Tilburg brings together textile history and industrial architecture with parks, waterways and landscapes on the edge of the city. The TextielMuseum, housed in a former textile factory, and the former locomotive shed LocHal tell different sides of the city’s history. Green spaces and a variety of walking routes offer a different focus. Depending on your interests, you can explore Tilburg through its culture, outdoor activities, or natural and urban landscapes.

Textile History and Industrial Reuse

At the TextielMuseum, textile design, art, fashion, heritage and innovation come together. At the TextielLab, visitors can watch artists and designers working with textiles in collaboration with experts. This offers a glimpse into textile work alongside the museum’s themes. The Goirke and Spoorzone Heritage Route also starts at the TextielMuseum: it begins and ends there, passes through Goirke and part of the Spoorzone, and can be explored on foot or by bike.

The 6-kilometre Tilburg Urban Walking Route offers a different perspective on the city. It passes through the Spoorzone, goes to Piushaven, and takes in the Dwaalgebied and Spoorpark. Compared with the Goirke and Spoorzone Heritage Route, its length and the four urban areas it passes through are specified; the heritage route, by contrast, is defined by its start and end point at the TextielMuseum and its route through Goirke and part of the Spoorzone. Those interested in Tilburg’s connection to Vincent van Gogh can also find a historical link on the Van Gogh National Park Walking Route: it recalls his first drawing lessons with Master Huijsmans in 1866.

The LocHal tells another story of industrial use. Built in 1932, the building was once used to repair locomotives; many monumental features were preserved during its renovation. Today, the LocHal is a venue for exhibitions and presentations, as well as learning, research, meeting and creative work. The building’s former purpose and present-day uses make its transformation a cultural theme in its own right in Tilburg.

City Life by the Water and in the Park

Since 1923, Piushaven has been an urban area where living, working and water sports come together. Spoorpark offers a different kind of green urban space: located in the centre of Tilburg, it has room for walking, playing, sports and relaxing. Its public Urban Sports Area features a bowl, a pump track and bouldering elements. Beach Tilburg, in the same park, adds beach volleyball, beach tennis and footvolley.

Spoorpark is also home to an observation point, the Kempentoren. The tower is more than 30 metres high and offers views across Tilburg and the surrounding area. Visitors interested in staying active during a city break can consider the different sports facilities and the park itself as separate focal points, without combining them into a single fixed programme.

Parks, Landscapes and Practical Information

Stadspark Oude Dijk is a good place to walk, play, exercise and relax. Its history adds another point of interest: until 1987, the grounds were part of the convent garden of the Sisters of Charity. For art in the park, Lustwarande offers expert-led tours of selected artworks in Tilburg’s De Oude Warande park.

Moerenburg, on the southeastern edge of the city, is a landscape area for walks among pollarded willows, old hedgerows and flower-rich grasslands. Ponds, varied road verges and views through the forest also feature in its described landscape; flowers, birds and butterflies are characteristic of the area. Moerenburg thus differs from the central parks in its location on the edge of the city and its landscape features.

Natuurmuseum Brabant combines permanent and temporary exhibitions with educational programmes and interactive offerings about plants, animals and ecosystems. Visitors can get an up-close look at plants and animals in an interactive science museum. The museum is opposite Tilburg Central Station and the bus station, and can be reached by train, bus and car. This makes it possible to plan a museum visit using different modes of transport, while the city’s parks and walking routes each offer their own ways to enjoy a stay.

Discover more destinations: West Tilburg, Berkel, Udenhout.

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