This small Belgian town on the Meuse River has a central market square with 17th-century architecture. Home to the Van Eyck brothers, it's known for its regional cheese market and pharmacy museum.
Maaseik, a town of 25,000 residents in Belgian Limburg, sits along the Meuse River at the Dutch border. In the central market square, you can dine at restaurants housed in 15th-century buildings or visit Belgium's oldest pharmacy, complete with its original 17th-century interior. The town's most famous sons are Flemish painters Jan and Hubert van Eyck, whose life and work you can explore at the John Selbach Museum.
The Market Square Experience
The one-hectare market square has rows of trees along its edges and buildings dating from the 1400s to 1800s. The brick facades incorporate local building materials - the soft, yellow Limburg chalk creates patterns against blue Ardennes limestone. Many buildings now serve as cafes and restaurants, which set up tables on the cobblestones from May through September.
Museums and Cultural Sites
The Regional Archaeological Museum (RAM) occupies a central position on the market square. Its archaeology section tells the story of local settlements through excavated objects and interactive exhibits. The pharmacy museum maintains its 17th-century setup, including more than 100 original Delftware pots and tin jars. At the John Selbach Museum, located in the former Franciscan monastery, you can examine art collections, antique dolls, and an exhibition about the Van Eyck brothers. The museum also contains a detailed scale model depicting Maaseik as it looked in 1672.
Religious Architecture
The Sint-Catharinakerk, built between 1840 and 1845, rises above the town with its white stone Neoclassical facade. This church replaced the chapter of Aldeneik after its move to Maaseik in 1571. You can visit several monasteries from the Baroque period, including the Franciscan, Capuchin, and Holy Cross Canon buildings. The Kruisherenkerk (Holy Cross Church) interior contains elaborate Rococo patterns covering every surface from floor to ceiling.
Nature and Walking Routes
Three nature parks encircle Maaseik: Rivierpark Maasvallei, Hoge Kempen National Park, and GrensPark Kempen-Broek. You can choose from marked walking paths between 2 and 15 kilometers long. The Grensmaas (Border Meuse) section runs alongside the river. Among the twelve historic watermills surrounding Maaseik, four still operate grinding grain. You can take guided tours of these working mills on Saturdays and Sundays.
