Malle: Trails, History and Trappist Culture

Malle combines a variety of trails with impressive history and a distinctive Trappist culture. Here, you can choose between longer cycling tours, manageable hiking routes, historic buildings and peaceful landscape experiences. This makes it easy to tailor your search for a holiday apartment or holiday home to your own travel focus: active days on a bike, walks through the Kempen or cultural discoveries around Westmalle and Oostmalle.

Cycling and hiking with different focuses

The ProefMalle cycling tour follows two loops and introduces you to the local producers in Malle. Together, the two loops are approximately 40 kilometres long. If you are looking for a longer route centred on Trappist culture, you can explore the 44-kilometre Trappistenroute. For a shorter hike, the 13.9-kilometre PoP-route 1: Westmalle is a good option. It starts at Café Trappisten at Antwerpsesteenweg 487 in Westmalle.

Other trails also have their own distinctive character. The 8-kilometre Trappistenpad is an option for hikers, while the 7.5-kilometre Molenpad starts at the statue of the miller. The 6.5-kilometre Blommerschotpad leads between centuries-old beeches into the tranquil Kempen. The different trail lengths help you choose your excursions to suit your desired daily programme, without trying to fit every experience into a single route.

Castles, Church and Mills

Domein de Renesse in Oostmalle is part of Malle’s cultural history. The estate includes a 16th-century castle. The park of Domein de Renesse can be explored freely during the day, offering its own way to experience the estate. A guided tour through the park of Westmalle Castle conveys the history of the estate; the castle itself is not accessible. If you are interested in historic estates, you can consciously distinguish between these two ways of discovering them.

In Westmalle, the protected neo-Gothic Sint-Martinuskerk has been the heart of the village for more than five centuries. The church contains a funerary chapel dating from the 16th century or possibly even earlier. The Scherpenbergmolen provides a different historical highlight: the stone windmill is still capable of grinding. The cultural spectrum therefore ranges from religious history and castle estates to the technical tradition of a mill.

Blommerschot and Special Views

In the heart of Blommerschot, impressive inland dunes alternate with purple moor grass and rhododendrons. On the Blommerschotpad, you may be lucky enough to spot deer, pheasants and other wildlife. The landscape is therefore suitable both for peaceful moments in nature and for a hike involving specific observations along the way. Another experience is the Tornadotoren: it can be climbed with a guide and rewards you with a beautiful view across the region.

Trappist Beer as Part of the Local Character

Westmalle Trappist beer is brewed within the walls of the Abdij der Trappisten under the supervision of the monks. The Abdij der Trappisten and the brewery cannot be visited. Nevertheless, this combination of craftsmanship, religious history and regional identity shapes the character of the trails and excursion destinations described. You can therefore incorporate the theme into your travel planning without making a visit to the inaccessible sites the central focus.

The Right Accommodation for Your Travel Planning

When searching for a holiday apartment or holiday home in Malle, it is worth deciding on your preferred focus first. For cycling tours, the ProefMalle cycling tour and the Trappistenroute offer longer routes to choose from. Hikers can choose between the Trappistenpad, the Molenpad, the Blommerschotpad and PoP-route 1: Westmalle. Those who prefer history can combine the Sint-Martinuskerk, the funerary chapel, Domein de Renesse and the mill landscape. This allows you to choose accommodation based on the travel experience that should shape your days in Malle, rather than simply searching by a general place name.

More Places for Your Planning

If you would like to compare destinations near Malle as well, you can also find Grobbendonk, Rijkevorsel, Lint, Zandhoven, Mechelen, Weelde, Baarle-Hertog and Boechout.

For the overarching travel overview: Province of Antwerp.