En route to Santiago de Compostela
Many people, young and old, walk to Santiago de Compostela every year. Many call themselves pilgrims. They are en route and on a pilgrimage.
MEDIALOUNGE.BEThe Gasthuis Chapel, now the home of Visit Tongeren-Borgloon, was once a popular stopover for pilgrims on their way to Santiago de Compostela. They slept in the Saint James’ Gasthuis, which became a wealthy institution thanks to donations.
From the Gasthuis Chapel, walk to the village of Rutten via the Evermarus Trail. This trail is part of the route to Compostela, also know as the Saint James Way.
You can find more information about the Flemish Compostela Society here
Tongeren is an important stop on the Via Limburgica. More information about the route can be found here
Christina Mirabilis
Walking in the footsteps of Christina Mirabilis is a pilgrimage of 100 km, divided into five day trips.
• Day 1 from Sint-Truiden to Brustem (17.6 km)
• Day 2 from Brustem to Wellen (20.5 km)
• Day 3 from Wellen to Borgloon (19.7 km)
• Day 4 from Borgloon to Zepperen (19.8 km)
• Day 5 from Zepperen to Sint-Truiden (17.8 km)
With the Wikiloc app on your smartphone, you'll be guided effortlessly along the pilgrim trails, as the paths are not signposted.
The beautiful, illustrated brochure with a map of each day's walk including stops and highlights along the way is available from Visit Tongeren-Borgloon (Gasthuis Chapel) and the Stroopfabriek for €18
Regional GR
The Regional GR Haspengouw is a circular, 130 km long-distance route, with another 52 km of short-cuts, that leads you through Haspengouw’s river valleys, past castles and monumental farmsteads, through farming villages and past countless hidden natural treasures. From the plateaus you can enjoy the sweeping landscape – sometimes you can see as far as Liège. It’s easy to put together your own route, as various routes cross each other at specific junctions. These routes are marked with yellow-red stripes. You’ll find more information at www.groteroutepaden.be.
GR
The Grote Routepaden are long-distance hikes across Europe. You simply follow the white-red markings. The urban version of the GR-128, or Flanders Route, passes through Tongeren. You can find more information about the GR routes at www.groteroutepaden.be.