Tour of Flanders Trip

eoin88

Myself and a pal are thinking of heading over to watch the Tour of Flanders in two weeks time, has anyone done this before? We'd be taking the train from England, trying to figure out where would be the best place to view it from.
Any suggestions?

Harrybelafonte

eoin88 wrote: »

Myself and a pal are thinking of heading over to watch the Tour of Flanders in two weeks time, has anyone done this before? We'd be taking the train from England, trying to figure out where would be the best place to view it from.
Any suggestions?

I did it last year. Did the sportif the day before. Stayed in Gent. Train to Oudenaarde. Kwaremont is the best place to watch if route is same as last year. It was too awkward for us to get to so we stayed with all the Belgian fans in a pub, then in a field by the finishline with massive screens to watch the finish. All the busses were there and I managed to get some suveniors. Then into the Ronde museum, then train back to Gent.

nak

Oude Kwaremont is a great place to watch it from; big screen, they have a Kwaremont beer for sale, food stands too. We cycled there from Avelgem, borrowed bikes from the B&B we stayed in. Atmosphere was brilliant.

Be warned, a lot of people book their accommodation a year in advance.

michaelm

There are threads on this over the last few years if you do a bit of digging but just to sum op from my own experience. If you have your bike the options are much greater (if not there are a number of hire options). My favourite option is to base yourself in the RVV Museum in the centre of Oudenaarde where the tv's in the bar and the locals make for a fantastic atmosphere. The 3 key climbs (Paterberg, Kwaremont and The Koppenberg are all within a few kilometres and with planning it is possible to watch the race approaching in the museum, get out to the climbs and still see the finish!
I have been there many times so feel free to dm if I can help but as previously mentioned, accommodation will be at a premium and you may need to look to Kortrijk or Ghent.

eoin88

Thanks guys, seems we left it far too late though, not a sniff of accommodation anywhere near! We were just watching the Milan - san Remo today and decided we should head off to one of the classics! At least we can get planning well in advance for next year!

The tax man

We've just decided tonight our spring classic trip this year is going to be Flanders.
Making a weekend of it Saturday to Monday. Fly into Charleroi,train to Ghent,sample lots of local beers.:D
Sunday train to Oudenaarde and make our way towards the Oude Kwaremont or Paterberg climbs.
It could go tits up that we've left it so late,flights and accommodation are still available but more expensive than last years trip to Flèche Wallonne.
Prefer the races where you get the chance to see the action more than once but if it falls through next in line is LBL.