Royal Ostend

For an exploration of Ostend, once the seaside resort of the royal family and equipped with the necessary war memories, you start at the station (V). Immediately surrounded by the highlights of this royal/artistic/popular city: the Mercator dock, the Visserskaai, the towers and the harbour. Walk to the right and then cross one of the bridges, to the high towers of the neo-Gothic St. Peter's Church (19011905) 1 . Next to the green museum ship Amandine – O.129, the last Icelander, you cross over to the church square. To the left you step past the Paster Pype monument to the monument to the war victims, with the brick Peperbussetoren (the only remnant of the original 15th century church) behind it. • After the church, take the Kapellestraat, one of the numerous shops and restaurants, on the left to the Vindictivelaan (see box) and follow the marina on the right with the museum ship Mercator (1932). Past the Jan Piersplein you cross the Leopold IIlaan to the town hall via the traffic lights. And then across the Alfons Pieterslaan, to the Canadaplein with the brick Court. • At the entrance of the underground car park, three rivets, signposts of the Heritage Walking Route that you will partially follow, point left into Leopold Park. Follow the edge of the park, with a brief view of the ponds. And at the next corner, turn left onto Leon Spilliaertstraat. Belle époque This is how you get back to the Alfons Pieterslaan. Cross over to Romestraat and turn right past the Mu.ZEE art museum. Via this Amsterdamstraat (without sign) you come to the Filip Van Maestrichtplein, with the Synagogue (1910) on the left. Continue straight on to a T and then turn left, in the run-up to the Belle Époque districts further on with the typical beautiful tiled facades. • At the end of this Peter Benoitstraat turn right, along a viaduct, the parking of AZ SintJan campus Serruys. On the corner you get back into a royal atmosphere: the main road is the Koninginnelaan (between the Royal villa on the dike and the Maria Hendrikapark), with the green Prinses Clementinaplein on the other side and the picturesque Koninklijke Stallingen (1902) 2 on your right, now an urban sports complex. Beyond this dark Scandinavian wood architecture lies the Prinses Stefanieplein, with benches and fountains. • Further on you end up at a multi-armed crossroads: Petit Paris. Keep the left side of the Koninginnelaan and cross both the Torhoutsesteenweg and the Nieuwpoortsesteenweg. Continue straight towards the seawall and then, with a view of the arcades, turn left into the Velodroomstraat. Beyond the fire station, with the statue The Fire Eater in front of it, you get more and more elegant facades of this belle époque district in sight. At the intersection with the second cross street, the Frans Musinstraat, the corner with two rows of facades offers a photogenic picture. Turn right here and then left, towards the tram line. Follow the tram to the right, until you reach Koningin Astridlaan, with the long façade of the Thermae Palace 3 on the other side. On the left corner you can see the entrance to the Wellington racecourse with the horse statues and the royal lodge. Look out for the coastal tram, cross and turn left around the galleries until you reach the Zeedijk. Under the Royal Galleries Turn right here, on the King Baudouin promenade towards CasinoKursaal. Stroll along or under the iconic image of Ostend: the worn glory of the covered Royal Galleries (1905), also a project of Leopold II, who at the end of it at the Arcaden (the Three Gapers popularly) got an equestrian statue. First you pass the restaurant of hotel Thermae Palace (1933) and look at the outdoor pools of the urban swimming pool. • Beyond the arcades, the Venetian Galleries begin, but you turn right through an arcade at the stars of the Ostend Film Festival in the pavement, to view the fenced Koningspark on the left. In the park, the walled Japanese garden is open to a limited extent and you get a nice view of the former Royal villa, now rehabilitation center. Around the park and then immediately left up the Parijsstraat, back to the Zeedijk, here the Albert Ipromenade. Turn right again, past Villa Francine at no. 88 and Villa Maritza (under renovation) at no. 76. Before the CasinoKursaal 4, turn right down the slope and cross the Van Iseghemlaan (on the left the tourist office on the Monaco square). This is again the Leopold IIlaan, with Hotel du Parc on the left on the corner. Turn left at Marie Joséplein and follow the tram line to the second side street on the left, Wittenonnenstraat, with CC De Grote Post on the corner, a design by Gaston Eysselinck with a sculpture by Jozef Cantré. On the other side starts the Leopold Park, with the flower clock and Dikke Mathille. • Turn left here, in the oldest area of the city, with a dense street plan and plenty of shops, boutiques, restaurants and seagulls. Take the first side street on the left, Christinastraat. You cross the SintSebastiaanstraat and the Adolf Buylstraat (right to the Wapenplein) and then turn right 20 m further into the covered James Ensor gallery. At the end of it turn left into this Vlaanderenstraat, which takes you past the Ensor museum (no. 27) back to the dike. Turn right until you reach the harbour channel, the pickets and the Klein Strand. At Zeeheldenplein 5, the much-discussed Rock Strangers by Arne Quinze, a keeper of Beaufort04, provide colour. At the National Sailors' Memorial you have a view of the Oosteroever and the major works on the breakwaters. Almost at the marina you go back into the old fishermen's quarter, via the Langestraat, known as an entertainment district, with an Anglican church and the City Museum in the former Royal Palace (until 30/9 exhibition about WWI). Turn left into Vlaanderenstraat, past the Ensor gallery, to Wapenplein. Between the kiosk and the Party and Culture Palace you cross the square and, past the Mijnplein with the Capuchin church and the Vegetable Market, you return to the waterfront. • On the Visserskaai, with the famous Vistrap, you cross a little further to the North Sea aquarium. To the right is the jetty of the free ferry service to the Oosteroever. Two Roger Raveel-inspired boats take pedestrians and cyclists all year round to the harbour area with lighthouse Lange Nelle and further on Fort Napoleon. During the crossing you can see on the left the bow of HMS Vindictive 6 (see box), currently difficult to reach due to the works. From the boat you step over one of the lock gates and follow straight ahead and to the right the sign of a walking route to junction 61. After the Maritime Site Oostende vzw you turn left, direction junction 60, past the construction sites of the port works, to the high Spinoladijk. Do not follow it to Bredene, but immediately turn past the fence around bunkers into an asphalt path to the dune top. On the left you see Fort Napoleon 7 and further on the globe of the adventure and knowledge park Explorado, the former Earth Explorer. After a possible visit you descend the path, with a view of Ostend, to the harbor dock and the lighthouse. Walk the same way back, via the Buskruitstraat. At the jetty you will find information about the sights and history of this port area. A sailing Raveel takes you back to the Visserskaai, where you can already see the station on the left.