September marks the beginning of a new school year and with it comes the restart of many
leisure clubs and activities. Did you come to Belgium to work, by yourself or did you bring
your kids and family along, there’s enough fun for everyone!

Belgium is a great country to work and play in. The mandated minimum number of paid holidays
gives you ample time to go out and see the sights. One of the biggest leisure activities in Belgium is
going out for a drink or to a restaurant. Having a cold one with friends and family is always a good
idea. Especially in a country like Belgium, that’s known for its beers. Read up on Belgian beers in one
of our previous blogs. Alternatively, you can also go sightseeing in some of Europe’s most beautiful
cities (Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp). Still not satisfied? No worries. We’ve got more!

Belgian Leisure options for adults

This website (only available in Dutch) is great for anyone looking for leisure activities. You can filter
the extensive list by the kind of activity, the date of the activity, the location of the activity and for
whom the activity is best suited. Signing up for a free account, lets you get great tips delivered right
to your email.

Belgium is known across borders for its great festivals. Rock Werchter, Tomorrowland,
Pukkelpop…need we say more? But these are all held during the summer holidays so does that mean
you’ve missed out? Of course not! With such a big festival culture, there’s always one or another
festival to discover.

Great festivals in September

Leffingeleuren
Music festival Leffingeleuren brings you fantastic music in an ideal setting. This festival
focuses on the music of tomorrow where for three days, you can discover promising national
and international talent. Expect a wide variety of genres and since the festival is located in a
coastal town, be sure to put a visit to the Belgian seaside on the itinerary!

Voodoo Village
Get ready for an oasis of underground music. Situated next to a castle, surrounded by nature
and trees, Voodoo Village is a festival like no other. They also aim for a sustainable and
waste-free festival, by implementing many ecological measures.

Doel Festival
This festival has a funny backstory. It all started when plans for the industrial expansion of
the harbor of Antwerp included the town of Doel in its perimeter. The town immediately put
up a fight and since then Doel has gained mythical status. It is now a village stuck in time and
a great setting for communal musical discovery.

Museum pass

Looking for some culture? Then we have another great tip. With the one-time purchase of the
Belgian Museum Pass, you can visit over 200 museums with one pass! This pass gives you access to
the most beautiful exhibitions and even discounts on train tickets and in museum shops.

Belgian Leisure options for families

As a subpage to the original ‘Uit in Vlaanderen’, there is a page dedicated to fun activities for
families with children where Fly shows you the way. Again you can use filters to find the activity best
suited to your needs and the age of your children.

Top 3 museums to visit with kids.

The Museum of Natural History
Have you ever looked straight into the trunk of a mammoth or stood eye to eye with a
roaring buffalo? The Museum of Natural Sciences in Brussels is also known as the
Dinomuseum. Admire the gigantic skeletons of real dinosaurs, dig up fossils or put on a
prehistoric outfit.

The Toy Museum
In the Toy Museum in Mechelen, you can admire the favorite toys of your parents and even
your grandparents, and of course, you get to play with all that stuff as well. Have fun with an
old puppet theatre or play a game of marbles in a real-life Bruegel painting. Trust us, it’s a
wonderful nostalgic outing for the entire family.

Technopolis
Technically not really a museum but Mechelen houses another great favorite for families
with children: Technopolis. Every corner of Technopolis houses a new crazy adventure. How
about safely landing an aircraft, cycling over the Grand Canyon in virtual reality or lying on a
real bed of nails? Technopolis also has great demonstrations where kids can partake in live
experiments.

Youth movements and sports clubs

There’s no better way for your children to get to know the language and make some friends than by
joining a youth movement or a local sports club.

• Youth movements are a very popular kind of organization that holds weekly activities for children. Some 500,000 Belgian children, aged 5-24, are members of such organizations. Popular ones include Chiro, Scouts en Gidsen Vlaanderen and Katholieke Studenten Actie (KSA). There’s always a youth movement near where you live because they are set up very locally and are very accessible.
• If you’re looking for a sports club, the Flanders region has a great site. Just filter on age, location, or sport and get your kids moving!