Crupet

Crupet is a small village of grey Condroz limestone houses in a wooded valley south of Namur, listed among the officially designated most beautiful villages of Wallonia, and it has two things. The first is the donjon, a thirteenth-century square tower house standing in a moat with a stepped-gable upper storey added in the sixteenth century, one of the better preserved small fortified houses in the region and still privately occupied. The second is stranger: a grotto built in 1903 by the parish priest, an artificial rock structure of cement and stone housing life-size painted statues of Saint Anthony of Padua and a series of demons and temptation scenes, which is either charming or unsettling depending on the visitor.

What you actually see

• The moated donjon - a thirteenth-century tower house in water.
• The 1903 grotto - cement rockwork with painted statues of temptation scenes.
• Grey limestone houses - the Condroz building tradition.
• A wooded valley setting - the village enclosed by trees and stream.

When to go

April to October. Two hours. The grotto is open at all times and free. The donjon is private and seen from outside. Weekends bring Belgian visitors to the village restaurants.

Honest expectations

The donjon is a private house and cannot be entered. The grotto is a work of parish enthusiasm rather than art and some find it kitsch. The village is tiny and two hours is generous. Parking is very limited.

Nearby

Maredsous is west; Namur lies north.