Dendermonde (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – The municipality of Kontich is once again organizing its annual day trip for local seniors, a long‑standing social initiative aimed at offering older residents a chance to get out of their neighbourhoods, meet peers from other parts of the municipality, and enjoy a shared cultural and leisure experience. This year, the destination is the historic city of Dendermonde and the nearby town of Baasrode, both located along the Scheldt river in East Flanders.
This tour is meant specifically for the senior citizens residing in Kontich, thus clearly defining the nature of the tour as one which is aimed at providing welfare services and strengthening the sense of community among the residents of the city. In restricting the scope of the tour to include only those people living in Kontich, the city can ensure that its own elderly population can benefit from such a venture since there might be many people who cannot travel independently. Dendermonde, being known for its medieval center, river location, and cultural activities, provides a variety of locations for a day’s tour.
When and how will different groups of Kontich seniors travel?
In order to facilitate logistics and prevent overcrowding at once, the city council has planned the trip to take place during two consecutive days in early September 2026. Seniors living in Kontich Centrum will start their journey on Wednesday, 9 September 2026, whereas Kontich Kazerne and Waarloos seniors will travel on Thursday, 10 September 2026. This way, the process will bring several benefits.
Firstly, it makes possible for the organizers to deal with a smaller number of participants each day that is especially valuable when planning transportation, accessibility and conducting guided visits. Secondly, it decreases the burden on the infrastructure of Dendermonde and Baasrode, especially in case several groups of seniors from other municipalities are active at the same time. Thirdly, it provides the staff and volunteers from social services an opportunity to help the participants if needed.
Why does Kontich organize a separate trip for seniors?
Senior trips are a very popular form of social policy in Flanders, as aging of the population and concerns about isolation of the elderly have compelled municipalities to devise programs which allow organized social interaction. This kind of program provides elderly people who no longer have access to means of transportation or live alone with the opportunity to break out from the routine of everyday life and get into contact with other people.
The fact that the Municipality of Kontich decided to continue organizing annual trips is also indicative of its active approach towards promoting active aging and social cohesiveness within the community. By retaining control of the process of organization of the trips, local authorities retain the possibility of customizing the experience of their residents according to their particular needs in terms of language skills, physical abilities and financial situation. The limitation of the number of passengers to the citizens of Kontich also emphasizes the notion that the activity is financed from local budgets for local residents.
