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Field Sheet S-55 · Ardennes / Province de Luxembourg
A late-May weekend, charted: three viewpoints, one river, one fortress town, and a Sunday loop that starts at the village church.
Build the weekend around three anchors: Saturday 10:00 kayak Poupehan → Frahan (4 km, 1 h, €25) with Semois Kayaks [19], then the meander arc to the Tombeau du Géant belvedere at Botassart [31]. Saturday afternoon Château de Bouillon — arrive 11:00 for the 11:30 falconry [26]. Sunday 09:00 the 11.5 km Au fil de l'Our signed loop from the village church [1]. Late May puts the river at 15–60 m³/s — ideal for sporty paddlers [22].
300 m of asphalt road with balustrade and free binoculars [36]. Jewel of Wallonia since 2015. The river-loop hamlet sits 130 m below; reach it on foot via the 9.5 km Frahan loop from Laviot [38].
Best in late side-light · pair with Rochehaut lunch.
Twelve-viewpoint Bouillon loop: 14.62 km, +665 m, ~6 h [8]. Chains Belvédère → Pic du Diable → Tombeau du Géant → Rocher du Pendu → Ramonette. Pic du Diable alone is a 18.7 km / 5h23 stand-alone [9].
Ranger-guided walks Apr–Oct · ~60 scheduled in 2026 [16].
Best reached by water — the Alle → Membre family descent ends at this Corten-steel cantilever above the meander, after 3 hours past beaver-dam sites and grey herons [50].
The official MdT Bouillon list omits any "Roche à 7 Heures" — that's a Monthermé Meuse site, not local [10][11].
Fitted belvedere with stairs and safety rail above what tourism docs call "the longest meander created by the Semois," overlooking Botassart and Poupehan woods [12].
Pairs naturally with the 12-viewpoints walk.
| Trail | Distance | D+ | Difficulty | Note | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Au fil de l'Our SityTrail 449048 |
11.5 km | 222 m | Easy | Signed loop from Our church · ~3 h 9 [1]. Sunday-morning default. | |
| Tombeau du Géant family loop Soandbia |
6.5 km | — | Easy | Free parking + on-site bar at the belvedere [3]. | |
| Tombeau du Géant mini-loop Komoot |
4.81 km | 130 m | Easy | Via Moulin du Rivage · 1h24. ⚠ slippery after rain. [4] | |
| Au gré de la Semois Visit Wallonia |
8.3 km | flat | Easy | Riverside Porte de France → suspended footbridge → Cordemois Abbey. Strong family default [15]. | |
| Bouillon 12 viewpoints loop Visorando |
14.62 km | 665 m | Medium | Belvédère → Pic du Diable → Tombeau → Rocher du Pendu → Ramonette · ~6 h [8]. | |
| Frahan loop (Laviot-Corbeaux) AllTrails |
9.5 km | 300 m | Medium | Through Parc national · 2.5–3 h · descends to the meander hamlet [38]. | |
| Échelles de Rochehaut Ardenne Résidences |
4.7 km | — | Difficile | Metal-ladder scramble up schist cliffs from Poupehan · ~1h30. ⚠ avoid after heavy rain. [6] | |
| Échelles + Crêtes de Frahan AllTrails |
varies | — | Hard | The regional benchmark, 578 reviews — chains ladders with the Frahan ridge panoramas [7]. | |
| Tombeau du Géant adventure loop Tim Tense |
17.5 km | 700 m | Hard | Two Semois river fords. ⚠ May–Oct only, low water. Late May fits. [5] | |
| Pic du Diable (Belvédère d'Auclin) AllTrails |
18.7 km | — | Difficile | Long way round to a rocky belvedere west of Bouillon · ~5h23 [9]. | |
| GR 16 Sentier de la Semois GR Sentiers |
209 km | — | Long-haul | Arlon → Monthermé, white-red blazes · 7th-ed topo-guide €23 [13]. |
Stop by the Syndicat d'Initiatives, Grand Place 7 · Paliseul on Friday evening for the 2021 commune map (€7.50) — 32 walking circuits + 9 VTT loops [2][64].
Spring typically 15–60 m³/s — "ideal for sporty paddlers" per Kayak Semois Ardenne [22]. Class I (easy), year-round between Chiny and Bouillon [24].
| Time | Stop | Why now |
|---|---|---|
| 10:30 | Park free on the esplanade | ~50 free spaces; town overflow free too [25]. |
| 11:00 | Ramparts & lower courtyard | ~1 h self-guided · 1.5 h with audioguide [25]. |
| 11:30 | Falconry show (~30 min) | Feb 22 – Nov 11; extra 17:00 weekends Apr–Jun + Sep [26]. |
| 12:30 | Lunch riverside | Pont de Liège on this site since 1069, current span 1951 [33]. |
| 14:00 | Bouillon Medieval Experience | 30–45 min in former Sépulcrines convent (1626), audio EN/FR/NL/DE · 4.3/5 [70][30]. |
| 15:00 | Archéoscope Godefroid | New screening every 35 min · walk into darkened Jerusalem-tomb replica [71]. |
| 16:30 | Drive to Botassart belvedere | Late-afternoon side light on the meander. |
Belgium's largest preserved medieval fortress. Visitor pattern: secret passages, river panorama and falconry win; complaints are the uphill walk and weather-cancelled bird shows [28].
Buy the City Pass+ €16/€12 if combining castle + Medieval Experience + Musée Ducal + Odyssée de Lumière [27][69]. Musée Ducal alone is the weakest link (3.7/5) [29].
One of the rare southern Ardenne villages to retain its original character — slate roofs and the seasonal Pont de Claies woven from hornbeam branches [41].
Two signed Points-Noeuds loops from the Bouillon tourism office explicitly pass through Our: Nature et Paysages 3 (29 km, 480 m D+) and Villages d'Ardenne 2 (23 km, 310 m D+) — PN 59 sits right by the village [53].
Province-wide Points-Noeuds mesh: ~2,500 km / 530 numbered nodes / 44 communes / 85% paved [52]. Regional route W7 fully signed Sainte-Ode → Libramont → Bertrix → Paliseul → Bouillon — point-to-point spine from Our [56].
Gravel: six signed Pays de Bouillon loops including Bertrix–Paliseul 35 km [59].
42 km enduro · ~1,200 m D+ · linking Cordemois, Moulin de l'Épine, Poupehan, Frahan, Rochehaut, Botassart, Sensenruth · plus five short loops graded blue/red/black like ski slopes + two kids' lines (ages 5–10) [57].
Belgium's first officially-sanctioned trail-building project — sub-50 cm natural-terrain width with berms & jumps from fallen branches [58].
| Rental shop | Base | E-bike / day | VTT / day | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cap Semois | Vresse-sur-Semois | €80 | €30 | Trek 500W Bosch · 40 km turbo / 100+ km eco · helmet free · signed 14/20/35 km itineraries [61]. |
| Récréalle | Alle-sur-Semois | €35 | €30 | Several marked MTB trails leave the leisure base [62]. |
| L'Ami Pierre · Arde-Bike · Cellier du Baudet · Sports in Lux · AmuSemois | call | Coordinated network listed by the Maison du Tourisme de Bouillon [63]. | ||
Indoor immersive show in the 1626 Sépulcrines convent [70].
Crusades film + walk-through dark room, every 35 min [71].
Casemates, vaulted halls, secret passages stay dry [69].
Gravity sims, moonwalk, virtual missions in Transinne [65].
⚠ Best ages 8–11 — mixed for younger [66].Cistercian ruins + Caves Dewez museum + brewery exhibition [73].
⚠ working brewery only on Open Door days.Daily 10:00–18:00 Easter–All Saints · €2 guided / €3 attic [74].
Les Hayons · 1/4-scale handmade fairy figurines + Ardennes-life dioramas · Thu–Sat 10:00–12:30 & 13:30–18:00 [80].
Guided tour of a former slate mine in Alle-sur-Semois [81].