Diessen can be discovered from several perspectives: the Willibrordus Church combines a long architectural history with the Willibrord tradition, while the routes offer different blends of walking, art and landscape. For planning your trip, the specific details about age group, approximate time required and route length are helpful: they describe different ways to explore the area.

Church and Willibrord Tradition

The dates given for the Willibrordus Church refer to different parts: the priest’s choir is the oldest part and dates from around the late 14th century; the church and its tower date from the early 16th century and are a good example of Kempen Gothic. The history of the choir and the architectural classification of the church and tower therefore belong to different historical contexts.

The Willibrordus Well is directly beside the church. In the 16th and 17th centuries, the well attracted many pilgrims; its water was believed to have healing powers against “Willibrord’s ailment.” The story of the pilgrims adds a religious tradition to the architectural history, one that also connects Diessen with the name Willibrord.

The Christmas nativity scenes also offer a tangible glimpse into the town’s history. The nativity scene in Sint-Willibrordus Church is more than 100 years old and was acquired around 1900. A nativity display beneath the tower of Sint-Willibrordus Church includes figures made of white clay from 1950. Every year, Jong Nederland Diessen publishes the Christmas nativity route in the DiessenApp. If you would like to include the route in your travel plans, check the relevant announcement in the app.

Walks and Routes Compared

The Muizenpad is designed as an approximately 50-minute walk for children aged 0 to 6. Kunstwandeling 3 is an approximately 4 km art walk through Diessen. The two options have different focuses: for the Muizenpad, the approximate duration and stated age group are key; for Kunstwandeling 3, it is the art theme and route length. This lets you distinguish between the options based on the format you want and the relevant point of reference.

For cycling, Kunstfietstocht 1 passes through Diessen; the cycling route is approximately 24 km long. This gives a different kind of information from the time given for the Muizenpad or the length of Kunstwandeling 3. You can therefore compare the routes by activity, theme and the stated time or distance measure.

Landscape and Route Character

The Van dun Heikaant nor ut Broek route passes through the rural surroundings of Baarschot, Diessen and Haghorst. It runs mostly along unpaved paths and is suitable for horse riders and people driving horse-drawn vehicles. It also passes through Diessens Broek, an important meadow bird area with pastures and hay meadows. Details about the path surface and the landscape features come together here; both help distinguish this route from an art walk or cycling route.

The Leemsputten tell a different story of the landscape: they are now fishing ponds and were created where clay-rich soil was once excavated to make bricks. While Diessens Broek is characterized by meadow birds, pastures and hay meadows, the Leemsputten reflect the former extraction of clay and the ponds that exist there today. The landscapes described thus reveal different aspects of the area around Diessen.

Discover more destinations: Hilvarenbeek, Groenstraat.

Go to the main travel overview: Hilvarenbeek.