Leuven – Explore with this audio walking tour

Discover 600 years of history and heritage with my audio walking tour of Leuven

After years of thinking about it, I’ve finally created one: an audio walking tour. It’s available via VoiceMap. I looked at a number of audio walking tour providers, and decided that VoiceMap is the best match for me. They have a very easy to use app that uses GPS autoplay. This means you can put on your headphones, tap Start, and let VoiceMap guide you. If you do wander off in the wrong direction, VoiceMap will play an audio alert, and you can follow the map on your screen to the next location.

The walk I have created on VoiceMap is a 90-minute introduction to the main sights of Leuven. You’ll discover what Leuven would have been like in the 1500s, when it was one of the most important cities in medieval Europe.

The audio walking tour of Leuven starts in the Grote Markt, where you’ll see some of the most gorgeous and impressive buildings in Belgium. Among them is Saint Peter’s Church, which was very nearly the world’s tallest building, and the historical Leuven Town Hall with its 236 statuettes. While you walk through the city centre, I’ll show you parts of the largest, oldest and most prominent university in Belgium, KU Leuven University Hall, Saint Anthony’s Chapel where Father Damien (one of the ten best-known Belgians of all time) is buried, and the impressive Saint Michael’s Church.

But it’s not only the city’s medieval wonders that I’ll show you! On this tour, you can also look forward to:

• Hearing about the woman who keeps a strict but loving eye on student houses
• Saying hello to Fonske, a young man who pours water into a hole in his head
• Walking down the “longest bar in Europe,” Leuven Oude Markt
• Passing by Domus Brewery, where authentic Belgian beer is traditionally brewed
• Taking in M Leuven, an art museum that houses a collection of Gothic sculptures and 15th and 19th-century paintings by various artists
• Seeing a giant bug impaled by a 25-meter pole
• Learning about the university library that was burnt down and rebuilt twice.

As you can see, Leuven has lots to offer! I’ll also introduce you to plenty of places to pull up a seat on a terrace and enjoy a relaxing drink or lunch.

The audio walking tour is available to purchase on the VoiceMap site.

Since writing this post I have also made a VoiceMap self-guided tour of Diest. Feel free to check it out!

Where to stay in Leuven

Here are two excellent B&Bs that I can recommend:

• Hotel Guesthouse Begijnhof, Schapenstraat 97, 3000 Leuven: “A super cozy mini-hotel with an amazing host who made everything perfect for our stay.”
• B&B Wannes Suite, 55 Lindensestraat, 3010 Leuven: “Friendly host, excellent breakfast, nice & quiet place, walking distance to the center of the town.”

There are plenty of other great accommodation possibilities in Leuven. Feel free to use the link below to find one to match your taste:

Denzil Walton

I created Discovering Belgium in 2011 to share the country’s hidden stories, fascinating places, and remarkable people. Through articles, photography, and audio walks, I share discoveries that reveal Belgium beyond the obvious. Hope you enjoy this site.