# Day trip to Lier from Brussels: beguinage, Zimmer tower and a boat on the Nete

The Zimmer tower and the beguinage in the morning, the Sunday menu at Hof van Aragon, a boat on the Nete and the collegiate church of Joanna of Castile's wedding.

Fuente: https://www.geocalia.com/en/belgium/lier/itineraries/beguinage-and-zimmer-tower-from-brussels · Revisado: 2026-11-12

## El día
- 09:00 · Salida: 45 min by train (from Bruxelles-Central; check the day's connection)
- 10:00 · Grote Markt, town hall and belfry (the 1369 belfry and the tourist office, in Spanish)
  - 5 min on foot
- 10:30 · Zimmer tower and its time museum (€8 · the clock carousel goes off at 12:00)
  - 3 min on foot
- 12:00 · Lier beguinage, a World Heritage Site (free · lanes from the 1200s)
  - 8 min on foot
- 12:45 · Hof van Aragon, Sunday restaurant (Sunday menu, €34 with a drink · book) · Hof van Aragon, Sunday restaurant, €€
  - 8 min on foot
- 14:30 · Eel-boat trip on the Binnennete (Moedige Bootvissers · €5 · from the landing stage opposite the beguinage) · Koninklijke Moedige Bootvissers, From €5 per person
  - 10 min on foot
- 15:30 · St Gummarus collegiate church, where Joanna and Philip were married (where Joanna and Philip were married in 1496)
  - 5 min on foot
- 16:15 · The Spanish walk: in the footsteps of Joanna of Castile (920 m with plaques in Spanish)
- 17:30 · Vuelta: 45 min by train (in Brussels around 18:30)

Lier is the quiet trip from Brussels: a small, flat city with no cars in the centre, with a World Heritage beguinage, a tower full of clocks and the church where Joanna of Castile and Philip the Handsome were married. This plan is designed for a Sunday from April to October, the day when the Hof van Aragon menu and the Nete boats coincide.

## The day, hour by hour

9:00 · Train to Lier. About 45 minutes depending on the connection. From the station to the Grote Markt, ten minutes on foot.

10:00 · Grote Markt. The belfry and the town hall; on the first floor, the tourist office serves in Spanish.

10:30 · Zimmer tower. €8. The Wonderful Clock, with 93 dials, and at 12:00 the carousel on the façade.

12:00 · Beguinage. Free, eleven cobbled lanes.

12:45 · Lunch at Hof van Aragon. The three-course Sunday menu, €34 with a drink and coffee; €17 for under-12s. Book.

14:30 · Boat on the Nete. 45 minutes for €5, with a Lier skipper. They leave several times an hour until 17:30.

15:30 · Collegiate church and the Spanish walk. The church of the 1496 wedding and six plaques about Spanish Lier.

17:30 · Return. Train to Brussels.

## Is it for me?

If you are looking for a Flemish city with few people and a history that touches you closely, yes. With children it works well: the boat, the clocks and the city museum.

## Cómo llegar

### Without a car
Train from Brussels to Lier, often changing at Mechelen, and everything on foot.

### By car
About 40 minutes along the E19 and the N14; park free at De Mol.

## Preguntas frecuentes

### How much does the trip to Lier cost?
Between €55 and €75 per person with train, tower, boat and lunch.

### Can it be done in winter?
Yes, without the boat: swap it for the city museum.