Swimming in open water or wild swimming will become a right in Flanders from next summer, as reported by Het Laatste Nieuws on Wednesday.
Currently, Flanders operates under the longstanding prohibition principle: swimming in open water is prohibited unless otherwise indicated.
However, from mid-2027 the opposite will apply: public waterways, lakes, and ponds will then be generally open to recreational swimmers.
Nonetheless, wild swimming may still be lawfully prohibited when there is shipping traffic, dangerous currents, pollution, or hazardous infrastructure. Where such a prohibition applies, it must be clearly communicated to the public, preferably digitally.
Swimming outside an official zone is entirely at one's own risk. Nothing will change at the North Sea beach, where swimming outside the supervised zones remains strictly prohibited.
The plan to change the wild swimming principle is part of the coalition agreement.
