There was no great rush for the Belgian coast early on Saturday, according to West Flanders tourism office Westtoer, whose traffic barometer was mostly "dark green", meaning it was not crowded at all.
The regions of Knokke, De Haan and Wenduine were light green, which corresponds to “comfortable,” as were the centres of most other seaside stations.
After a busy week along the coast last week, with people driven to the beach by the hot weather, things seem to have calmed down once again. Unlike last weekend, no major influx of visitors was registered on Saturday.
In many coastal areas, the Westtoer barometer, which reflects arrivals in real-time, was on dark green, which reflects the lowest density. However, the centre of most coastal towns saw slightly more traffic, earning them a light green code on the barometer, which can be viewed online at www.dekust.be.
By 11:00 AM, almost all areas in De Haan, Wenduine and Knokke were light green, meaning the density on roads there was still pleasant, although, for a moment, Knokke was coded yellow.
On Thursday, Westtoer had recalled the importance of making sure tourists were evenly distributed throughout the coast.
On Friday, West-Flemish provincial governor Carl Decaluwé decided to ban the consumption of strong alcoholic drinks on beaches until 30 September, following a number of incidents along the coast involving people in a state of inebriation.
The Brussels Times
