Car & Van Hire in Tongeren

Tongeren hosts a wide range of festivities, from religious calendar events to music and beer festivals. The Festival of Flanders takes place at the end of June and brings several days of music to the oldest city in Belgium. Here, theatrical shows and classical bands play at numerous venues across the city. More recently, the Ambierorix Beer Festival has become a standout summer event.

Tongeren offers a variety of sports to both view and pursue. The city's football team, K.S.K. Tongeren, plays in the Belgian Division 2, the fourth-highest division in Belgium's football league. Matches are played at Eburons Dome Sportoase. Other noted sports clubs include Datovoc Tongeren, Tongeren's women's volleyball team that performs at the highest level of the league pyramid.

Tongeren is renowned as Belgium's oldest city, and it is packed with historical attractions from the Roman period on. These include the impressive Gallo-Roman Museum, home to thousands of artefacts. A statue of a local hero who led a revolt against the Romans, Ambiorix, is found opposite the city's UNESCO-listed Basilica. Another museum, Teseum, takes visitors on an exploration of post-Roman Tongeren and offers access to delightful cloisters.

Tongeren has a rich culinary heritage with many regional delicacies. These include sweet treats like Tongerse Moppen, a sweet and spicy biscuit, and Caëderkoek, a shortbread pastry. The city is also renowned for its beer, with multiple heritage and craft brewers. As for dining, Tongeren has an impressive three Michelin-awarded restaurants. One of these is the beloved Magis, set within a renovated 13th-century house.

Tongeren is a vibrant and compact city with plenty of unique shopping opportunities. The main shopping street is Maastrichterstraat, home to well-known brands and smaller local boutiques. There is also a convenient shopping centre, Julianus Shopping, in the town centre. Other highlights include the antique market every Sunday and the Streekproductenshop for regional produce.

If you are visiting Tongeren with kids, the surrounding area provides ample countryside walks and numerous castles to explore. These include the ruins of Burchtruïne van Kolmont, the pretty Castle of Heers and the historic Alden Biesen. Another excellent day out is the unique Eben-Ezer Tower, a flint tower built by hand by just one man. Nature reserves like Natuurgebied Eggertingen, De Kevie and Molenbeemd also provide picnic possibilities that are easily reached with a car hire in Tongeren.

Driving in and around Tongeren is made convenient by a network of well-maintained roads. The city boasts a useful, centrally-located ring road (R72) to alleviate traffic in the historic centre. This connects with a range of national and local roads that meet with Belgium's highway system.

Two European highways, the E313 and E40, are accessible via national roads from Tongeren's centre. These provide important cross-country connections with the cities of Liege, Brussels and Hasselt, as well as longer-distance travel to Antwerp and Ghent. These multi-lane highways are accessible by the N79 west, N20 north and N69 south.

For those interested in renting a car in Tongeren, it is worth noting that vehicles drive on the right side of the road throughout Belgium and all countries surrounding it. As such, vehicles joining roads from the right have priority, except on highways or appropriately signposted roads (orange diamond with white background).

Tongeren is a historic city with narrow roads. Rush hour periods can see congestion, particularly on N roads at junctions connecting to the ring road. These peak times range from 07:30 to 09:00 and 17:00 to 18:00. Drivers must also abide by speed limits at all times. While the national average is 50 km/h in built-up areas, Tongeren has many 30 to 20 km/h zones in residential and school areas. Upon leaving the city, Belgium's single-lane N roads have limits of up to 90 km/h. The E highways have limits of up to 120 km/h.

Parking is relatively straightforward in Tongeren. There are ample lots and covered spots, particularly near tourist sites. Popular Tongeren paid parking garages are found on Sint-Maternus, Clarissenstraat, Hondsstraat and Tarieven. Free parking is less prevalent, but there are designated areas on the edges of town at Dijk/Kastanjewal and De Velinx that are roughly 10 minutes from Tongeren's centre by foot.

Tongeren has many cycling lanes and pedestrianised areas where cars must drive carefully. Illegally parking on the street within the city centre itself will often result in an immediate ticket as wardens are constantly operating. Always abide by signposted limits and restrictions with your car or van hire in Tongeren. As such, driving within the compact, single-lane and one-way centre zone is not recommended unless absolutely necessary.