Maasmechelen

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Maasmechelen
Maasmechelen wapen2.svg Maasmechelen vlag.svg
Maasmechelen (Limburg)
Maasmechelen
Maasmechelen
State : BelgiumBelgium Belgium
Region : Flanders
Province : Limburg
District : Tongeren
Coordinates : 50 ° 58 ′  N , 5 ° 42 ′  E Coordinates: 50 ° 58 ′  N , 5 ° 42 ′  E
Area : 76.28 km²
Residents: 38,516 (Jan 1, 2019)
Population density: 505 inhabitants per km²
Post Code: 3630, 3631
Prefix: 089
Mayor: Raf Terwingen ( CD&V )

Local government address : 		Administratief Centrum
Heirstraat 239
3630 Maasmechelen
Website: www.maasmechelen.be
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Maasmechelen ( Limburgish : Mechele ) is a place in the Belgian province of Limburg . The place is on the left bank of the Meuse , which forms the border between Belgium and the Netherlands . Maasmechelen has 38,516 inhabitants (as of January 1, 2019).

Today's Maasmechelen was created through the municipal merger in 1977 . The largest of these places were Mechelen on the Maas, Leut, Vucht and Eisden . Mechelen on the Maas should not be confused with the city of the same name, Mechelen near Antwerp.

There was a coal mine in Eisden , which ceased production in 1987. The Maasmechelen Village Factory Outlet Center now stands on part of the mine site .

In January 1940, the place became known through the Mechelen incident , when parts of the German attack plans for the upcoming campaign in the west became known to the Western Allies due to the emergency landing of a German courier aircraft .

The place is home to the football club Patro Eisden , which played in the Belgian second league for decades.

Transport links

The place is directly connected to the Belgian motorway / , which, coming from Aachen via Sittard , crosses the border here and continues via Genk to Antwerp . E314Template: RSIGN / Maintenance / EU-E integrationA2

There is also a connection to the European inland waterway network via the Zuid-Willemsvaart .

Maastricht Aachen Airport is located a few kilometers away on Dutch territory .

tourism

Kayak on the Maas near the Maasband

After the end of mining, the place has increasingly turned to day tourism in recent years. One attraction is the designer outlet center Maasmechelen Village , another is the large heather area to the west of the town . This is accessible through numerous hiking and cycling trails. The course of the Maas river is also a popular place to stay, with canoeing and kayaking trips among other things. This is possible because inland shipping on this section of the river uses the canals on both sides and the Maas itself flows relatively naturally. This is also where the Het Kolenspoor (The Coal Track) railway ends, which connected some coal mines and is now used as a tourist train through the current park. A cross-border, varied and well-developed network of cycle paths has been around Maasmechelen since the early 1990s, and orientation is made easier by a system of junctions .

Personalities

Web links

Commons : Maasmechelen  - collection of images, videos and audio files