Eupen

Eupen is the capital of the German-speaking Community of Belgium, the smallest of the country's three language communities with about eighty thousand people, and it has its own parliament and government, which is a piece of constitutional arrangement visitors will notice in signage and in the trilingual character of the region. The town grew on cloth manufacture in the eighteenth century and has a run of merchant houses from that period along with a baroque church. Above it, the Wesertalsperre dam holds the largest reservoir in Belgium, supplying water to a wide area, with walks around the shore. The High Fens plateau begins immediately south, and a chocolate factory in the town runs visits.

What you actually see

• Eighteenth-century cloth merchant houses - the wealth of the textile period.
• The Wesertalsperre dam - the largest reservoir in Belgium above the town.
• The German-speaking community - its parliament and trilingual signage.
• The High Fens edge - the moorland plateau beginning just south.

When to go

April to October. Half a day. The carnival on Rose Monday is the town's biggest event. The reservoir walks are best in autumn. Museums keep limited hours.

Honest expectations

The town is small and quiet with limited sights; it is a base for the High Fens rather than a destination. Everything is in German first, French second. Museum hours are narrow. The reservoir shore is partly closed as a water catchment.

Nearby

The High Fens are south; Reinhardstein Castle lies south-west.