyed our content, “Like” us on Facebook Today!

Things To Do And Attractions In Maastricht : Day 2 And 3 Of Europe Trip

River Maas Maastricht : Enjoy The Sights Along This Famous River

Stadsomwalling And Helpoort – City Fortifications Of Maastricht