Belgium · Flanders · Antwerp
Ekeren, Antwerp — Area Guide & Where to Stay
Ekeren is a northern district of Antwerp, first recorded as Hecerna in 1155 and perhaps named for the oaks the Vikings used.
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Where to stay in Ekeren
Where visitors usually base themselves, and why.
Ekeren keeps two kinds of address. The Sint-Lambertuskerk stands over the old village ground, where the streets are older and tighter, while the Sint-Vincentiuskerk and the Heilig Hart van Jezuskerk anchor the housing that filled in later around them. Kannekenslaan runs through that newer fabric.
Beds are thin here. Most visitors sleep in Antwerp proper and come north for the parishes.
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Around the Sint-Lambertuskerk
Ekeren's oldest parish ground gathers at the Sint-Lambertuskerk, which served the village here long before Ekeren became one of Antwerp's districts. Beds are limited here, so book early.Find hotels in Around the Sint-LambertuskerkLonger stays that trade the Ekeren parish core for quieter twentieth-century streets.The Sint-Vincentiuskerk streets
Housing laid out around the Sint-Vincentiuskerk fills the ground between the old Ekeren core and the district's outer edge. Rooms are few around here — worth securing early.Find hotels in The Sint-Vincentiuskerk streetsVisitors who want Ekeren's newer streets and a straight run south into Antwerp.Kannekenslaan and around
Kannekenslaan carries the later building of Ekeren, terraced rows put up many centuries after the Hecerna of 1155. Lodging is scarce in this area; reserve in advance.Find hotels in Kannekenslaan and aroundHotel links are affiliate links: booking through them may earn us a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never affects how places are ranked. How this works
Things to do in and around Antwerp
Ranked by global recognition; descriptions from Wikidata (CC0).
Churches & Religious Sites
6- Sint-Lambertuskerk Heritage
- Sint-Laurentiuskerk Heritage
- Heilig Hart van Jezuskerk Heritage
- Onze-Lieve-Vrouw-Boodschapskerk Heritage
- Sint-Vincentiuskerk Heritage
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- Sint-Theresia van het Kind Jezuskerk Heritage
Landmarks & Notable Places
1- Nieuwbouw rijwoning - Kannekenslaan
worth knowingacross 2 categories in and around Antwerp
About Ekeren
What are the main landmarks in Ekeren?
Ekeren counts its landmarks in churches. The Sint-Lambertuskerk holds the old parish, and the Sint-Laurentiuskerk, the Onze-Lieve-Vrouw-Boodschapskerk and the Sint-Vincentiuskerk each serve a quarter that grew up around that core, giving the district a spread of parishes rather than one dominant monument. Two later dedications follow: the Heilig Hart van Jezuskerk and the Sint-Theresia van het Kind Jezuskerk.
A Mariakapel sits among them. One row house on Kannekenslaan breaks the pattern.
What is the history of Ekeren?
The name comes first. Ekeren appears in the written record in 1155 as Hecerna, and one account traces that name to Vikings who settled the ground in the ninth century and put its oak trees to use. The village kept its own identity for centuries before Antwerp absorbed it as a district.
In 2005 Ekeren marked eight and a half centuries since that first mention. The Sint-Lambertuskerk carries the parish through all of it.
Where is Ekeren?
Ekeren sits north of central Antwerp in the Flemish Region, its churches and the Mariakapel scattered across the district rather than massed in one core.
Common questions
What is the best area to stay in Ekeren?
Around the Sint-Lambertuskerk: Stays that want Ekeren's original village ground rather than a through-road address.. The Sint-Vincentiuskerk streets: Longer stays that trade the Ekeren parish core for quieter twentieth-century streets.. Kannekenslaan and around: Visitors who want Ekeren's newer streets and a straight run south into Antwerp..
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Updated October 2026