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Photo: Rob Dammers, CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Take a ride through the southern part of Limburg on this classic steamtrain ride. See the marvels and beauty of this part of the Netherlands cross high bridges and see some great cities on the way. The Simpelveld train station serves as a headquarter for the ZLSM and doubles as small museum. .
The Zuid-Limburgse Stoomtrein Maatschappij or ZLSM is a heritage railway operating from its main station of Simpelveld to Schin op Geul and Kerkrade in the south of the Netherlands. It also runs across the border from Simpelveld to Aachen-Vetschau and has an extensive collection of stock. The ZLSM is currently partnered with the Great Central Railway in England, as they have both double-track railways, although one is disused.
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The Neo-Romanesque church was built in the 1920s but it is the church interior that is of significant historic value and therefore listed as a national heritage site. It's usually open, just don't go sight-seeing when a mass is in progress as it will not be appreciated.
As in most small towns in the South Limburg region, many travelers use Simpelveld as a base for hiking and biking in the area. Simpelveld has a number of very suited routes. Head to the "Nature Transferium Poort Mergelland" on the edge of town. It is the main tourist information point and forms a starting point for many routes. Here you can rent a number of bikes (including motorized ones) and buy maps. If you've really been working out, they even offer use of a shower for bikers.
The real sarcophagus is part of the collection of The Dutch National Museum of Antiquities in Leiden, but a really good replica can be found at the city hall.
Museum de Schat van Simpelveld
A few nuns still remain in this monastery, right in the middle of the town. Clara Fey, who founded the congregation of the Sisters of the Poor Child Jesus, is buried in the chapel. When the German congregation had to flee Aachen due to the kulturkampf in the late 19th century, Simpelveld became the world headquarters. Several of the buildings are listed rijksmonuments. As of September 2020, the building houses a museum, Museum de Schat van Simpelveld, showcasing monastic life.
Just behind the city hall and the Loreto monastery lies a park called the "Hellingbos". Originally part of the monastery grounds and gardens, it used to hold a cemetery and chapel. Nowadays, the Stations of the Cross remain the main sights in the park, which makes a tranquil place to linger or just walk around.
This former monastery was founded in 1892 by followers of the canonized Belgian father Damian. Nowadays, it is a conference centre with some 49 rooms for group accommodation and individual travellers.