Maastricht

Maastricht: history & character

Maastricht is the oldest city in the Netherlands, founded by the Romans in the 1st century AD as 'Mosae Trajectum' (the crossing on the Meuse). A free imperial city in the Middle Ages, fortified by Vauban in the 17th century, and the signature site of the 1992 Maastricht Treaty that created the European Union, it's also the Burgundian cultural capital of Limburg. The compact medieval centre, ringed by largely intact walls (Helpoort, Hoge Fronten), centres on the Vrijthof and the Sint-Servaasbasiliek. For travellers with a dog, Maastricht is one of Europe's most accessible cities: walkable centre crossable end-to-end in 20 min, Burgundian café culture welcoming leashed dogs by default, the Sint-Pietersberg forest hill directly south of the centre with 8 km of off-leash trails, 22 fenced municipal losloopgebieden, and a triple-frontier access unique in Europe (Belgium 5 km, Germany 25 km).