Abdijmuseum Ten Duinen
Abdijmuseum Ten Duinen
4.5

Top ways to experience nearby attractions

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.


4.5
4.5 of 5 bubbles107 reviews
Excellent
44
Very good
53
Average
7
Poor
3
Terrible
1

MarKno
Lisbon, Portugal104 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2013 • Family
Koksijde is a seaside resort which has three marvellous museums: Abdijmuseum Ten Duinen, Delvaux museum and Visserij museum. When the weather isn’t fit for sunbathing on the beach they are a perfect place to spend a few interesting hours enriching your cultural and historic “baggage” . The Abdijmuseum Ten Duinen is maybe the best known..
.
The museum offers the visitor an educative and extensive journey into the world of the Cistercian religious order and at the same time an insight into the Middle Ages. The Cistercian order was really a European multinational avant-la-lettre founded early 12th century by Bernardus of Clairvaux and having franchise abbeys all over Europe... including the UK!
In the museum the audiovisual means ( although at times some are broken) are picturing very well how the monks were living and some of the audiovisuals require the participation of the visitor. There is even a short romantic movie (flashback included) with the abbey and the North Sea as background. Adults and children alike will enjoy the experience.

The visit will take you between one and two hours. After that you go through the alley to ....nothing. Actually only a few bricks are left of the once majestic church and abbey. The ruins only give you an idea of the layout and size of the abbey, the rest is up to your imagination , of course helped by what you just have been experiencing in the museum.

To prepare your visit have a look at the website : www.tenduinen.be It has an English version.

To end your visit go to the recently restored old fisherman’s house ( on the grounds of the ruins) which is now converted into a café with terrace. You can get there a good Belgian beer en a snack.
Written July 31, 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Lycomedes
London91 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Sep 2011 • Couples
The 12th century Cistercian Abbey of Our Lady of the Dunes (Ten Duinen), located in the present-day municipality of Koksijde, among the sand hills between Dunkirk and Nieuwpoort, offers a glimpse into what monastic life was like in the early mediaeval period.

Most of the abbey buildings do not remain, but the site where they stood is well laid out and explained when walking around.Your imagination does the rest. The modern visitors centre is friendly and the bookshop has a good range of publications.

The museum itself is the highlight, using tableaux and interpretive panels as well as a contemporary video to bring alive life as it was - spiritual, cultural and commercial - in and around this thriving community 900 years ago. It is all very accessible to the modern visitor.

Saint Idesbald, an abbot of Ten Duinen in the 12th c, gives his name to an excellent local beer, 7%, available at the café in the abbey grounds. The food is good there too.
Written February 13, 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Bernburgerin
Bernburg51 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2019
I told my son that it would be great as we could play games like the monks used to (bowling, croquet, and boule). However, what I did not know – and we were positively surprise – that kids older than ten years and adults can rent for 3 EUR virtual reality glasses. You can even look into different areas and grab something with your hands. Building a little LEGO monk was also exciting and the video in Dutch (with French and English subtitles – at different times they also have German). We spent about three hours there and enjoyed every minute. There is also a café on the grounds and every now and then additional exhibitions.
Written August 13, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Jozef O
Brussels, Belgium192 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2021
The museum tells the history of this old abbey, which no longer exists. It is an interesting story and the presentation is well done, but the collection is relatively limited. The so-called ruins are more of a reconstructed outline and not really that impressive or enlightening.
Written August 23, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Trainbleu
Brussels, Belgium28,766 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2023 • Friends
The site of the former Cistercian Abbey of Our Lady of the Dunes ("Ten Duinen") was quite a disappointment to us. We had no idea there was nothing left of this abbey apart from the outline of the buildings, a few column stumps, and an arch here and there. It turns out the abbey was used to quarry stone after it was abandoned in 1578, so it disappeared over time. The life-size wax figures of monks, the model in LEGO bricks, and the archaeological finds in the adjoining museum didn’t manage to convey a sense of its former grandeur.
Written August 10, 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Barry C
Salisbury49 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Sep 2016 • Family
Although the first thing to see is an brief display about the monastery's history in Dutch, the fun starts when you get to the ruins. They have set up equipment for playing mediaeval style skittles, croquet and boules, which occupied us for half an hour of fun. The ruins had signs explaining what different sections were and how they were used.

The museum itself is excellent with interesting explanations and exhibits which held the attention of our 8 year olds.
Written September 15, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Hendrik T
Leuven, Belgium85 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2021 • Couples
In the visitor site you see information about the history of this important abbey in the middle ages, his impact and decline. The live in an abbey, ...
also artefacts found in the ruins, a huge Lego model of the abbey, ...
Afterwards you can visit the ruins and get an impression of the size of this abbey.
Written March 18, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Robby G C
Toronto, Canada78,235 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2016 • Couples
There is so much history in this cloister and all that for us to explore for just 5 Euros. I could share with you all the historical events, but then I would make you very sleepy. Instead I will share with you what I enjoyed the most about this historic cloister.

First of all, we entered into the museum and it's here that we learned almost everything about this cloister, which was quite rich! Interestingly enough, the first thing I saw was a skeleton! That's historic as well!

Whenever a monk died, they would give his meals to the poor. In those days, they had 120 monks and 248 lay brothers.

There were lots of paintings and even a reproduction of the former convent. Naturally it picked my curiosity and tried to find why it was destroyed. It's quite simple, in 1578, the monks left the Abbey as a consequence of religious trouble. They moved to Bruges, but when the French Revolution occurred, the history of this monks was ended for good.

During their time in Koksijde they fared well and they had no necessities. They had all they wanted. They had lost of activities they enjoyed. They were never bored! What intrigued me the most is that they had a bowling game, as well as the lawn billiards. Wow!

The last part was to visit the ruins. Most of it is destroyed, but it still quite attractive.

I enjoyed my time here and finding out how monks lived in the Middle Ages in Belgium. It's worthwhile to see!
Written February 27, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

RHAHJ
Nijmegen, The Netherlands1,979 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2016 • Solo
This museum shows the original items found at the site. There is a nice movie, and ruins of the abbey can be seen. The cafe has decent prices, and St.-Idesbald beer, named after a saint from here. There is a silverware collection from the 19th and 20th centuries. One of the nicest items is a stone with a child's footprint in it.
Written July 18, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Phil A
Rickmansworth, UK35 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2018
Don't waste your time. The remains look very unimpressive. Better to go to Rufford Abbey in Nottinghamshire.
Written July 9, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Is this your Tripadvisor listing?
Own or manage this property? Claim your listing for free to respond to reviews, update your profile and much more.
Claim your listing

Abdijmuseum Ten Duinen - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (2024)

Frequently Asked Questions about Abdijmuseum Ten Duinen


Restaurants near Abdijmuseum Ten Duinen: View all restaurants near Abdijmuseum Ten Duinen on Tripadvisor