48 hours in Maastricht

0 Comments | Sunday Mirror, Jul 10, 2005 | by Owen Adams

MAASTRICHT was a key landmark for the European Union after John Majors government signed an historic treaty in 1992. Now OWEN ADAMS spends a long weekend in the Dutch border city with its historic battlements and lively bars and cafs...

FRIDAY AFTERNOON

MOST people fly to Amsterdam and take the train from the airport. Its cheaper than flying to Maastricht (there are no direct flights there from the UK) and the train journey is just an hour. Plus, its an easy walk from the train station to the centre.

Maastricht is a couple of miles from the Belgian border and 20 miles from Germany, so many locals speak Dutch, Flemish, French and German (as well as English) fluently.

Take the weight off your feet, sit down and drink in the serene atmosphere at Den Ouden Vogelstruys (The Old Ostrich) on the corner of the spacious town square. This traditional Dutch brown bar claims to be the oldest in Maastricht and its walls are crammed with paintings of its drinkers, past and present.

Cross the square for a gander at the lofty bright-red church tower of the 12th Century gothic Church of St John, next to the even older Saint Servaas Basilica with its dreamy cloisters.

FRIDAY EVENING

IN this university city of 120,000 people, there are 400 bars to choose from. Each has its own design and character. What Maastricht lacks in big, brash nightclubs it makes up for with its intimate music bars. Most bars close between 2am and 4am, so theres no rush for last orders.

SATURDAY MORNING

THE Dutch dont really do breakfast unless its a cheese or ham sandwich with a coffee. The friendly baker at Bufkes on Wycher Brugstratt advised us to go for coffee (pounds 1), ham roll (pounds 1.60), with a strudel (85p).

Shopaholics wont want to dilly-dally with breakfast. Maastricht was recently voted the Netherlands best shopping destination. The many chic shops on both sides of the river seem to be vying with each other for the coolest minimalist window display.

Many of the highly individual boutiques boast astronomical prices, but you should be able to find something more affordable. Tucked among gorgeous old buildings in a gaggle of narrow streets, youll find fashion houses, jewellers and art galleries.

SATURDAY AFTERNOON

MAASTRICHT is big on Saint Servatius a bridge and basilica are named after the Turkish-born founder of Catholicism in Europe. The basilica was built on the spot where the saint was buried in 384.

If you have had your fill drooling at ancient treasures, get with the 21st Century. The Ceramic District is less than a decade old and designed by some of Europes most cutting-edge architects. The pedestrian and cycle bridge over the Maas takes you straight to this futuristic vista of public buildings, museums, shops and apartments.

SATURDAY EVENING

TWO centuries ago, King Willem I built an inland harbour to cope with the growth in Maastrichts earthenware and paper trade.

Now the wharf cellars have been converted into restaurants, cafes and brasseries, plus a few nautically-themed craft souvenir shops. Yachts and pleasure boats now fill Het Bassin, while the marina buzzes as night falls.

Take your pick from Spanish tapas at Casa Bassin, Molo 5 Bar Italiano, where food is served on a floating pontoon, or opt for fine Mediterranean cuisine at Harbour Club.

SUNDAY MORNING

TRADITIONAL Sunday shopping hours everything shut are observed more closely here than in the UK. But who needs shops when theres so much more to see?

The circular Real Maastricht Walk takes an hour and is fascinating at every turn. You can walk along the top of the fortifications to the Helpoort, the countrys oldest city gate. See the spot where DArtagnan, one of the Three Musketeers, was fatally wounded in 1673.

SUNDAY AFTERNOON

ONE marked difference Maastricht has to the rest of the flat Netherlands is that it is surrounded by gentle, rolling hills. It also boasts an underground labyrinth of 100,000 man-made passages mined from a chalky white stone. It certainly has a lot up its sleeve, both below the surface and above ground.

WHATS THE DEAL?

WE travelled with KLM from Bristol. An economy round-trip costs pounds 206pp, including taxes.

We stayed at the Hotel Beaumont (0031 43 325 4433, www.beaumont.nl) close to Maastrichts main train station. Rooms cost from pounds 58pp per night. Taxi to or from airport pounds 19, museums/galleries admission pounds 1-pounds 5, beer pounds 1.20- pounds 2, coffee pounds 1, sandwich pounds 1.60, lunch pounds 3- pounds 5, dinner pounds 10-pounds 15. See www.holland.com