Ronde Van Vlaanderen advice

[De Schot]

Evening Folks, apologies first of all if this thread is in the wrong place, hopefully it's alright!

As the title suggests, I'm headed over to Belgium for the Ronde for the first time on 05th April and I'm looking for a bit of advice.
Firstly, I'll be basing myself in Ghent and will be looking to utilise public transport rather than driving. Mostly so I can imbibe the local beer! I had thought to head on the train to Oudenaarde early doors and just take it from there, but I don't really have much of a plan other than that. What I suppose I'd like to know is whether there's anything you good people can tell me about what to do, where to go, what to look out for etc? The insider knowledge as it were?

Also, I generally never bother taking cash with me when I head to Europe, however, given the temporary nature of the event is it best to have cash on me for food, drinks, merchandising and the such?

Any help is much appreciated, cheers!

 

[Once a Wheeler]

If you travel by Eurostar you can buy a ticket to 'Any Belgian station'. This is really convenient because you can travel on from Bruxelles Midi to Ghent or anywhere else with minimum hassle.

Have about €50.00 in cash but you normally will not need all that if you have a good payment card. I would recommend a Wise card which lets you pay in a wide variety of currencies depending on your choice. Follow the link, the sign-up is supposedly very quick.

Great local dishes are herrings, Waterzooi (a sort of chicken stew), jud (sausage), mussels, wild boar (especially in autumn). Frites (chips) in salad cream are a sort of everywhere snack — nearly as fattening as gauffres (waffles) plastered with jam or anything that takes your fancy. Beers abound: try Chouffe, Duval, Orval, Chimay etc. To celebrate a victory raise a toast with sparkling Maitrank.

 

[De Schot]

If you travel by Eurostar you can buy a ticket to 'Any Belgian station'. This is really convenient because you can travel on from Bruxelles Midi to Ghent or anywhere else with minimum hassle.

Have about €50.00 in cash but you normally will not need all that if you have a good payment card. I would recommend a Wise card which lets you pay in a wide variety of currencies depending on your choice. Follow the link, the sign-up is supposedly very quick.

Great local dishes are herrings, Waterzooi (a sort of chicken stew), jud (sausage), mussels, wild boar (especially in autumn). Frites (chips) in salad cream are a sort of everywhere snack — nearly as fattening as gauffres (waffles) plastered with jam or anything that takes your fancy. Beers abound: try Chouffe, Duval, Orval, Chimay etc. To celebrate a victory raise a toast with sparkling Maitrank.

Thank you for the info Once a Wheeler. Very much appreciated.

I'm flying into Charleroi, but it doesn't seem as though it will be too stressful to travel onwards from there. Thanks for the tip on the card too, I do actually have something similar, I just wondered if the capacity to pay with card would be limited in and around the viewing areas. I'll make sure to take some cash anyway just in the eventuality that I need it.

As for the food and drink, I'm well acquainted with Chouffe already, that gnome has caused me many a headache the following morning! I'm looking forward to trying everything else though. It'll be my first visit to the Ronde so I'm buzzing for it.

 

[CarbonClem]

I'm going over next weekend to ride the RVV Sportive on Saturday and watch on the Sunday. I'll have a car so am keen to get some spectating tips - not fussed on the start or finish but would like to go to one of the climbs that are done twice - any tips please?

 

[bitsandbobs]

I'm going over next weekend to ride the RVV Sportive on Saturday and watch on the Sunday. I'll have a car so am keen to get some spectating tips - not fussed on the start or finish but would like to go to one of the climbs that are done twice - any tips please?

Oude Kwaremont is the best place to soak up the atmosphere.

 

[mjr]

If you travel by Eurostar you can buy a ticket to 'Any Belgian station'.

Only today! They're stopping selling this useful flexible ticket. No news report yet of any replacement, despite assurances from Eurostar and its Belgian part-owner SNCB.

 

[johnblack]

We're going over on Friday, also staying in Gent, been going for a few years now. We take our bikes so go out and ride a bit of the course on Saturday with a few pit stops. Sunday I think we'll be riding out to the Wolvenberg/ Holleweg/ Molenberg area which is the more northern end of the circuit. we'll get to watch the race pass two or three times, then go to a bar for the last 75-100k. Ride back to Gent after.

We always used too head down to the Paterberg but it's not so great now as you are really fenced in and herded in to one area, it used to be a lot more open and a lot of fun, plus it's a longer trek back to Gent especially after a few beers.

 

[CarbonClem]

I'm still unsure what to do. Id go to Oudenaarde and get the Shuttle to the Kwaremont, but the buses don't start returning till after the ladies race at 6pm onwards which is probably too late for our Shuttle booking. Could just go to Oudenaarde and see it early on and the finish, or now thinking about going to the Taaienberg area which seems to be less of a faff as there isn't a fan zone there.

 

[johnblack]

I really enjoyed Oudenaarde, it has a great buzz on race day, the square is a good place to go and the womens race starts from there and the mens goes through with 115k gone

 

[CarbonClem]

Update - I went to to Oudenaarde. Saw the women’s presentation and the men come through in the square and then moved to a pop up bar/cafe to watch the race on screens in the sunshine. Also saw the women’s race come back through too. Was a great day.

If I return I’ll probably get a shuttle bus to a climb but you need to stay another night for that really.

 

[johnblack]

Update - I went to to Oudenaarde. Saw the women’s presentation and the men come through in the square and then moved to a pop up bar/cafe to watch the race on screens in the sunshine. Also saw the women’s race come back through too. Was a great day.

If I return I’ll probably get a shuttle bus to a climb but you need to stay another night for that really.

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I would've liked to go to Oudenaarde, just didn't have the time, got fairly close as went to Doorne for the first set of cobbles, which was really busy, had to move quick to get across to the Holleweg, I'd recommend watching there, you get a great view from the banking on either side of the road. Had a bit of time to spare so stopped off for a couple of beers before riding to the Molenberg to see the womens race, then a mile or so down the road to a bar to watch the last 40k of the mens race before riding back to Gent. Great day out, lovely weather, but my god that wind was cold in the exposed areas.

 

[CarbonClem]

I would've liked to go to Oudenaarde, just didn't have the time, got fairly close as went to Doorne for the first set of cobbles, which was really busy, had to move quick to get across to the Holleweg, I'd recommend watching there, you get a great view from the banking on either side of the road. Had a bit of time to spare so stopped off for a couple of beers before riding to the Molenberg to see the womens race, then a mile or so down the road to a bar to watch the last 40k of the mens race before riding back to Gent. Great day out, lovely weather, but my god that wind was cold in the exposed areas.

Yes, temperature difference from Friday/Saturday to Sunday was very noticeable. We lucked out and the area we watched the race in was sheltered from the wind - I sat in a t-shirt.

 

[De Schot]

We made a full day of it in the end. Managed to get an early train up to Brugge for the men's presentation and start, which I really enjoyed. We then headed down to Oudenaarde and got there in time to see the men's race pass through and catch the start of the women's race. Watched the majority of the race on the big screens and spent some time in the peloton cafe at the Cetrum Ronde Van Vlaanderen, which as a first timer was absolutely amazing. I don't think I'd do much differently if I went back. Given the size of the crowds at the barriers in Oudenaarde I doubt I'd have seen much had I gone to a fanzone on a climb. A tremendous experience all round.