Boat cruises on the river Meuse, from Namur

Boat trip on the river Meuse

A good way to have a first global vision of a city is from a channel or a river. Bruges or Ghent are two greats examples I recommend to do this. But in Wallonia, Namur is another of the cities whose vision from the river that crosses it, the River Meuse, will give us a lot to know the city. We will realise Namur grew to the guard of the river, animated by their trade and protected by the citadel which rises on the promontory in the cross between the Meuse and the Sambre.

Cruises on the river Meuse

From Namur we can choose to make two types of cruises depending on what we want to see and how much time we have to spend.

The simplest is the 50 minutes one. It will circulate around the city, from sluice to sluice by the Meuse, and then goes by the Sambre and arrive just at the end of Namur. Also you can do a longer cruise for an hour and three quarters, from Namur to Wepion, a small town located some 8 kilometers to the south, and another one of two hours of duration that will take you to Dinant.

Cruise on the river Meuse, near Namur

Cruise on the river Meuse

There are several companies that make these cruises, and all of them exit from the small docks that are next to the Citadel. However, you will have to be careful with dates because they don’t circulate all the year: the seasons usually begin in early April and ending at the end of September.

In my last visit to Namur I had the opportunity to enjoy one of these small travels and I can assure you that is a relaxing experience that is appreciated, especially when one is already tired of walking from one site to another visiting monuments or when you are coming of hours by plane or train from our place of departure. I had, in addition, a very good luck to have a clear day that allowed me to take photos of the city from the banks of both rivers, see the Citadel from another point of view, crossing the bridge of Jambes and reach the sluice of “La Plante”.

Pont de Jambes on Namur

Pont de Jambes on Namur

I was able to enjoy of fifty minutes of absolute tranquility and, also, taking a beer on board, because the boat has a small bar.

The company of Bateaux of Mr. Marsigny, with which I made the cruise, haveh three daily routes in the short path and the price for adults is between 7 and 8 euros (7.5 € in 2015), while that for the journey that makes between Namur and Wepion only has an output per day and navigate exclusively in july and august. In both cases, doesn’t leave on wednesdays.

Finally, if you want to visit Dinant, there is a boat trip that leaves at 10 am and returns at 19 h. with a 2 hour stopover in this city. Often they circulates on sundays and only in the months of July and August.

You can see all the opening times and prices in this link of the official website.

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