The Domain of the Caves of Han is best-known for well … its caves. But, did you know that you can also visit a beautiful wildlife park on its grounds? I was pleasantly surprised by what this park has to offer. It’s a wonderful day trip for animal lovers of any age.
Don’t expect a regular zoo when visiting the wildlife park at the Domain of the Caves of Han. This park doesn’t bring exotic species from all over the globe together. Instead, it focuses on European fauna that lives here in its natural habitat – which is admittedly a big plus. Many of the animals roam freely on a vast plain or live in large enclosures.
The domain lies in the Famenne-Ardenne UNESCO Global Geopark. So it is no surprise that the setting of the wildlife park is breathtaking. You’ll come across sweeping vistas that look over the domain and its surroundings. This animal park perfectly fits into the woods of the Ardennes. All decorations – most of which seem quite recent – are made out of wood, blending perfectly with the environment. Just like the animals native to the area!
The animals
As I already mentioned, the Domain of the Caves of Han only counts species that live or once lived on European grounds. This may not sound as spectacular as watching great exotic animals from far away lands, but don’t be fooled. This park has many interesting and beautiful beasts among its inhabitants.
The domain is the only place in Belgium where you can spot the European big five: the bison, the wolverine, the wolf, the brown bear and the lynx. The last three were the stars of the park for me. Also because I don’t recall seeing lynxes or brown bears ever before. In addition, we were very lucky that the bears wandered close to the public end of their enclosures when we passed by.
Apart from the European big five the Domain of the Caves of Han has many other fascinating occupants, like reindeer, arctic wolves and owls. Furthermore, the park takes part in animal conservation and reintroduction programmes for threatened species. They also offer a home to animals that wouldn’t be able to survive in the wild. For instance, the vultures that live here can’t fly anymore, due to injuries caused by windmills. So, this domain is more than just a tourist attraction!
Getting around the wildlife park
There are two ways to visit the wildlife park: by foot or by safari-car. The tour by safari-car takes about an hour and a half. The driver will give information about the animals during your tour and there are some stops along the way, so you can admire some of the natural wonders in the park from up close. At the end of the tour, you stop near Bear Hill, where you can take a good look at the park’s cuddliest citizens. The safari-car makes the park accessible to all and it’s definitely a great option if you’re visiting with small children or people who have difficulty walking.
However, if you’re fit enough, I would recommend walking around the park, like we did. This gives you more freedom to admire the animals: you can look at them for as long as you like and you have the flexibility to go to any of the viewpoints, for the best views on the beasts.
The total walking distance is 6 kilometres. This becomes a little more if you opt to walk between the ticket office in the village and the start of the trail. You can also choose to take a tram instead. If you get tired halfway the walking path, you can board a shuttle at the 3 kilometres point. The shuttle also takes you to the bears, which are the final animals you’ll come across in the park.
The trail
The walking trail is a clearly indicated loop. As there is only one way to follow around the park, you won’t get lost and you don’t have to worry about missing some animals by taking the wrong turn. Keep your eyes open for extra lookout spots on small sideways, though. We had one of this places all to ourselves and could watch the arctic wolves walk by closely, which wasn’t possible at the tower along the main road.
The first part of the walk takes you up in the woods. Here you’ll also come across a first great series of animals and stunning panoramas over the surrounding nature and the lower-located plains of the park, where once flowed the river Lesse. At one point, you’ll get to one of the viewpoints by crossing a structure of suspension bridges. This was a lot of fun!
After a while you’ll descend to the plains you saw from up high before. Here you’ll be able to board the shuttle if you want to. This is also the place where you can see the Chasm of Belvaux, where the river Lesse dives underground the Boine Massif. As such the river created the caves the domain is so famous for.
You’ll continue your walk by a tour around the big open spaces of the park where many animals roam freely. Here and there you’ll get into the woods again to spot other animals. If you choose to walk back to the village instead of taking the tram back, you’ll have to walk up a rather steep hill for a short bit. This is perfectly doable if you’re an adult who’s in decent shape, but might be a bit too much for already tired children’s legs.
In short, the walking trail through the Domain of the Caves of Han is truly splendid. You come across all the animals the park has to offer and the marvellous natural setting you walk through makes this hike all the more pleasant.
Tickets and other activities
A ticket for the wildlife park costs €23,00 euros for adults. This will also give you access to the Han 1900 museum. This museum takes you back to the rural everyday life people lead in this area in the year 1900. We didn’t visit, but it’s definitely worth noting that this is included in your entrance ticket.
Normally, you can combine your visit to the wildlife park with a tour through the Caves of Han (or you could only buy tickets for the caves, if you don’t want to visit the wildlife park). Unfortunately, we couldn’t enter the caves, as they were closed due to COVID-measures. We’ll definitely go back for this one day!
If you buy tickets to the caves – or if you buy a combined ticket for both the caves and the wildlife park – you can also visit PrehistoHan. This interactive exhibition takes you back in time and shows the history of the caves. People have been roaming the area of Han for over 10 000 years. Here you’ll find objects that have been found on the site of the caves and more information about the archaeological excavations that took place on the domain grounds.
If you feel like you can’t fit all this fun into one day or want to explore the surroundings of Han a bit more, you can stay the night at the domain. There are the unique tree tents, that look over the open spaces of the wildlife park. You can spot some of the park’s animals from dusk till dawn from your tent. From mid-May 2021 onward, you can also reside in Cocoon Village. A brand new glamping site at the banks of the Lesse river.
Want to know more about the activities you can enjoy at the Domain of the Caves of Han? Take a look at their website!
Looking for a historic day trip in the Ardennes? Visit the impressive Bastogne War Museum.
Want to be an astronaut for a day? That too is possible in the Ardennes, at the Euro Space Center.
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