Bus Hire in Tongeren

Tongeren (Tongres in French, Tongern in German) is the oldest city in Belgium. The site was settled as the Roman civitas capital of Atuatuca Tungrorum in the Augustan period (1st century BC to 1st century AD), on the road from Cologne to Bavai (the via Belgica). The Roman town walls (2nd to 3rd century AD, surviving as earthworks and a 5-metre section of Roman masonry visible in the city centre) are the oldest urban fortifications in Belgium. Tongeren was also the seat of one of the earliest Christian communities in the Low Countries and is associated with the apostle of the Belgians, St Maternus.

Liege Airport (LGG) is 30 kilometres north-east via the E313 motorway (approximately 30 minutes by coach). Brussels Airport (BRU) is 80 kilometres west via the E313 and E40 (approximately 1 hour). The city centre is compact; coach parking is at the Moerenpoort (the reconstructed medieval gate) on the ring road, or the Clarissenstraat underground car park. The Onze-Lieve-Vrouwe Basilica (the most important Gothic church in Tongeren) and the Gallo-Roman Museum are both within 5 minutes walk of the coach parking areas.

Gallo-Roman Museum: Belgium's Best Roman Collection

The Gallo-Roman Museum (Kielenstraat 15, adjacent to the Onze-Lieve-Vrouwe Basilica) is the principal museum of prehistoric and Roman Belgium, and one of the best Roman archaeology museums in the Benelux. The collection spans from the Neolithic period through the Mesolithic and Bronze Age, the Iron Age Eburones tribe (the Belgic tribe that defeated Julius Caesar's legions in 54 BC -- the 'massacre of the 15th Legion' under the leadership of Ambiorix, the Eburones chieftain whose bronze statue stands on the Grote Markt of Tongeren), and the full Roman period from Augustan colonisation through the 3rd-century crisis. Highlights include a remarkable collection of gold and silver Roman-era coins, jewellery, and plate (the Tongeren Silver Treasure), wall paintings from a Roman villa, and a scale model of Roman Atuatuca. The museum is housed in a purpose-built building (2009) with an underground extension; group visits require advance booking for the popular weekend slots.

Roman Walls and the Ambiorix Statue

The Roman defensive walls of Tongeren (constructed in the 2nd to 3rd century AD) originally enclosed an area of approximately 64 hectares; they are the oldest Roman urban walls remaining in Belgium. A 5-metre section of the original Roman masonry wall survives in the Leopoldwal (the ring-road green area on the south side of the city), incorporating several courses of Roman flat brick bonding and stone rubble. The full circuit of the walls is traceable as earthworks and occasional stonework remnants on the ring-road alignment. The bronze statue of Ambiorix (on the Grote Markt, by Jules Bertin, 1866) depicts the Eburones chieftain who led the ambush of Caesar's winter quarters in 54 BC, killing approximately 6,000 Roman soldiers. Ambiorix is the national hero of the Belgians -- a precursor to the Asterix the Gaul tradition.

Onze-Lieve-Vrouwe Basilica and the Sunday Antique Market

The Onze-Lieve-Vrouwe Basilica (Notre-Dame, on the Vrijthof square adjacent to the Grote Markt) is the most important Gothic church in Tongeren, built between the 13th and 15th centuries on the site of a 4th-century Merovingian church. The basilica holds the Tongeren Madonna (a black limestone statue of the Virgin, 1479) and an elaborate 12th-century treasury including the Shrine of St Maternus (the apostle of the Belgians), Romanesque ivory carvings, and medieval textile art. The Vrijthof square and the surrounding streets host Belgium's largest weekly antique and flea market every Sunday morning (from 5am to 1pm, year-round): up to 300 dealers selling antiques, collectables, bric-a-brac, books, and art. The Sunday antique market draws visitors from across Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, and Luxembourg and is a major driver of coach group visits.

What Bus Hire Costs in Tongeren

As a rough guide, a minibus (up to 19 seats) in Tongeren runs around 380 to 740 EUR per day, a midi-coach (around 35 seats) around 520 to 1,010 EUR per day, and a full-size coach (49 to 55 seats) around 650 to 1,220 EUR per day. Tongeren draws steady heritage and antique-market visitors year-round. Sunday coach groups for the antique market are a consistent demand segment. Summer heritage season peaks in July and August. The final figure depends on your route, the date, and how long you need the vehicle. We confirm a fixed price with no hidden charges -- send your details for a free quote.

Services Available in Tongeren