Press releases

• A new, responsive design makes the website www.grenzrouten.eu even easier to navigate and more user-friendly on the go.
• It provides information about the popular GrenzRouten hiking network, as well as the hiking route networks and junction systems of the three partner countries, and other cross-border tours, such as long-distance trails.
• The new website is now also linked to the Aachen City Region's tour portal, which is based on Outdooractive.

Anyone who visits www.grenzrouten.eu can now enjoy a whole new border experience: The website about hiking along the border trails in the border region of Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands has been completely updated and revamped. Still accessible at the same web address, www.grenzrouten.eu, it now features a modern design. And it’s now responsive: Whether on a smartphone, tablet, or PC—the new website lets you explore the Belgian-German-Dutch border region in an accessible, well-organized, and richly illustrated way. New features include a link to the Aachen City Region’s tour portal in the route descriptions, a digital events calendar, and a fourth language version in English, in addition to the versions in German, French, and Dutch.

Partner municipalities: Aachen, Raeren, Kelmis, Vaals, and Plombières
. The website was long overdue for an update, as the initiative has been in place for over fifteen years, ever since the Euregionale2008 project “Border Routes” was launched in collaboration with the partner municipalities of Raeren, Kelmis, Vaals, and Plombières. The established hiking network in the German-Dutch-Belgian border region enjoys high and sustained popularity. It comprises nine signposted trails, including information and orientation signs, with a total length of 120 kilometers. In addition, www.grenzrouten.eu compiles all information about the hiking route networks and junction systems of the three partner countries and lists further cross-border tour suggestions, including cross-border long-distance routes that pass through our region.

This makes the GrenzRouten website one of the most comprehensive sources of information on cross-border hiking in the Belgium-Germany-Netherlands tri-border region. In addition to route descriptions with maps from the Aachen City Region’s touring portal, it offers interesting facts about “border history” and where to discover it—often hidden along the way—as well as tips for excursions to cafés and museums and a cross-border calendar of events. “With the GrenzRouten, we want to make cross-border hiking easier and raise awareness of border history, which can be experienced in a striking way along the routes. Alongside information panels and hiking signposts, the website ‘GrenzRouten.eu’ serves as the central source of information in four languages: German, French, Dutch, and English. With this range of topics, ‘GrenzRouten.eu’ goes far beyond existing apps and websites that offer purely route-based hiking information,” says Klaus Meiners of the City of Aachen, describing the project. The City of Aachen served as the lead partner for the GrenzRouten relaunch and coordinated and managed the project.

A Shared History Across Shared Borders “The
Border Routes offer a unique hiking experience in the Euregio Meuse-Rhine. This cross-border project makes it possible to trace a shared history across shared borders. “With the Border Routes, you can hike from country to country without having to switch languages, maps, or signage systems,” says Daniel Hilligsmann, mayor of the municipality of Kelmis, describing the initiative. “The project promotes cooperation in tourism as well as ties between the partner cities and municipalities, and fosters understanding and acceptance of different cultures,” says Michelle Habets, mayor of the municipality of Plombières, with conviction.

Through the partnership with the Aachen Urban Region, the region’s extensively networked interactive hiking portal is now integrated with the Outdooractive platform for cross-border routes. The relaunch represents a technological leap forward in terms of interactivity, service features, connectivity, and outreach to additional target groups. “This allows us to reach residents of the Euregio Meuse-Rhine as well as day-trippers and multi-day visitors to this border region,” adds Jean-Paul Kompier, deputy mayor of the municipality of Vaals.

The “GrenzRouten.eu” relaunch project was carried out as part of the “People to People” Small Project Fund under the Interreg Meuse-Rhine program (NL, BE, DE) and received approximately 30,000 euros in funding from the European Union.

Widespread Support for the GrenzRouten Throughout the Entire Region
. Both in the past and in the future, support for the GrenzRouten project by the Aachen City Region, the Aachen Tourist Service, the East Belgium Tourism Agency, the Maison du Tourisme du Pays de Herve, Visit Zuid-Limburg, and the AG-Charlemagne has been—and will continue to be—of vital importance. “We hope that the new website will give the Border Routes a boost in popularity and attract many people to our beautiful and historic region,” sums up Sonja Fickers, Senior Project Manager at Euregio Maas-Rhein.