Hautes Fagnes fire closes trails and deepens pressure on the region’s tourism economy

A major vegetation fire that started in the Hautes Fagnes on Friday, 14 August, has forced authorities to close the affected reserve and restrict travel around parts of the plateau while firefighters and land managers monitor the ground. The practical message for visitors is straightforward: postpone walks in the reserve, obey every closure and red flag, and check the Service public de Wallonie (SPW), the relevant commune or Gemeinde, and the Ostbelgien tourism portal before setting out. A trail shown in an old guidebook or saved hiking app should not be assumed to be open.

The fire has affected the central attraction on which much of the surrounding visitor economy depends: the open heath, peatland and boardwalk landscape of the Hautes Fagnes. Reporting by L’Echo says tourism businesses were already under pressure before the blaze interrupted the important summer period. The immediate shock is uneven. Hotels and holiday homes outside the danger area may remain accessible, but businesses built around hiking, guiding, bicycle trips and passing day visitors face cancellations and uncertainty over when routes can safely reopen.

The final burned area and the full condition of visitor infrastructure had not been authoritatively established by the time of publication. Scientific assessments will also take longer than an operational fire map. Laurane Winandy, director of the University of Liège’s Hautes Fagnes scientific station, told RTBF that fire had reached exceptionally valuable habitats, including active raised bogs, and that peat can continue smouldering below the surface after visible flames subside. That makes a quick return to normal neither safe nor ecologically responsible.

What visitors should do

Anyone with an imminent booking should contact the accommodation provider rather than cancelling the entire region automatically. The Hautes Fagnes are part of a much larger tourism area spanning Waimes, Malmedy, Jalhay, Eupen, Bütgenbach and neighbouring German-speaking municipalities. A closure on the plateau does not necessarily close a hotel, restaurant or attraction several kilometres away. Ask the operator whether the access road is open, whether the booking can proceed and which activities remain available.

For walking conditions, use the live information published by Ostbelgien and follow the SPW’s Département de la Nature et des Forêts, commonly abbreviated DNF. The regional access system distinguishes ordinary crowd-management alerts from nature-reserve closures. Green means normal attendance; orange signals heavy use; red can stop additional visitors or indicate protected paths are closed; and dark red is reserved for a wider closure with traffic diversions. Separately, red flags placed at reserve entrances are a direct prohibition on entering the indicated sensitive areas. Signs on the ground take precedence over an online route.

Visitors should also consult notices from the commune of Waimes, the Gemeinde Bütgenbach and other local administrations concerned. In this linguistically mixed part of Belgium, place names and instructions may appear in French or German: Hautes Fagnes is Hohes Venn, Waimes is Weismes in German, and Bütgenbach is sometimes written Butgenbach in French. Emergency number 112 works throughout Belgium, but tourists should not approach the perimeter to photograph the damage or offer unsolicited help. Extra traffic can obstruct professional crews.

Why the closure may last

The Hautes Fagnes are not simply a recreational forest. They contain wet heath and peat-forming habitats that store water and carbon and support specialised plants and animals. Their apparent openness can also be deceptive. During dry periods, grasses ignite rapidly, while fire may penetrate organic soil and later reappear at points that seemed cold. Drones and thermal imaging can locate residual heat, but the DNF and reserve managers must first decide that fieldwork is safe.

That ecological sensitivity explains why access rules can remain in place after firefighters have contained the visible front. Boardwalks, marker posts and small bridges must be inspected, and unstable or burned surfaces may require diversions. The Walloon Government’s February 2026 rules for circulation in the reserve already restrict movement by zone and prohibit ordinary access around the hours of darkness. Emergency orders can impose stricter limits.

The tourism dilemma

Local operators have two legitimate concerns that pull in different directions. Conservation managers and emergency services need a wide safety margin, particularly where peat can smoulder and wildlife habitat has been severely disturbed. Tourism businesses, meanwhile, need precise geographical information so visitors do not treat the whole of eastern Belgium as closed. The most useful public communication will distinguish the burned reserve, closed approach roads and safe neighbouring attractions rather than relying on a single regional warning.

The area was already managing the opposite problem before the fire: too many visitors concentrating around Signal de Botrange, Baraque Michel and a small number of familiar routes. The East Belgium Tourism Agency’s visitor strategy uses alerts and alternative itineraries to spread footfall across the region. Its 2025 activity report says the Hautes Fagnes websites recorded 139,079 visits that year, illustrating how strongly visitors rely on digital information. After the fire, that same system can direct people away from fragile ground while retaining spending in communities that remain open.

The broader lesson is that nature-based tourism depends on the condition of the landscape, not merely on accommodation capacity. The Hautes Fagnes have endured major fires before, including the 2011 blaze that the SPW says burned about 1,200 hectares. Walloon authorities warned again in July 2026 that dry vegetation was increasing the risk of rapidly spreading fires. The latest event brings prevention, visitor management and climate resilience into the same conversation.

What happens next

Fire services must first secure the perimeter and identify residual hot spots. The DNF, reserve managers and University of Liège scientists can then map damage to peatland, fauna, paths and restoration projects. Only those authorities can decide whether particular sectors may reopen, perhaps in stages. Tourism bodies will need to publish alternative walks and make clear which municipalities, hotels and attractions remain reachable.

Travellers planning an autumn or winter visit should therefore keep bookings under review rather than assume either a rapid reopening or a season-long regional shutdown. Check official notices shortly before departure, save the telephone number of the accommodation, and carry routes that avoid the reserve. What remains unknown is how deeply the peat burned, how much infrastructure must be replaced and when each trail can safely accept visitors again.