municipality in Limburg, Belgium
Maasmechelen is a town in the Belgian province Limburg, on the border with the Netherlands. It used to be an important mining town, but now all the mines have closed and some of the mining sites have been redeveloped into interesting sites.
Maasmechelen is well connected by road. Apart from regional and local roads leading to towns in the region, Maasmechelen is connected to the E314, leading to Brussels and Leuven as well as Heerlen in the Netherlands and Aachen in Germany. There's no train station in town, but the stations of Genk and Maastricht do have direct buses to take you further to Maasmechelen.
Bus services are ample, including Line 9 to Genk, 25 to Lanaken and Eisden, 61 to Maaseik and Tongeren and 63 to Maastricht (in the Netherlands). Line 178 connects Maasmechelen to Brussels, Leuven, Houthalen and Maaseik.
Maasmechelen and its surroundings were a mining area until the mines were closed in 1987. In an attempt to save remnants of this era, several of the main buildings were renovated and given a new destination. There's also a small "museum of the mine workers house", giving an insight in the daily life of miners in the 1930s.
Maasmechelen has some fine opportunities for hikers and bikers. A large part of the National Park Hoge Kempen, characterized by heathland and pine forests, is located on Maasmechelen territory.
Shopping is a major reason for people from the wide region to visit Maasmechelen.