Holiday apartment in Asten: Bells, Groote Peel and History

Asten combines natural and cultural history. The Brabant section of the Groote Peel lies within the municipality of Asten. Internationally recognized as a wetland, the area has been a national park since 1993. For centuries, peat cutters from Asten traveled to the Groote Peel to cut peat. The Dennendijkse Bossen also encompass a forested area of approximately 300 hectares.

Culture and history

The Klok & Peel Museum houses the world’s largest collection of bells and carillons. The Peel collection includes prehistoric fossils and a mammoth skeleton. Visitors can ring a bell themselves and play a carillon. Another carillon is located in the tower of the Heilige Maria Presentatiekerk in Asten: it consists of 57 bells, including the Maria bell from 1447.

Asten Castle is a ruin, a Rijksmonument and a monument with a rich history. Guided tours take 90 minutes, following the walls and moat while sharing the stories of the castle. Around the estate, Asten Castle also offers a QR route. The De Oostenwind windmill is likewise a Rijksmonument, meaning a nationally protected monument in the Netherlands. Its history dates back to 1506; it still has the original post from that period.

In Ommel, the Processiepark was established on 13 April 1914 on the instructions of Pastor van de Pas. The park includes a Calvary, a Lourdes grotto, 14 Stations of the Cross and six chapels depicting the history of the statue of Mary. Guided tours of Processiepark Ommel can be booked through the Asten tourist office. The Green Gate marks the entrance to the village center and features Romanesque and Gothic arch forms. At the Jan-Paagman Observatory, the Gé-Pieterse Planetarium displays more than 5,000 stars and can depict Venus, Mercury and Mars.

Nature and trails

The area along the Astense Aa is freely accessible via roads and trails. The In de ban van de Astense Aa route is approximately 8.8 kilometers long. The Natuurhistorisch Asten cycling route, which is 24 kilometers long, offers a different perspective on the surrounding area.

The Ommels Ommetje offers a three-kilometer village walk and a five-kilometer variant with a detour through nature. After leaving the church square, the route passes the adjacent Processiepark and conveys the history of Ommel during the walk. In the center of Asten, the Kunstwandeling Asten-centrum is a one-hour, three-kilometer walk. A roughly 1.5-hour guided tour of Asten led by a VVV guide covers the history of the town as well as its monuments and sights.

Regional experiences and events

At Puur Geitenzuivel in Heusden Gem Asten, visitors can see how milk is processed into goat’s milk products and cheese. Puur Geitenzuivel offers a tour of its organic goat farm there; the visit ends with a tasting of various products made on the farm. During the summer months, fairs are held every year in Asten, Heusden and Ommel.

More local pages: Asten, Ommel. More destinations: Schijndel, Sint-Oedenrode, Oosterhout, Bladel, Hilvarenbeek.

To the higher-level travel overview: North Brabant.