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Écaussinnes, Belgium

Hike of the 2 castles in Ecaussinnes

09 January 2022

Ecaussinnes is a municipality located between Nivelles and La Louvière in the Hainaut province. It is the merger of the 3 villages Ecaussinnes-d'Enghien, Ecaussinnes-Lalaing and Marche-lez-Ecaussinnes. We'll show you all of this through an easy 15-kilometer hike.

Ecaussinnes-Lalaing Castle Fort

The loop starts from the Grand Place where you can easily park. Then we head towards the Ecaussinnes-Lalaing Castle Fortress. Erected in the 12th century, it is now classified as part of the Exceptional Heritage of Wallonia. It is open to the public from April to October only on Sundays from 2 PM to 6 PM. You can discover the various collections of daily life in the castle as well as its beautiful 1-hectare vegetable garden.

château-ecaussinnes-lalaing
Château-Ecaussinnes-Lalaing

Visit the castle of Ecaussinnes-lalaing

Opening Hours • Open every Sunday from April to October from 2 PM to 6 PM.

More information on the castle website.

March-lez-Ecaussinnes

After this historical break, we continue our journey towards Marche-les-Ecaussinnes. A small paved path between fields stretching as far as the eye can see. We cross a few curious animals in captivity.

fields to walk-next-to-ecaussinnes
Deer and chicken
deer captivity
Close-up deer captivity

Thiarmont and the train station district

Woman walks street with old farm

We follow the train tracks for a long time and arrive in a much more residential area. A less interesting part, we still take our midday break in the sun in front of the Church of the Sacred Heart of Ecaussinnes.

railway bridge
Belfry church sacred heart Ecaussinnes
Church of the Sacred Heart of Ecaussinnes
former renovated hospice

We gently leave the residential areas and rediscover nature thanks to the Ravel which passes through here. Some landscaping work is being done; it is the only muddy passage which requires good walking shoes.

Campaign prairie Ecaussinnes

Val de la Sennette, Château de la Follie and Tunnel des Amoureux

Château of the Folly Ecaussinnes
Château of the Folly Ecaussinnes

After a glimpse of the gate of the Château de la Follie from the Ravel, we enter the Val de la Sennette. This tributary of the Senne, as its name indicates, offers us a bucolic setting as it flows through the pastures.

Valley of the Senette
Valley of the Senette
Close-up of a woman walking away from the camera in nature
Hiker on narrow concrete path amidst meadows

We find some houses and take a long tunnel: the lovers' tunnel. Renamed by Marcel Tricot, it was created to replace the initial path that crossed the Château property. Emerging from the tunnel, we can observe, through the branches, the Château de la Follie. The building that can be seen today was built in the 16th century on the foundations of an ancient fortress. This private property hosts a Classical Music Festival every July.

Always accompanied by the Senette, we discover the center of Ecaussinnes-Lalaing which brings us back to our starting point.

Tunnel of Lovers Ecaussinnes
Tunnel of Lovers
castle of the folly
Castle of the Madness
path with wall and hiker
The senette that crosses Ecaussinnes
small village house in Ecaussines

Practical information

Itinerary • GPX track of our walk to download here.

Distance • 14 kilometers

Parking • Grand Place of Ecaussinnes, the Google Maps location is available here.

We hope this hike around Ecaussines has pleased you and inspired you to new adventures in the Hainaut Province. You can find all our hikes in Belgium here.

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