Saint Peter’s Fortress and its surroundings

I have a good friend in Limburg, so I asked him which places I should visit during my short one day stay in Maastricht. I told him that I preferred some places that were not that very well known among tourists, but they should still be worth the visit. It didn't take him long to get back to me with his recommendations. I was surprised to hear about the Saint Peter’s Fortress as I didn't know that there was such a place in Maastricht. Of course, I had to explore it.

I checked the information on their website but later it turned out that I misunderstood it. I didn't get that you have to book a guided tour in advance. I thought that I can come there, get my ticket and visit the fortress. Apparently, nobody else booked the tour, so there was no guide, and I'm not even mentioning the fact that there was no ticket office, so you really have to purchase your ticket online.

There were some people putting on their hiking shoes and heading in the direction of the fortress, so I decided to follow them even though I was disappointed that I wasn't able to go inside. At the end, my trip wasn't bad at all!

Saint Peter’s Fortress was built at the beginning of the 18th century. I read that it was around 1700. It is built on the St. Peter’s Mount, high above the river Meuse on the south side of the city. It is a huge five-sided brick construction and inside there is a complex system of underground tunnels and caves.

It was built to defend the strategically important city of Maastricht from the French troops. It only ever saw one battle and the city had to surrender in the end. The fortress lost its purpose of being a defensive construction after the signing of the treaty of Maastricht in 1867 which settled the political stability in the region.

Today, the fortress is almost intact. It has been restored in 2011, so that it could be open to public. The damage that was done in 1794 was not crucial for the construction of the building and it was left intact as a reminder of the history.

Let's check it out!

At the beginning of the 20th century (in 1937) a watchtower was built to spot an approaching enemy and recognize the attacks by the planes.

The structure of the fortress is impressive. It's so simple yet somehow harsh.

When you are on top of the hill you can enjoy nice views of Maastricht..

When you book a tour in advance, the guide will show you the cannon gallery, embrasures, secret water well, and underground tunnels, as well as the views.

After that you can enjoy a meal or a drink in a restaurant nearby.

Here we have another view of Maastricht.

At the beginning I wondered why those people put on their hiking shoes. There are no mountains in The Netherlands, so I couldn't see why they would need them. I understood their reasons as soon as I crossed this path and entered the protected nature reserve. Suddenly, I was walking in mud and wished that I had my hiking shoes with me as well!

The fortress is surrounded by large fields that are managed by Natuurmonumenten. I learned that the fortress is part of the Saint Peter’s Path which is the famous hiking route that starts on the other side of The Netherlands in Pieterburen in Groningen. It's almost 500 km long!

You can either go on this 500 km long path or walk around the fortress if you don't have a couple of weeks to spare for walking 😊 I chose the first option.

Here you can see the muddy path that I was walking on..

Unfortunately, there were many trees blocking the views of Maastricht. But if you manage to go inside of the fortress you would get to see the views above those trees.

And here is the last view before going back to the car..

It was a cold morning and the light wasn't ideal but I still enjoyed my trip. I told my husband about the fortress and he didn't know either that it was there. He used to be in the Dutch army and he was even on a mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina before he chose to change his career path, but he is still interested in military constructions, so I am sure that one day we will come back together.

Thank you for visiting!

Cheers!