Holiday apartment in Valkenswaard: De Malpie, culture and routes

Valkenswaard combines nature, culture and active days in a way that can be experienced at specific locations. Dutch corso culture, including the Valkenswaard Corso, was added to UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2020. At the same time, De Malpie, with the Malpiebeemden section and its area of 217 hectares, offers a clearly defined natural setting. The 217-hectare Malpiebeemden section complements the corso culture with a natural area in Valkenswaard.

Culture and craftsmanship in Valkenswaard

Using films, photographs, tools, special everyday objects, machines and documents, the Valkerij en Sigarenmakerij Museum explains the history of the cigar industry. The museum is open from Wednesday to Saturday, from 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. The Wednesday-to-Saturday opening hours of 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. establish a four-hour afternoon period for visiting the museum in Valkenswaard. This four-hour period falls entirely in the afternoon. If you would like to make culture a fixed part of your stay, this museum visit can be easily combined with Valkenswaard’s nature and active pursuits.

Discover De Malpie on foot and with an attentive eye

The 6-kilometre “Rondje Malpie” walking route passes drifting sand, wet and dry heathland, pools and woodland. Over a comparatively manageable distance, it therefore showcases several characteristic landscape types. Various woodpecker species can be observed in De Malpie, including the green woodpecker and the great spotted woodpecker. There is also a bat cellar where greater mouse-eared bats and serotine bats occur. Nature observation in De Malpie thus ranges from various woodpecker species to greater mouse-eared and serotine bats in the bat cellar.

Water, bridleways and a varied cycling route

Canoe and kayak trips on the Dommel pass through the De Malpie nature area. For canoe trips in or near Valkenswaard, you can launch in Borkel, 8 km away, or in Neerpelt, Belgium, 15 km away; transport to the canoe launch point is available. At 8 km, Borkel is the closer launch point, while Neerpelt in Belgium is 15 km away. When travelling to the Dommel, you therefore have to choose between Borkel, 8 km away, and Neerpelt in Belgium, 15 km away.

Cyclists also have a clearly defined route: the 37-kilometre “Molenroute” cycling route passes through the De Malpie nature area and passes four mills: the Dommelsche Watermolen, the Venbergse Watermolen, the Sint Antonius Abt windmill and De Volmolen. The 37 kilometres of the Molenroute are clearly distinct from the 6 kilometres of the “Rondje Malpie” walking route; the two routes specify different distances and modes of transport for planning your day. For horse-riding tours, the De Groote Heide bridleway network allows rides between the junctions in Valkenswaard and the surrounding area.

Connections for planning your base

Bravo bus routes 317 and 318 provide a fast and frequent connection between Valkenswaard and Eindhoven. In addition, Bravoflex is a flexible on-demand bus service in Noord-Brabant that travels to and departs from less accessible stops without a fixed route or fixed travel times.

For the higher-level travel overview: Valkenswaard.