Abbaye de Villers-la-Ville

The Abbaye de Villers-la-Ville association manages the ruins of the Cistercian abbey, founded in the 12th century and inhabited by monks for 650 years. It organises self-guided visits with a free app, guided tours on Sundays, the tour of the micro-brewery installed in 2016, children's games, concerts and summer activities, and runs the Bistro de l'Abbaye.

Who they are

The abbey was founded in 1146, when the knight Gauthier de Marbais and his mother Judith called monks from Clairvaux; seventeen settled, and St Bernard visited them in 1147. Around 1270 about a hundred monks and three hundred lay brothers lived here, with almost 10,000 hectares of land. The French Revolution expelled the monks in 1796; the abbey, looted shortly before, was sold to a building-materials merchant who dismantled it, and it was left in ruins. In the 19th century it attracted the Romantics, among them Victor Hugo. The State restored the ruins between 1893 and 1914, it was declared a historic monument in 1972 and an exceptional heritage site of Wallonia in 1992. Since 2024 the whole site has been owned by the Walloon Region, and the non-profit association Abbaye de Villers-la-Ville is the one that opens it to the public and brings it to life. The website does not give the year the association was created.

What it offers

Besides the ruins of the church, the cloister and the outbuildings, the site has gardens, a vineyard, a meditation path and a shop. The micro-brewery makes abbey beers that can be tasted in the bistro, beside the river, where the dishes and desserts are home-made and from nearby suppliers. There are family tours, with a game tablet, school and group visits, event rooms and a programme of concerts, cinema and shows.

Hours and prices

Open every day: from November to March from 10:00 to 17:00, and from April to October until 18:00; in July and August, at weekends and public holidays, until 20:00. Last entry is an hour before closing. Closed on 24, 25 and 31 December and 1 January, and it may close in strong wind. In 2026 admission costs €10 for adults, €8 for over-65s and students, €4 for children aged 6 to 12, and is free for under-6s and people with disabilities. Groups of 15 or more have a reduced price, and there is an annual pass. The children's game tablet costs €5.

Tours, languages and accessibility

The self-guided visit lasts about an hour and a half, with a free mobile app; the website does not detail its languages. There is a guided tour every Sunday at 14:30, and groups can book their own. The site is only partly accessible to people with reduced mobility, and accepts the European disability card. Dogs enter on a lead, drones are forbidden and payment is preferably by card.

Getting there

Villers-la-Ville station, on line 140 between Ottignies and Charleroi, is about two kilometres away. From Monday to Saturday the TEC bus 51 arrives from Louvain-la-Neuve. By car there is free parking, for vehicles under 3.5 metres high, and bike parking.