Goirle: Heathland, Forest and Cultural Heritage

Goirle can be discovered from many different angles: extensive heathland and forests, old churches and mills, as well as active pursuits. Visitors who want to include nature, local history and exercise in their trip will find plenty of ways to do so here.

Heathland, Forests and Open Countryside

South of Riel, in the municipality of Goirle, lies the Regte Heide en Riels Laag area. This designated Natura 2000 site covers 540 hectares. Dry and wet heathland, boggy hollows, acidic and weakly buffered pools, and deciduous and coniferous forests shape its landscape. These diverse habitats define the character of the area, so the heathland cannot be reduced to a single landscape view.

The Gorp en Roovert estate covers about 1,200 hectares of old deciduous, coniferous and mixed forests, farmland, heathland and pools. The Roovertse Leij, which still meanders extensively, is also part of this landscape. Explore the network of paths on foot or by bicycle. You can move between forest, open spaces and waterside landscapes, and experience the surroundings at your own pace.

Activities among the Forests and Estate

Klim & Avonturenbos offers challenging courses among the treetops and a 12-metre free fall. Check the current operating conditions before you travel. The GPS-Wandeltocht offers a different way to explore: this self-guided GPS walk leads through the border area of Goirle. Using a GPS device, follow the route, answer questions and solve puzzles about the era of smuggling, then collect a prize from the smugglers’ chest.

On the Gorp & Roovert estate and in its forest, Brouwerij Nicolaas offers brewery tours and beer tastings. Visitors learn more about the site, the brewing process and the brewing team. Check dates and availability in advance. Goolse Geheimen Gidsen offers guided walks and cycling tours to special places in the municipality of Goirle and in Riel. At Goolse Geheimen, you can also play the Goolse Code with friends or family and discover the mystery of the Ballefrutters.

Golf and wellness are other options: Golfclub Landgoed Nieuwkerk is a 9-hole golf course on the historic Nieuwkerk estate, which straddles the border south of Goirle. Forests, grassland and the valley of the Poppelse Ley watercourse surround the course. Thermen Goirle offers sauna facilities, a snow cabin, sunbathing lawns, terraces and beauty salons; check the current offerings before your visit.

Churches, a Mill and Archaeological Traces

A walk through the centre passes the Jan van Besouw Cultural Centre, with its changing exhibitions, and the local history museum. Kerk Sint Jan is Goirle’s oldest parish church. Its tower dates from the 15th century; the neo-Gothic church was built in 1896 to a design by Jos Cuypers. In Riel, the walk passes ’t Zandeind, described as Riel’s oldest hamlet.

The history of Kerk St. Antonius Abt also goes back further than the present church building: Riel had its own parish church from 1519; the present church was built in its current style in 1897. It houses a baptismal font dating from 1519 and a bell also cast in 1519 by Jasper Moer of ’s-Hertogenbosch. These two objects from the same year offer a distinctive historical connection within the church.

Molen de Wilde is a round, stone Dutch windmill with a ground-sail or belt-mill structure, dating from 1898, and is a Rijksmonument, a Dutch state-protected monument. When the flag is flying, visitors are welcome to attend demonstrations and tours. Molenpark is a pleasant place for a walk and a visit to the animal pasture. On the Regte Heide, burial mounds recall the Bronze Age, around 1750 BC. They were first excavated in 1935 and subsequently reconstructed; the post circles known from the excavations were restored at about five of the mounds.

Planning Your Visit

In 2026, the museum of Stichting Erfgoed Goirle will be open from 5 April to 18 October on the first and third Sunday of each month, from 14:00 to 16:30; visits by appointment are also possible. Check the date before your visit. Natuurpoort De Roovertsche Leij is another useful point of reference: a central information centre recognised by Brabants Landschap, with parking and an extensive network of cycling and walking routes. It is on the De Lijn bus route between Turnhout and Tilburg; check the current timetable for your journey.

The Toeristisch Informatiepunt at Boekhandel Buitelaar offers walking and cycling routes from Monday to Saturday, as well as information about local activities and excursions. Parking is free in the municipality of Goirle, including in the centre, where a parking-disc zone applies. As parking rules may change, check them locally before you travel.

Discover more destinations: Riel, Goirle, Zundert, Nuenen, Gerwen En Nederwetten, Grave, Loon Op Zand, Sint-Michielsgestel, Mill En Sint Hubert.

Return to the main travel overview: North Brabant.