Hasselt Scouts Meet King Filip and Queen Mathilde on Camp Hike
A group of scouts from Hasselt received the surprise of a lifetime when they unexpectedly crossed paths with King Filip and Queen Mathilde during a hike at their summer camp in the Belgian Ardennes. The royal couple, who were staying at their summer residence nearby, encountered the young campers on a country road near Han-sur-Lesse on July 23.
The scouts from Scouts SMAF (Sint-Michiel / Anne Frank) in Hasselt were on a trek during their summer camp in Wallonia when they spotted the royal couple walking hand in hand in the distance. According to VRT NWS, the encounter was entirely unexpected and left the group both startled and delighted.
A Coincidental Meeting in the Woods
“We were just quietly walking in the forest when we suddenly saw the king and queen walking in the distance,” scout guides Lucy Snoekx and Nina Vos, both 17, recalled. “It really felt very coincidental. They were also just taking a quiet walk and were walking hand in hand.”
What began as shock quickly turned to excitement. “Everyone was very startled and surprised, but soon the enthusiasm took over,” the guides told VRT NWS. “You don’t expect to be able to encounter them. So it was really very special to meet them.”
The encounter took place near the Château de Ciergnon, the royal family’s summer residence located close to Han-sur-Lesse in the province of Namur. The estate, owned by the Royal Trust and spanning 3,600 hectares, is not open to the public and serves as the royal family’s private retreat, where walking is noted as one of the couple’s favorite pastimes.
A Friendly Chat and a Group Photo
After the initial excitement, Lucy and Nina gathered their courage and struck up a conversation with the royal couple. A group photo was taken, with one of the king’s bodyguards behind the camera. As TVL, the regional broadcaster for Limburg, reported, the girls joked that “if we didn’t have a photo to prove it, nobody would believe us.”
The scouts were struck by how approachable the royals were. “They actually came across as very ordinary, while for us they are of course not ordinary people,” Lucy and Nina said. “That was quite a shock. Once you talk to them, they are just very friendly people.”
An Unforgettable Memory
The encounter has left a deep impression on the young campers. “We will really never forget this,” Lucy said. “When we recognized them, we all started shouting very loudly. That must have been funny for them too. It’s so special to be able to experience this with the scout girls.”
When asked whether the group photo would be framed and hung in the scout hall, the guides laughed: “We hadn’t thought about that yet, but that’s certainly a nice idea.”
A Royal Summer Retreat
The Château de Ciergnon has served as the royal family’s summer residence for nearly two centuries. Originally acquired by King Leopold I as a hunting estate, the current neo-Gothic castle was designed by Alphonse Balat, who later designed the greenhouses of Laeken. As VRT NWS reported in a background feature, the estate holds deep personal significance for the royal family: King Baudouin found refuge there during World War II and continued his scout activities at the nearby castle farm of Villers-sur-Lesse, and the four children of King Filip and Queen Mathilde were baptized in the castle’s chapel.
King Filip has been the “castle lord” for 12 years, since ascending to the throne in 2013. The royal family typically spends weekends and holidays at Ciergnon, enjoying the privacy and natural beauty of the secluded estate. The castle was recently in the news in June 2026 when the Japanese Emperor and Empress stayed there during their state visit to Belgium.
A Story That Resonates
The story of the Hasselt scouts’ chance encounter with the royal couple has captured the hearts of Belgians, with coverage appearing across national and regional media. The teen news platform nws.nws.nws was among the first to report the story, highlighting how the young campers’ experience turned an ordinary summer camp hike into an unforgettable royal moment.
For the scouts of SMAF Hasselt, the memory of that July afternoon in the Ardennes will undoubtedly be a story they tell for years to come — proof that even the most unexpected encounters can become the most treasured ones.