Ostend Belgium - Supernatural Inspiration for The Beyond Series

Here we stayed in a Parc similar to Centre Parcs called Sun Parcs, house lodges set in leafy forests with lots of surrounding nature. It seemed quite odd, but intriguing to me how fellow Europeans enjoy their holidays.



Well, firstly they don’t bother with evening entertainment or eat out very much as there were just two restaurants, one of which was licensed, but neither was rarely open and even more rarely stocked with a great choice of food.

As these were self-catering lodges, I’m assuming most people made their own entertainment in the evening. Naturally like Centre Parcs, all activities were geared around sporty, out-doorsy wholesomeness and swimming. I have to say I loved the swimming pool oasis. The lodges were much more basic, probably because the park was older, but we did have a sauna in there, which was cool – or hot, as the case may be.

One other noticeable difference was the adult spa area. In the UK all guests receive complimentary towels and robes and everything is all civilised and lovely. Some people choose to walk around in their costumes, but most robe up as they walk from one steam bath to sauna, to waterbed to foot spa, etc. Very Lovely.

In Belgium though, as soon as one walks into the adult spa one is immediately hit with a man’s meat and two veg swinging about between his legs and ladies puppies yapping in ones face! Naturally our little group was shocked and immediately looked away. We then told the duty staff we hadn’t been told it was a nude spa, but we were quite happy to still attend with our bathing costumes on. We were told no. All nude or no spa!

Now if I’d just been with my husband, I probably would have gone for it. No one else knew us and some of the sagging that was being carried off in that spa, well, my skin would have looked positively fresh and nubile in comparison! The only problem was my husband’s best man and his wife, who I’d only met a couple of times previously, were on holiday with us. And I’m sorry, but no matter how liberal I like to think I am, I knew I wouldn’t be able to see them or myself in the same light again if we’d all seen each other naked! So no spa in Belgium.

We walked to the tram stop just outside the camp and discovered we were right next to a beach, but as it was October it was far too cold to sit out on. We caught the tram into Ostend and it was a pretty seaside/Port town with obligatory old pirate ship in dock and a small fair that ran through the streets (probably for Halloween celebrations). I tried my first real Belgium waffle, with Belgium melted chocolate and whipped cream. Oh My! I am salivating just typing about it. Absolute sensation on the tatstebuds.

We went for a walk down the pier, which was all concrete, unlike our steel and wooden boardwalk back in the UK complete with little shops and amusements and rides. No this just had a café and little maritime museum at the very end. The promenade is similar to a UK one, but this was all pedestrianised, which was lovely. And in the evening we decided to drive out of camp and eat in a local restaurant. Weirdly, hardly anything was open.




Granted it was during the week, but even so. We did find a restaurant open in a hotel and it was lovely, although, it was the oddest tasted burger I’ve ever had! I really don’t think it was beef, but possibly proper Ham as in Hamburger because the meat was quite pinkish and there was so much herbs in it, I couldn’t decide whether it was to hide the true identity of the meat! It was okay though. Still wished we’d gone to the steak house that was also open though.

Well, I’m glad I’ve done it and I’ve even survived two trips on the Eurostar train without the train breaking down or water seeping through the Channel Tunnel !! One of the reason’s I was never travel through it before. I may even go on it again sometime, but I don’t think I’ll visit Belgium again anytime soon. It was a nice enough place, but everything was just all a bit… Mergh!

Alison's Website