Top 20 Natural Monuments around Gistel

Atlantikwall Raversyde is open from March 15 to November 11, 2025. Closed on Mondays.

Here you'll walk past a selection of bunkers from the Aachen Battery (WWI) and the Saltzwedel-neu Battery (WWI). Both coastal defense and daily life are discussed.

The Creek Area around Ostend is a unique wetland zone, with a network of creeks, marshes, reed beds and grasslands. These creeks were created by the natural silting up of rivers and other waterways. The area has a rich biodiversity, which makes it ideal for a nature walk.

The Yser is historically important because of the role it played during the First World War. The river formed a natural defense line and was the scene of fierce fighting. Today, you can find various monuments and memorials along the Yser that commemorate this period, such as the Yser Monument at the Ganzepoot. Here on the left bank of the Yser estuary, the cycle route "cycling along the front line of the First World War" also begins. (Nieuwpoort - Bazel)

The Atlantic Wall is one of the top attractions on the coast and one of the two museums at RAVERSYDE. The more than sixty bunkers, observation posts and artillery positions, and the two kilometers of open or underground corridors, together form one of the best preserved parts of the infamous German defense line 'Atlantikwall'. This was built by the Germans during the Second World War from the French-Spanish border to Norway. Thousands of bunkers were then constructed to protect the ports and to prevent an Allied attack. The Atlantic Wall also contains the only preserved German coastal battery from the First World War, the Aachen battery. There were cannons here, with associated observation bunkers and quarters for troops. Fearing an Allied landing on the beach and to protect the ports of Zeebrugge and Ostend (from where German submarines operated), the Germans built batteries along the Belgian coast. Only the remains of the Aachen Battery have been preserved. During the Second World War, new defenses were built on the same site, which were part of the 'Atlantik Wall' defense line. The Open Air Museum is the ideal place to relive the atmosphere of the 'Longest Day'. All existing structures were restored to their original state and redecorated with authentic objects and furniture. In the museum of the same name you will become acquainted with some of the most impressive defense structures from both wars. This is possible thanks to the Belgian Prince Karel, who lived there until his death and always opposed the demolition.

Something hidden in the dunes.

Since the early days of the internet, our browsers have been anchored in the mythologies of early seafaring expeditions. They bear names like Navigator, Explorer, and later, Safari. The imposing sculpture The Navigator Monument by Simon Dybbroe Møller is based on the logo of Netscape Navigator. The former search engine lost its leading position on the internet to Microsoft Explorer at the end of the 1990s, during what is often called the first browser war. Dybbroe Møller cast the digital ship's wheel logo in bronze, an extremely durable material that has been used for 5,000 years. Now that it is returning to its maritime context, the salty environment will accelerate the patination process, ensuring the ship's wheel eventually turns green, just like the original Netscape logo. The sculpture was placed against the backdrop of a vast sky and the ever-changing North Sea. We know that the seabed beneath the water's surface is littered with submarine communication cables, a tangle of long cords that form the physical structure of the internet. The internet is a recent technological innovation, the culmination of a succession of events related to the development of libraries, the industrial revolution, and periods of progressive social idealism. It is therefore very fitting that Westende, a town built by the family of Paul Otlet, an internet visionary, today houses this monument to an earlier internet application. Inspired to discover other artworks? Click through to https://www.triennalebeaufort.be/nl/kunstwerk/beaufort-beeldenpark

In this segment you will be introduced to the Raversyde Nature Reserve. Works of art by Prince Regent Karel color and animate the landscape. You look over the shoulders of the artist and become acquainted with his past.