Challenge

Tourism Flanders invests in the sustainable development and promotion of Flanders as a top tourist destination. In a new philosophy “traveling to Tomorrow,” Tourism Flanders wants to strengthen the positive power of tourism so that Flanders can flourish as an innovative, inspiring and quality travel destination for the benefit of the place, its residents, entrepreneurs and visitors.

Tourism Flanders is putting this into practice through the development of a number of pilot projects, including the revitalization of the Vilain XIIII castle domain in Leut, Maasmechelen.

The Vilain XIIII castle domain is located in mine subsidence areas. To counteract the effects of mine subsidence, millions of m3 of groundwater are pumped into the Meuse every year. As a result, the moat is completely dry and the exceptional tree collection suffers greatly from the drought. The drainage pipes of this pumped up water run through the landscape park, so the idea has grown to reuse part of the pumped up water to improve the water management of the area by creating pools, ditches and a moat with water, and possibly so much more. Time for a pioneering pilot project!