Culinary hikes in the Ardennes: 7 ways to savour your holiday

Shout out to all the gourmets and those who love green open spaces. Did you know that on your next holiday in the Ardennes, you can combine your two passions with an original touch? Discover 7 of our partners who are offering an exclusive advantage to Ardennes-étape customers.

@GrillHike

It’s a well-known fact: the Ardennes give a great welcome! The partners that we have selected offer unusual culinary walks at the heart of the Ardennes countryside with special attention to Ardennes-étape customers (bring your Activity Pass!). Make your next holiday with Ardennes-étape a special occasion for your eyes and taste buds thanks to them. Are you ready? Set off on a hike, get away, and above all, enjoy yourselves!

1. The Ferme du Fagotin for kids and grown-ups

Return to the wonderful world of your childhood with a day that feels just like being at summer camp! Start with a short barefoot walk along a path, then go to meet the farm’s animals (goats, ponies, donkeys, hens, and sheep are all there for you to feed!). In season, you can even discover goat milking and cheese making.

Once you’re fully in the mood, set off on an ‘Apérando’ culinary hike along a 2.5, 6.5, or 8.5-kilometre route equipped with an illustrated roadbook and a snack box. Cheese, cold cuts, vegetable soup, and other treats are inside, accompanied by local beer and fruit juice to top off this gourmet outdoor experience with finesse.

The added bonus? The Ferme du Fagotin offers you a walk with a donkey that can carry the little ones. The cuddly animal is sure to melt the children’s hearts!

As an Ardennes-étape extra, receive a seasonal recipe concocted by the Fagotin Chef with the ‘Apérando’. It will enable you to cook a delicious dish, in the comfort of your holiday home, with the wild plants that you’ve picked on your walk, following the expert advice of the Fagotin team.
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Un Apérando avec La Ferme du Fagotin
Set off on an Apérando culinary hike with a donkey – Ferme du Fagotin

2. For barbecue kings: GrillHike

Go to the top of the Ovifat trail to discover the most beautiful vistas of the High Fens. In your backpack: an itinerary and, above all, the necessary equipment for a barbecue in the midst of nature!

Rest at ease, it’s all provided in a light and compact format for carrying. And GrillHike has thought of everything: portable barbecue, thermos bag, crockery, napkins, aperitif, meat (vegetarian option), sides, drinks.

Isn’t that a dream? Off you go!

As an Ardennes-étape extra, each of you will receive a succulent chocolate bar from Artisan Patissier & Chocolatier Darcis as a dessert and a one euro discount to visit its museum and be immersed in the world of chocolate.
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Un barbecue au cœur de la nature en Ardenne
There’s nothing like a barbecue in the midst of nature – GrillHike

3. For the proud defenders of the aperitif, the Pays de Bastogne

Here, conviviality is a speciality that becomes a concept off the beaten track.

First of all, we offer four brand new routes, from 2.5 km to 9 km, through the municipalities of Sainte-Ode and Bastogne.

But what’s more, we equip you with gourmet backpacks. The contents will make your mouth water: Ardennes sausage, cheese from the Pays de Bastogne, Bastogne ham, and local beers. Everything you take out of the backpack is practically perfect. So, go for it, you’ll tell us all about it!

This experience can be enjoyed from May to the end of September.

As an Ardennes-étape extra, each of you will receive a pretty mug in the Town of Bastogne colours (practical for sipping on the delicious local beers provided in the backpack).
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Une randonnée gourmande à Bastogne
The Pays de Bastogne will take care of your every need

4. The ‘Fromenade’, for those who love fondue

We know it and you know it: fondues are perfect for every occasion, even in summer. Don’t worry, everyone loves to indulge!

You dreamt of it, they did it! An outdoor fondue, at the heart of the Ardennes, in all weathers and seasons, has been made possible with the ‘Fromenade’.

Whether you choose a route accessible to pushchairs and wheelchairs (2 to 5 km), an intermediate version (6 to 8 kilometres), or a long walk (12 to 15 km), the reward will be the same: a melt-in-the-mouth culinary break.

Don’t let us hold you back; get going!

As an Ardennes-étape extra, each of you will receive a delicious local beer or a refreshing non-alcoholic drink to accompany the fondue.
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Une fondue fromage au cœur de la nature en Ardenne
Melt-in-the-mouth culinary hike – The ‘Fromenade’

5. For thrill-seekers: La Roche Discovery

Feel like trying a Survivor-style adventure? Want to put your bushwhacker spirit to the test? With La Roche Discovery, you’ll learn to go beyond your limits and master all the techniques of survival over the course of one day.

You’ll learn to make fire with very few tools, use a compass as a guide, build a bivouac, find edible plants, and cook a meal worthy of the name in the midst of nature!

That’s enough talking; come and take on the elements!

As an Ardennes-étape extra, on a short break between two tasks, you’ll receive a plate of Ardennes produce and artisanal apple juice.
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Découvrir les techniques de survie en Ardenne
Pump up your adrenalin – La Roche Discovery

6. For those who are always curious, a nature guide

Do wild plantsfascinate you? Would you like to be able to identify them and know which ones are edible or have medicinal properties? You’re in the right place!

Vanessa, your nature guide, will meet you at your holiday home and invite you discover the wealth of your nearby environment on a hike with myriad scents and flavours.

On the walk, you’ll treat your palate to the taste of dishes flavoured with wild plants: tapenade, quiche, gazpacho, cheese… And you’ll go home with loads of inspiration and ideas for cooking. So, off you go, take your basket, a notebook, your scissors, and get started!

As an Ardennes-étape extra, you’ll taste a herbal tea made from wild and edible plants, concocted in a minute by your hostess at the end of your walk.
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Cueillette de plantes sauvages et comestibles en Ardenne
The myriad flavours of the Ardennes – Nature Guide Vanessa

7. For horse-lovers, it’s Vanessa again

Everything starts in a meadow in Modave, at the heart of a herd of free-range horses. Get up close to the animal. Groom (brush) it. Be immersed in new, almost wild sensations.It’s snack time. You’ll hitch up the horses equipped with a gourmet basket(with bread, regional cold cuts and cheese, home-made vegetable crisps, local beers, apple juice, and seasonal sweets). The carriage will start its journey.

You’ll enjoy an enchanting break, relishing the moment. Travel for 15 kilometres at your horses’ pace to the sound of their clopping hooves. 15 kilometres to discover Modave, its countryside and castle and pass by the waterfalls at Hoyoux. 15 kilometres to savour without moderation.

As an Ardennes-étape extra, each of you will receive a home-made snack before beginning the journey through the most beautiful landscapes and horizons of Modave.
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Balade en calèche à Modave
Ardennes at your horses’ pace – Nature Guide Vanessa

So, would you prefer an outdoor fondue, horse-drawn carriage ride, or survival hike? Take your pick… or choose more than one and spend several weekends!

As a family, couple, or among friends, choose the holiday home of your dreams and enjoy timeless moments throughout the Ardennes!

Maison de vacances à Chassepierre pour 4/6 personnes en Ardenne
A holiday home with all the mod cons to really enjoy the experience.

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