3 Best Sights in Tongeren, Limburg Province

The elaborate Basilica of Our Lady is one of the most beautiful medieval monuments in the world. The original church was built on Roman foundations in the 4th century and was the first stone cathedral north of the Alps. A siege in 1213 destroyed everything but the 12th-century Romanesque cloister; soon afterward construction of the present-day Basilica of Our Lady began, a project that would take three centuries to complete. The central nave, up to the pulpit, the choir, and the south transept, dates from 1240. The candlesticks and lectern, from 1372, are the work of Jehan de Dinant, one of a number of outstanding metalworkers who flourished in the Meuse valley at that time. The basilica has excellent acoustics and is often used for symphony concerts.

The Gallo-Roman museum traces the region's human history, and features a host of local archaeological finds, not just from Roman days but all the way back, via the Celts, to the original Neanderthal settlers. To get the kids inspired, ask for the special child-oriented audio guide, which features stories told by the archaeologist "Bob the Digger."

Located in the Chapter House and cloisters of the adjacent church, the Teseum is the treasury of the Onze-Lieve-Vrouwebasiliek, and it contains arguably the the richest collection of religious art in the country. Highlights including a 6th-century ivory diptych of St. Paul, a Merovingian gold buckle from the same century, and a truly magnificent head of Christ sculpted in wood in the 11th century.