The Contemporary Art Museum “MACA”, housed in the city’s oldest surviving civil building. In the baroque style, it dates back to 1685 and is located next to the Santa María basilica. The museum has recently been re-opened after a year of an extension work in order to improve and enlarge its facilities in 4,700 m2, with the aim to house an important collection of 20th century art mostly comprised of works donated by Eusebio Sempere. Many different types of events also take place in this Museum.

See up to 90 colourful coral species and 500 types of fish while snorkelling in the crystal clear waters of Lord Howe Island at Neds Beach, Lagoon Beach, Old Settlement Beach, Erscott’s Hole and Blinky Beach.

The Castle of Friedrichshafen, also known as convent Hofen, was originally built in 1654, as a monastery for the Benedictines of Weingarten. Today, it serves as the residence of Friedrich, Duke of Wuerttemberg, and it is right next to the castle church itself.

‘This is where the cultural, creative, and enterprising urban district Sphinx will arise.’ So reads the ambition behind the plans for the development of the Sphinx area. Plans focus on the place where Maastricht’s industrial revolution began. It was here that Petrus Regout built his ‘Sphinx Factory,’ the start of what grew into an enormous industry, producing bathroom fixtures, tiles, and the products that made Maastricht great. The factory operated until 2006, and since then efforts have been under way to redevelop this area as a district that fits in with the city, but as something Maastricht does not already have. That’s why this district is being designed to attract creative types, young residents, national and international students, and expatriates. It will be internationally oriented, with room for flexible space and temporary functions. Where this area is going is becoming clearer and clearer, in things like the arrival of the pop music stage in a former sawmill, and the newly opened Brandweer(kantine), with workspaces and meeting places for creative entrepreneurs. But not everything in this part of the city is new and different. The historic and picturesque river harbour ‘t Bassin, adjacent to the Sphinx area, makes a perfect buffer for the transition from the more familiar and better known Maastricht to this new part of town.