Leuven Beer Stories

Join us on a discovery tour along old cafés/old taverns and (no longer existing) breweries. Did we really drink that much beer here? What happened to these 40 breweries? Is it true that the master brewers used fish scales and pigs’ feet and was the beer really brewed with water from the river Dijle? All this and much more will be revealed to you during a fascinating walk that will show you the historical and economic importance of beer and its brewing for the city of Leuven.

If you want to know why Erasmus and other foreign visitors were surprised by our drinking habits, follow us through the streets and squares between Grote Markt and Vismarkt.

University walk: from Erasmus to the Big Bang

Every year, more than 50,000 students study at the oldest university in the Netherlands. How do they live and how did they live? Leuven is synonymous with more than 500 years of innovative research. Not only the history of the university is discussed, but also its significance as an international contemporary center of scientific practice.

Leuven in a nutshell

For a first introduction to our city, this is the ideal walk. You will discover well-known monuments and attractions: the Grand Place with the Town Hall and the St. Peter’s Church, the University Hall, the university colleges and the pubs of the Old Market. But we also take you to small streets and alleys, parks and courtyard gardens and we tell you stories and anecdotes about the famous and less famous people who have left their mark on our town. Afterwards, you will understand why Leuven can still rightly call itself ‘the best city in Brabant’.