What is the Dinant self-guided walking tour?
The Dinant self-guided walking tour is an audio walk you take on your own with the World City Trail app: the app leads you through the streets and, at every stop, tells you what happened there and who left their mark on it. Reckon on about 2 hours in total for 1.8 km and 10 stops, of which only 25 minutes are actual walking. Squeezed between the Meuse and the cliff crowned by the citadel, the town keeps every stop within a few minutes of the next.
The walk opens with a sombre chapter: on 23 August 1914 German troops shot 674 civilians in Dinant, and the memorial keeps that day in the town's memory. Close by you hear how a young lieutenant named Charles de Gaulle was wounded here on 15 August 1914, fighting for the bridge over the Meuse. At the Collegiate Church of Notre-Dame the narration explains why a rockfall in 1227 led to a Gothic rebuilding, and from the Adolphe Sax Monument to the Maison de Monsieur Sax the stories follow the instrument maker born here in 1814, who patented the saxophone in Paris in 1846: a brass instrument that still counts as a woodwind.
- Durationabout 2 hours
- Walkingabout 25 min · 1.8 km
- Stops10
- LanguagesEnglish, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Dutch
From stop to stop
Stories, not a lecture
History, local legends and fun facts come in short audio chapters at each stop, with the full text on screen for anyone who prefers reading.
No getting lost
Google Maps shows the way between stops, about 25 minutes of walking spread over 1.8 km.
Pause and pick up again
There is no group waiting and no meeting point. Step into a café or a museum and continue in an hour or tomorrow.
Local tips included
The app points out cafés, restaurants and shops close to the route, and you decide where to start and in which order to go.
See the route and attractions →
How it works
- Book online Choose the number of people. Your booking reference arrives by email straight away.
- Get the app Download the World City Trail app from the App Store or Google Play and enter your booking reference.
- Walk when you like Start whenever you are ready, walk at your own pace and pause any time. No guide, no fixed schedule.
Who this walk suits
First time in Dinant
You see the main sights of the centre in one go, each with the story that explains why it matters.
Independent travellers
No flag to follow and no headcount: stay longer where something interests you and move on where it does not.
Tight schedules
Around 2 hours is all it takes, so the rest of the day stays free.
Good to know
- Bring a charged smartphone with mobile data; a power bank helps.
- No entry tickets needed: everything happens outside the buildings. Going inside is optional and paid separately.
- Family friendly; children must be accompanied by an adult.
- Not suitable for wheelchair users and difficult with strollers.
- Groups of up to 5 work best; larger groups split up, one ticket per person.
- Every purchase helps support stray cats and dogs in Greece.
Along the Meuse with Adolphe Sax: the route
10 stops · about 25 min walking · start: Memorial to the Victims of 23 August 1914 · finish: Regional Cultural Centre of Dinant
The first stop is the memorial to the victims of 23 August 1914, followed by the Charles de Gaulle Statue and the Pont Charles de Gaulle, lined with saxophones painted in the colours of European countries. Over the bridge you reach the Collegiate Church of Notre-Dame at the foot of the cliff. Four stops then belong to Adolphe Sax and his instrument: the Adolphe Sax Monument, the Saxophone Monument, the Maison de Monsieur Sax on the site of his birthplace and the Saxophone Water Clock. The Triumph of Light Monument and the Regional Cultural Centre of Dinant close the walk. Reordering the stops takes a tap in the app, and nothing on the route charges for entry.
Open the route map ↗
1Memorial to the Victims of 23 August 1914Start
On 23 August 1914, in the first weeks of the First World War, German troops shot 674 civilians in Dinant, women and children among them, and set much of the town on fire. This memorial keeps the memory of that day, one of the worst massacres of civilians in Belgium during the war.
Read the full story →
2Charles de Gaulle Statue
On 15 August 1914 a young French lieutenant named Charles de Gaulle was wounded in Dinant while fighting for the bridge over the Meuse. This statue remembers the future general and President of France, who received his first wound of the war in this town.
Read the full story →
3Pont Charles de Gaulle
The bridge over the Meuse bears the name of Charles de Gaulle, wounded nearby in 1914. It is lined with large saxophone sculptures painted in the colours of European countries, a nod to Adolphe Sax, the inventor of the saxophone, who was born in Dinant.
Read the full story →
4Collegiate Church of Notre-Dame
The Collegiate Church of Notre-Dame stands at the foot of the cliff, right below the citadel. It was rebuilt in Gothic style after a rockfall destroyed the earlier Romanesque church in 1227, and its bulb-shaped bell tower is the best-known outline in Dinant.
Read the full story →
5Adolphe Sax Monument
This monument honours Adolphe Sax, born in Dinant in 1814, and the town's bond with its most famous son. Sax later moved to Paris as an instrument maker and patented the saxophone there in 1846.
6Saxophone Monument
Saxophones appear all over Dinant, and this monument celebrates the instrument itself. Look at the keys and the curved body: Sax designed the saxophone of brass but with a reed mouthpiece, which is why it counts as a woodwind instrument.
7Maison de Monsieur Sax
The Maison de Monsieur Sax stands on the street named after Adolphe Sax, on the site of the house where he was born in 1814. Outside, a bronze Sax sits on a bench, and the building tells the story of his life and inventions.
8Saxophone Water Clock
This sculpture brings together a saxophone and a water clock, joining the town's musical symbol with the ancient idea of measuring time by flowing water. Take a close look at how the parts are arranged and how the two ideas meet in a single piece.
Read the full story →
9Triumph of Light Monument
This square is home to a monument called The Triumph of Light, built around the old symbol of light overcoming darkness. Take time to look at its shapes and details from different sides, as the theme of light and darkness runs through them all.
10Regional Cultural Centre of DinantFinish
The Centre culturel régional de Dinant is the town's cultural centre, with exhibitions, concerts, theatre and events for Dinant and the surrounding region. It is a fitting finish in a town that gave the world the saxophone and still celebrates music.
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Anonymous (verified owner) –
Exactly what I needed to explore this perl.