During the fixed timetable you can buy the ticket at the landing stage. To be sure, or outside that timetable, book on its website or by phone.

Yes, on a lead and without disturbing other passengers.

What happens if it rains?

In drizzle they go out; in heavy rain or storm, they change the date or refund the money.

Koninklijke Moedige Bootvissers

A Lier volunteer association that has taken visitors along the Binnennete in former eel-fishing boats since 1979.

The Koninklijke Moedige Bootvissers, the Royal Company of Brave Boat Fishermen, were the eel fishermen of the Nete at Lier. The hoisted-net fishing typical of the city was banned in 1974, and since 1979 the association has used its flat-bottomed boats, now with outboard motors, to take visitors along the Binnennete.

Who they are

At the start of the 20th century the fishermen of Lier caught eels in the Nete from flat-bottomed boats: they lowered a square net to the bottom and raised it every five minutes with a wheel, a technique that in Dutch was called palingdraaien. In 1932 some thirty of them joined together in an association. Their boats had neither sail nor engine and moved with the tides of the Nete, which went down nine hours and rose two or three. When the law banned this fishing in 1974, the association did not disappear: in 1979 it began to run tourist trips on the Kleine Nete in the centre of Lier, and in 1982, on its fiftieth anniversary, it received the title "Royal". Today it is a non-profit association, with six genuine eel boats and volunteer skippers born and raised in Lier.

How it works

The boats leave from the Jan Hendrickx landing stage, at the end of the Schapekoppenstraat, opposite the beguinage, and sail on the Binnennete, a calm, shallow urban arm. From 1 April to 31 October they leave on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays from 14:00 to 17:30, several times an hour, and in July and August also every working day at 14:00. The classic trip lasts 45 minutes and costs €5; under-12s pay €2 and always go with an adult. Each boat carries up to 22 people, and larger groups are split across several.

There is also a trip with an aperitif, for €5 more per person; a private boat for 2 to 10 people for €50, plus €5 per extra person, and a wedding boat for ten for €70. Groups of ten or more can ask for departures at other times during the season.

Languages, dogs and accessibility

The skippers tell the story of the city in Dutch; in English, French or German if you ask when booking. There is no commentary in Spanish. Dogs can board on a lead if they don't disturb anyone, and assistance dogs are always welcome. The boats are historic and have limitations for people with reduced mobility: the association asks you to get in touch beforehand to find a solution.

Weather, booking and getting there

In drizzle they sail, but the boats are open: bring a raincoat, although they have umbrellas and you can wait in the association's premises if a downpour falls. In heavy rain or storm you can change the date free or ask for a refund. You book on the website or on +32 3 480 80 75. For parking, De Mol, at Aarschotsesteenweg 3, is free and about ten minutes' walk away; the one at the Grote Markt is paid and five minutes away.

What they run

The Geocalia activities run by Koninklijke Moedige Bootvissers, with the prices and terms they publish.

Independent companies: you book with them, on their terms. Prices are as they publish them and may change.