The Botanical Garden at Terwinselen has a large share of regional visitors. The special bond of the garden with our regional public is reflected in the large number of visitors, the repeat visits and the large share of annual pass holders. In this sense, the Garden plays a role in the local community and the Garden knows how to add value to local well-being.
Due to its location in South Limburg, the Hortus also adds to the residential tourism in the marl country and thus also welcomes holidaymakers from other parts of the country. And as a museum attraction in the Euregio (triangle Maastricht/Aachen/Liège), the Garden also has an international influx, from Germany and Belgium.
Since last May, extra attention has been paid to approaching these tourist target groups: By improving the website, the online information about the garden and recently by issuing mini-cards at tourist points. A mini-card is a small voucher, a kind of mini-folder, with which the tourist in the garden gets a free coffee.
From an ‘accidental’ visit by day trippers to a targeted outing that is planned in advance… the number of visitors from other parts of the Netherlands and even Germany is increasing. And then, as a Botanical Garden, you will also have to offer something!
Tourist visitors do not always come to the garden with specific knowledge. They come to have a nice day. So they want to see something, drink a cup of coffee, perhaps eat a piece of pie or even enjoy a glass of wine. With the risk that it will then only become a nice walk through the garden… so it is a challenge to get these visitors to learn something from it.
If you want to be significant as a museum, it is important to inform this group in an accessible way about the special collection and attractions in the botanical garden.
The Highlite Route was therefore created especially to serve this group. At the reception desk, visitors receive a folding folder with a map on which 10 sights in the garden are listed… the so-called HighLights.
Think of our beautiful permanent exhibition about the life of John Bergmans, the unique Hebei Elm of which there are only 8 in Europe, our remarkable plant collection from Madagascar in the greenhouse and the endangered living fossil, the Wollemia Nobilis.
Because the internationally renowned company Highlite is located around the corner from the botanical garden, one plus one was two. After all, the Highlight or Highlite route could easily be a marketing match… so that we could arrange the production of this brochure with sponsorship… We visited the marketing manager with a dummy of the brochure under our arm. The garden was warmly received and people were very charmed by the idea. That is why the company is committing itself to the route as a sponsor for 3 years from May 2025.
Their reasoning is heartwarming: “As a full-service provider of entertainment equipment, Highlite has an eye for local initiatives that want to serve the public with the same passion and offer an unforgettable experience. The Botanical Garden in Kerkrade is such an initiative. That is why Highlite sponsors the Highlite Route, an introductory walk through the garden along 10 highlights.”
The route turns out to be a bull’s eye… The brochure is in great demand among our visitors. The 2nd edition will be commissioned soon. An English and German version is in production. Because our international visitors are also showing a lot of interest.
A nice side effect: in our garden you can enjoy the garden independently using the signs at the collection, but there is also in-depth educational material, for example about our unique tree collection and the biodiversity of Madagascar. Thanks to the Highlite route, the unsuspecting tourist does not get lost in the garden but the collection is brought closer. This encourages you to walk into the garden again after a coffee and a pie and delve into the tree route, for example… This fully meets the objective of the museum Botanical Garden Kerkrade and turns a 1 ½ hour walk into an afternoon-filling educational program.
Roger van de Poel, juni 2025
Translation: Marian Schrijnemaeker
Click on the photo to view it larger.