Dear fellow ignatzmicers,

I'd like to give some useful tips to those who are looking for the perfect location to visit both clubs (Golden Time and Yin Yang) and don't want to spend crazy amounts of money in taxi rides.


I use to stay in the village of Swalmen, conveniently located halfway between Roermond and Brüggen. For accomodation, there are 2 places :

1. Pension Groenewoud

2. B&B familie Rakamers


I've never staid at Ramakers, but many times at the Pension Groenewoud and it's and great place. Both cost around €30 per night, which is very cheap compared to most of the hotels of the region. By breathing the fresh air of the forest, hearing the birds singing and water streaming down the river Swalm, you almost forget the primary reason why you came here :)) The great thing about the pension Groenewoud is that they got a kitchen downstairs, so that you can cook your own food.


But since the pension Groenewoud is 3 kilometers away from the Swalmen train station, and you have to ride 10 kilometers more to get to the Golden Time, and no bus is running that long road from Swalmen to Brüggen (Bosstraat - Kamerickshof), you will need to rent a bicycle. It costs only 8 € per day

So, where to rent a bike?

1. Roermond train station. As you have the building of Roermond train station on your left, keep on walking along the station building, you will spot some kind of storage filled with piled up bicycles : here you are. They ask you 50€ deposit.

2. Jurgens fietsen

Besselseweg 37, 6071 PL, Swalmen

Also 8 € per day. Facing the direction of travel and coming from Roermond, it's on your left as you get down from the train, a 10 minutes walk from the Swalmen station. Normally he asks for 25 € deposit, but the guy trusts me as I rented innumerable times at his place and always bring the bicycle on time and in good state, so he no longer asks me for a deposit. The only downside is that he doesn't speak english, only dutch and german. Besides he's closed on mondays, at lunch break and after 6 pm.


On the pictures below you will see the itinerary from Pension Groenewoud to both clubs.


The route from pension Groenewoud to YY (10.2 km South East)




The route from pension Groenewoud to GT (10.6 km West)



I checked on the chronometer and it's exactly a 40 minutes ride for both clubs. The road to Brüggen is perfectly safe and bike friendly, thanks to the bicycle path running along the road L373. You may get a preview of the ride thanks to this 30 seconds video clip I uploaded on Youtube :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qVB0OapWkK0

Sorry for the bad quality, it's been shot with a cell phone.

Since 3 years I've been spending my holidays in that habour of peace, every summer I book 3 or 4 nights and I enjoy the leafy surroundings as well as club visits. I'm free to choose which club I want to visit, YY or GT, without the hassle of catching buses, trains, wasting money on taxi rides.

Hope this helps !

Farid, I feel duty bound to say thank you for that most specific info, perhaps the most detailed piece of research I have read on this board to date!

Thank you Marcelo !

More details about the road from Groenewoud Swalmen to the Golden Time

With the Pension Groenewoud as a departure point, here below, follow this woodpath straight ahead until the intersection with Bosstraat



Google indicates the Pension Groenewoud at the wrong place, see the point of departure on this map :



After 500 meters (600 yards) you will stumble on Cafe Herberg de Bos,



Follow this bicycle lane straight ahead, straight ahead, for 8 km (6 miles) long, until you get out of the wood.

As you exit from the forest, the road L373 crosses the road B221 perpendicularly, you will see a traffic light ---> turn left.

Again 2 kilometers along the B221, here you are : Sauna club Golden Time

Presumably you've done this at night as well? Do the bikes have lights? Is the bike path lit?

The bike path is lit on the Dutch side only, not on the German side. There are no more street lamps as you cross the German border.

But no worries : the bikes for rent are always backed up with dynamo powered lighting.

Hi Farid,

Thank you for this recommendation. But what about the cock a doodle do! Do they provide you with locks for the hired bike. I found it a bit frightening cycling back along the cycle path at night in the pitch dark from Bruggen. I do feel club YY has declined though I went with one of your fellow countrywomen, a black girl called Michelle, who was great.