When you are planning to visit Maastricht then "City Sight Maastricht's - F(r)ee City Tour" is an…read moreactivity to go for! On Sunday the 6th of December, the founder of this company Ivo Hermans guided us around and through the center of Maastricht, during a 2 hours walk. The combination of his knowledge on - and affection for Maastricht offers you an excellent insight on the city's (recent) past. A voyage through History: from the Romans, with "stops" at Medieval times, The Spanish occupation and subsequently Dutch rebellion, The French occupation until the Treaty of Maastricht in the 20th Century, but also stories about nowadays life in this city is being told in a lively and humorous manner.
Gastronomical, Social-Economical and Cultural aspects are other ingredients of this tour. Another fascinating detail is the way how Ivo shows that history still has his influences in (for example) Architecture and Environmental Planning. After the walk, when you return at your starting point, you will be reminded about the meaning of the name of this activity: The F(r)ee Tour. Not in a pushing manner the guide points at the customer's freedom to give a fee, including the amount.
Of course, everybody has his/her own taste, but not everybody has an equal level of historical knowledge. As this is a hobby of my, I'm able to have some judgement mattering this subject and can assure you that he doesn't tell nonsense. Please be aware, Maastricht has a rich history and the 2 hours are high efficiently spend. A side-affect of the 2 hour walking is that you get familiar with the inner city, Afterwards, this - together with a good map will be a guarantee not to get lost when you go for a dinner and/or bar in the evening as long as you stay near or in the center.
Putting everything together I want to recommend everybody to start a visit to Maastricht with joining this tour. To finish my review here: you will be surprised as well.
For more details, visit: citysightsmaastricht.com (there's a link to their Facebook page too)
