Are the High Fens open after the wildfire — and where can visitors safely go?

The East Belgium Tourism Agency, the Agence du Tourisme des Cantons de l’Est, said on 27 August that several areas spared by the fire were accessible again. It named the Fagne de Setai, Fagne de Fraineu, Neûr Lowé, Lonlou, Fagne de la Poleur and Herbôfaye. Seven marked walks were also listed as available, including the Cascade du Bayehon route from Longfaye, the Croix des Fiancés from Baraque Michel and the Fagne de la Poleur walk from Baraque Michel, Mont Rigi or Signal de Botrange.

Hospitality businesses including Belgium Peak Beer, Maison du Parc-Botrange, Baraque Michel and Mont Rigi were reported open, while the tourist-information point and brasserie at Signal de Botrange were due to reopen on 29 August. The Domaine des Hautes Fagnes hotel said it reopened on 27 August after cleaning its rooms, ventilation systems and outdoor facilities; it said the building itself had not been reached by the flames.

Access is not uniform, however. The East Belgium agency said the N68 remained closed between Belle-Croix and Eupen, and Vedia reported that this section would stay closed at least until an assessment scheduled for 2 September. Signage, police instructions and municipal orders take precedence over an online itinerary. The burned perimeter remains strictly forbidden because of smouldering ground, unstable trees, smoke, ecological damage and the possibility that old munitions may have become exposed.

Start with the evolving map on Wallonie.be or the Walloon Geoportal, WalOnMap. The map distinguishes the burned area from temporary access restrictions compiled from DNF information and local police orders. Because communes can impose additional closures beyond the mapped perimeter, check the website or social-media channel of the relevant commune — commune in French, Gemeinde in German and gemeente in Dutch — and obey signs encountered on the ground.

For walking information, consult the French, German, Dutch or English pages of Ostbelgien.eu and ask the Maison du Parc-Botrange or the local tourist office to confirm the chosen trail. Visitors seeking help in French can call Wallonia’s public-information line on 1718; the German-language line is 1719, both listed by the regional government as available on weekdays from 08:30 to 17:00. VISITWallonia also gives visitors a tourism-information number, 081 84 41 00. In an immediate emergency, the number remains 112.

Do not improvise around a barrier, park on verges or assume that an open road makes the adjoining forest accessible. Keep dogs on a lead, remain on marked paths and avoid cigarettes, camping stoves, barbecues and any other ignition source. If smoke or burning smells cause discomfort, the SPW advises limiting outdoor activity and ventilating buildings when conditions improve. Its monitoring update said the temporary rise in fine particles during the night of 22–23 August subsided and the 24-hour air-quality category remained “good”, but local conditions can change.

The fire arrived during an important month for the regional visitor economy. Figures supplied by Lescrenier’s office and reported by The Brussels Times show that the High Fens area registered 139,913 overnight stays in August 2025, representing 9.5% of Wallonia’s total that month. Vedia reported that establishments near the fire temporarily closed, some workers were placed on force-majeure unemployment and the Association des Hôtels et Restaurants de Spa et Environs noticed weaker bookings.

Tourism businesses consequently want potential visitors to distinguish between the dangerous fire zone and unaffected places that can receive guests. Emergency services and conservation authorities have a different immediate responsibility: keeping people away from terrain where a seemingly extinguished peat fire can return. These positions are not inherently contradictory. The workable compromise is targeted access based on current maps, rather than either treating the entire destination as closed or behaving as though normal conditions have fully returned.

The episode also reveals the complexity of communicating across this border region. Visitors may encounter French-language instructions from Wallonia and the communes, German information from Ostbelgien and Bütgenbach, and Dutch or English tourism pages. Place names can differ between languages, so matching a route number or map location is safer than relying on a translated name alone.

Further reopening will depend on firefighting assessments, weather and the stability of the peat and trees. The precise ecological and economic damage is still being calculated, while authorities are examining support for affected operators and a longer restoration plan. For now, the ministers’ reassurance should be read literally but narrowly: the High Fens destination remains visitable, not universally accessible.