Genk is a town and municipality located in the Belgian province of Limburg near Hasselt. The municipality only comprises the town of Genk itself. It is one of the most important industrial towns in Flanders, located on the Albert Canal, between Antwerp and Liège.

Sights

• The biggest tourist attraction of Genk is Bokrijk, an open-air museum consisting of authentic relocated buildings (mainly dating from 17th till 19th century) from all over Flanders. In the summer season, historical Flanders comes alive in Bokrijk through numerous actors and re-enactment events.
• Genk was established as one of the entrance “gateways” of the Hoge Kempen National Park, the first National Park in Flanders, at its opening in 2006.
• Also noteworthy are the old coalmines of Zwartberg, Waterschei and Winterslag, surrounded by slag heaps, huge black mountains of dug up soil and coal remnants. Some of the mine buildings and housing can be visited.
• Despite its industrial past and present, Genk is nicknamed ‘De Groene Stad’ (The Green City). It sports a nature reserve called “De Maten”, the large recreational area Kattevennen (with the Europlaneterium), Bokrijk, and several other green areas. In sunny weather, you may also want to pay a visit to the Sundial Park (Dutch: Zonnewijzerpark).
• The Europlanetarium Genk has a planetarium and observatory.

Events

• Genk is also rich in tradition, with a colourful carnival taking place around Ash Wednesday, the May celebrations featuring the May Queen, a flowers parade and a huge fireworks finale, and finally the Saint Martin procession, in honour of Saint Martin of Tours, one of the most popular saints in Flanders.
• In 2012 Genk was host to Manifesta, The roving European Biennial of Contemporary Art, together with events such as the biennial of Venice and the Documenta in Kassel, Manifesta is one of the foremost art events of Europe.

Economy

Genk is the industrial centre of the province of Limburg and offers over 45,000 jobs, making it economically the third most significant city in Flanders.

In 1900, Genk was a quiet village with around 2,000 residents. At that time, Genk was known for its natural environment, popular among artists and painters who used Genk as a setting for their pieces. In 1901, coal was discovered in Genk and three mining sites were developed: Zwartberg, Waterschei and Winterslag (C-mine today). As a result, the population grew exponentially: today Genk has about 65,000 inhabitants with 107 different ethnic backgrounds.

C-Mine

The city went looking for new opportunities for the enormous mine sites on its territory, including the Winterslag site. In 2000, the idea began to grow to accommodate a creative hub in the buildings of the old coal mine of Winterslag. In 2001, the city of Genk bought the site from LRM (Limburgse Reconversie Maatschappij) and the name “C-mine” was born in 2005. With a university college specialised in various artistic graduation subjects, an incubator for young entrepreneurs, a cultural centre, a design centre, a cinema, C-mine expedition, etc. the C-mine mission has succeeded.

Each day, C-mine produces: games, apps, websites, sets for television, drones, light shows, design items, stage productions, etc. C-mine is a site of creative makers in each of the four segments.

• Companies in C-Mine:
• Pingvalue.com : Pingvalue is a vibrant social community of local members all over the world that share what they love most about their neighborhood.
• E-nventors Lab / C-mine crib : E-nventors Lab is the research & development department of E-nvention that examines the latest technologies.

Sports

Genk’s major football club, KRC Genk, promoted from the second division in 1996 and quickly became one of Belgium’s top clubs. Because of this success, the Luminus Arena (formerly known as Fenix Stadium and Cristal Arena) of KRC Genk (place for 25 500 supporters) has become an important centre of both sport and non-sport activities in recent years.