MAY 2022
I visited the Vrijbroekpark in Mechelen at the beginning of April because it features a beautiful cherry blossom lane. Of course, the blossoms are gone now, but soon the rose garden, which is located in the center of the park, will reach full bloom. Definitely a good reason to visit again. Vrijbroekpark is a real oasis, just a short walk from the city center of Mechelen. At the end of the blog you will find another great cherry blossom recommendation, which you can easily combine with your visit to the Vrijbroekpark.
Practical information
You can find several parking spots near Vrijbroekpark. The large parking lot is near restaurant ‘t Park and you will find another parking spot at the north side of the park. We ended up parking in a residential area, which was free on weekends, because I couldn’t spot the parking area. No need to bring food, because Vrijbroekpark features two restaurants, both with large terraces. I had lunch at ‘t Park, the cheese croquettes and Belgian beer tasted really good. Vrijbroekpark is free to enter and during the summer season is is open from 7AM-8PM in the weekends and 8:30AM-8PM during the week.
The park is very kid friendly as you will find a large playing area behind the rose garden. Hugo was very patient when I was twirling at the cherry blossoms, so I had to reward him with some playing time.
Cherry blossom lane
The cherry blossom lane usually reaches peak bloom about half of April, but because we had a relatively warm March, it reached peak in the beginning of April. I absolutely loved this spot and was surprised about the low amount of visitors, definitely a hidden gem. I expect the roses to be in bloom at the end of May-June, so that would be a good time to visit if you don’t want to wait a whole year until the cherries are in bloom again.
Boniverlei in Edegem
Near Mechelen you will find Edegem, which has another beautiful cherry blossom lane: the Boniverlei. The Boniverlei hits peak bloom at the same time as the Vrijbroekpark and as it is only 15 minutes of driving I visited the Boniverlei too. The Boniverlei features hundreds of cherry blossoms and apparently is one of the most beautiful cherry lanes of Belgium. However, it is a very busy road where cars are allowed to drive 80 kilometers per hour, so you must be very cautious when taking photographs. I was by myself, with Hugo and a tripod, so I didn’t dare to take pictures in the middle of the street. Next time!
