Two weeks ago I finally visited Tongeren. It’s Belgium’s oldest city and because of that there’s lots of history there. Tongeren is also the ideal home base to explore the rest of the Haspengouw area. During my trip I stayed at Hotel Eburon, a hip four star hotel in a monastic setting. The hotel is part of the Different Hotels chain. Different Hotels consists of ten hotels and one B&B scattered throughout Limburg. You can find hotels in Hasselt, Houthalen, As, Lanaken and upon several locations in Genk. Last year I stayed in Hotel Zuid, and I really enjoyed my time there, and because of that I was super excited to get to know another hotel of the group.
Location
Hotel Eburon is located in the heart of Tongeren. You can find the Grote Markt, the Gallo-Roman Museum and shopping streets upon five minutes walking distance from the hotel. This makes Hotel Eburon, the perfect hotel for a city trip to Tongeren. The hotel is situated in the building that was once the St. Jacobs guesthouse. It was established in the second half of the 12th century as an inn for pilgrims on their way to Santiago de Compostella.
After the French Revolution, the St. Jacobs guesthouse was transformed into a hospital until the early 1980s. Today the monumental monastery has been completely renovated. The exterior facades of the historically classified building were restored and the existing interior structure was kept intact as much as possible. Don’t you just love how everything came back full circle, and that this location is once again a home for travelers from all around the world?
Check-in
I arrived at the hotel before noon, so my room wasn’t ready yet. As I was really eager to explore the city, I obviously didn’t mind. The super friendly receptionist showed me, where I could put my luggage and I went on my way. I have to say though, I was immediately impressed by the gorgeous hotel lobby. The design, the color scheme and furniture, everything blends so perfectly together.
I came back, late afternoon, and as I already did the pre-registration online at home, I only had to pick up my room key and let them know, what time we would pick-up our breakfast in the morning. Talking ‘bout an easy peasy check-in procedure right? And in Covid-times a very good way to avoid people waiting in line. Way to go Hotel Eburon!
Rooms
Hotel Eburon has 51 rooms. Guests can choose between a Comfort Room and a Select Room. All rooms are equipped with a mini-fridge, safe, flat screen TV, telephone, coffee and tea making facilities, iPod docking station and air conditioning. Complimentary Wi-Fi is available around the hotel. We had the pleasure of staying in one of the Select Rooms. And besides the bright colors, I absolutely loved how spacious our room was.
The bathroom had an open floorplan. In addition to the amazing XL rain shower (best hotel shower ever by the way), we also had a bath tub in the middle of our room. The toilet was separate from the rest of the room, which I always consider a big plus!
Food & Beverage
In normal circumstances, guests can enjoy a drink at the bar or eat at Esaki, the on-site partner restaurant. With restaurants still being closed in Belgium, we had to eat in our room. Because of that, we really liked the fact, that the staff created a comfortable dining area in our room as well. I had heard wonderful things about the Esaki restaurant, so we decided to order take-out there. On the menu you can find Sushi, Curry & Wok dishes. We went for a Red Curry with chicken and a Wok dish with prawns and noodles. Both were so good, so I can definitely recommend eating here, while staying at Hotel Eburon.
The next day we also enjoyed our breakfast in the room. As mentioned before, we had to pick up our bag at the reception at an arranged time. This to avoid running into other guests as much as possible. Breakfast included croissants, chocolate breads, sandwiches, pistolets, yoghurt, fruits and cold cuts like ham, cheese, salami and Brie. Orange juice and water were included in the bag, and we could take as much coffee as we wanted from the machine. Circumstances are a bit different, but nevertheless we had a tasty and lovely breakfast.
Practical information
- Check in: 15:00 and Check-out: 11:00
- The Tongeren railway station is located upon 500 metres from the hotel
- Park at Q-Park Julianus at € 11/ 24 hours
- Pets are not allowed
Are you planning a trip to Tongeren and need a fabulous hotel? Stop the search and book that room in Hotel Eburon, I promise, you’ll love it as much as we did.
