general information

A night-time activity at camp is always great fun! After 22:00 however, these activities are not allowed without the express permission of the local police. This ensures that nobody is bothered by late-night noises. 

Tel. local police: 014 56 47 00 

For a fee, you can hire materials from the Municipality of Geel to ensure the smooth organisation of your visit. As the organiser, you are personally responsible for this. This might include things like fences, flagpoles and stage material. You must request these supplies from the municipality 4 weeks in advance of your visit via the digital portal in the link below. Arrangements can be made with city services. 

Letting off a little too much steam? That's how things end up getting broken... We stick to the 'you break it, you pay for it' rule. If everyone is careful when using the material provided, you won't need to use this list. We thank you for taking care of the equipment! 

This document contains all the phone numbers that you might need during your stay, everything from emergency numbers to service providers and shops.

Our house rules contain all the important rules and regulations that you need to know: everything from how to sort your rubbish and noise pollution to how to use the materials provided and cleaning. Please read this document thoroughly! We also ask group leaders to read and sign this document at the beginning of their stay. 

 

Every year, around 20,000 young people come to stay at the site. 

Olen Station is about 3.5km from the site. From there you can take trains to destinations including Herentals, Antwerp, Hasselt and Mol. There is also a bus stop next to Sint-Jozefskerk in Olen (1.5km) where you can take buses to Herentals and Turnhout. You can also take buses to Herentals or the centre of Geel from the stop by the church in Geel - Larum (1.5km). 

There are a number of bakeries in Olen and Geel. We have included their contact details in the list of useful numbers. You can find this document on our website on the General Information page.

Details of drinks suppliers can also be found in our list of useful phone numbers.

There are a number of large supermarkets within 10km of the park. There are also bakeries, grocers. butcher's shops and fast food establishments within easy reach. Youth Hostel Zonnedauw has compiled a list of these addresses.

Yes, there are a number of options for groups who want to go swimming:

 

In Geel there is a public pool with water slides (please reserve in advance)

 

The Netepark Recreation Area is a great location for a day out. The train from Olen to Herentals tales 10 minutes. The park is close to the station.

 

Zilvermeer Provincial Park in Mol is a perfect place to cool off with a large group. The park can be reached using public transport (with a small number of changes). You can also cycle there via the tow-path along the canal.

 

Swimming in the canal (which is located right next to our site) is strictly forbidden!

No, we only take bookings for weekend or week-long stays from groups that have some sort of link to youth work. You can find more information about our conditions via the Kampas booking agency.

Over the years, we have been trained to sniff out groups that try to do this. Everyone is welcome to Zonnedauw, as long as they stick to our house rules. What if we suspect an illegal party? You'll get an extra briefing about our house rules. Will you cancel our booking? No hard feelings, eh? Those groups who do stay with us come to realise that playing by the rules can also be fun.

As managers of Youth Hostel Zonnedauw, we cannot personally take any bookings. All our reservations go via Kampas, the Flemish Centre for Youth Tourism. If you want to book one of our accommodation blocks, we have a link to the Kampas booking page on our website.

Following renovation work in 2013, our largest accommodation block, Pavilion, has now been made accessible for disabled guests. This has led to us being awarded an A-Plus(2) rating. 

Our kitchens have large freezers and refrigerators. During the summer we also bring in an additional refrigerated trailer that is only accessible by the kitchen team. Each accommodation block has adequate supplies of cooking pots, pans, cutlery and tableware. More information about our kitchen equipment can be found in a leaflet on the Kampas website. 

Indoors? Yes. Outdoor? No. Sound/music systems are not allowed outside. You can find the regulations regarding this in our house rules. We will also explain everything during your tour of the complex. Any further questions? Feel free to get in touch with us. 

 

This is listed on the access pass that you will be given in advance. We arrange it so that each group gets a different time. This ensures that if different groups arrive on site on the same day, they won't get in each other's way and it makes parking and unloading much easier. 

Do you want to change your arrival/entry time? Please let us know at least two days in advance. This will give us time to change the schedule. 

The bunk beds are supplied with special anti-bacterial mattress. Guests must provide their own fitted sheets, pillows and sleeping bags.

If there are any problems, please let us know. Youth Hostel Zonnedauw has good relationships with its neighbours, and we would like to keep it that way. We therefore ask you to respect the privacy, peace and property of our neighbours. Our motto is 'respect the buildings and the surroundings'. This way everyone has a great time.

Campfires are permitted, provided that an application has been submitted in advance. The application form can be found in the Useful Forms section of our website. You must provide your own firewood. Gathering wood is allowed on site, cutting down trees is not. There are also a number of large shops in the local area who might give you their old pallets to use as firewood.

This is allowed, as long as you release the fish back into the pond immediately after catching them.

Yes, there are a number of options for groups who want to go swimming:

- there is a municipal swimming pool in Geel with slides. Check if you need to book in advance!

- The Netepark Recreation Area in Herentals, with its swimming pools and playgrounds, is an ideal day out.

- Zilvermeer Provincial Park in Mol is a little further away, but the snow-white beach is an inviting location to relax with a large group. There are plenty of exciting playgrounds and other leisure activities in the park's pine woodland.

- Swimming in the canal next to Zonnedauw is strictly prohibited! Swimming is also not allowed in the fishing pond at Zonnedauw. 

Yes, everything must be thoroughly cleaned at the end of your stay. We expect groups to do their washing up and leave everything clean and tidy. Outdoor areas must also be cleaned up: any cable ties must be removed and the remains of any water balloons or other waste must be picked up. Think about the environment!

No, we ask groups to bring all cleaning supplies (from buckets and squeegees to mops and cleaning fluid) with them. This way you can be sure you have the right cleaning materials. 

We sort our waste on site: glass goes in the glass container (located near the entrance of the site), PMD [Plastic, Metal and Cartons] go in blue bags from IOK and paper/card goes into the designated container. You must provide your own waste bags.

 

Please also clean up any water balloons, plastic or other waste from outdoor areas.

We must emphasise the importance of 'respect the buildings, respect the surroundings'.

Do not hide the broken shards away at the bottom of the bin. Please just tell us if anything has been broken. This allows us to replace any broken items where necessary so that any groups that come after have enough plates and glasses during their stay. Honesty is the best policy.