Looser Low Emission Zone (LEZ) in Flanders allows the Antwerp Classic Car Event (ACCE) to return to its roots at the Cockerill Quay on the borders of the Scheldt River in the Antwerp city center on 3 and 4 May of this year.
Some 15,000 car enthusiasts are expected to come and see some 1,000 classic cars and GTs that were banned from Antwerp due to the LEZ, but are allowed now after one-time registration. Can’t say it fits the objectives of a low-emission zone, nor does the following Tour Amical, but as it is a one-time event each year, the impact is considered relatively low.
In May last year, the Flemish government approved an exemption to the region’s LEZs for classic cars older than 30 under certain conditions. This exemption allows access to every low-emission zone in Flanders, including the low-emission zone of Antwerp and Ghent, but it is not valid for Brussels, where different rules apply. Registration is one–time and free, and foreign classic cars can apply for an exemption for five years.
Start of Tour Amical 2025
The ACCE yearly event is the official start of the Tour Amical 2025 (the ‘Friendly Tour’), in which some 320 classic cars are expected to be loaded on trucks and headed for Vienna for a seven-day tour that will bring them to Monaco at the French Côte d’Azur. The drivers will rejoin their cars a few days later, taking a chartered flight to Vienna.
It started in 2001 when some friends decided they needed some ‘reflection,’ which they thought they would find best by touring with their classic cars along scenic routes and to a sun-drenched destination: Tarifa in the Spanish province of Cádiz, Andalusia. From initially five vehicles, the Tour Amical has grown to 250 participating teams today.
From Vienna to Monaco
This year’s Tour Amical journey begins in Vienna, the city of emperors and classical music, before continuing to charming Graz. From Austria, they head to Ljubljana in Slovenia, followed by an impressive trip through the Dolomites on their way to San Martino Di Castrozza at Lake Come in Italy.
The tour continues along Lake Como and Portofino to finally reach Monaco’s iconic coastline, where they will spend their last evening. The cars are getting back by truck again, and their drivers are getting back by plane. That has a price of € 4,290 per person in the participating classic car, half-board hotel formula, flights, and car transport included.
Free for the general public
On the other hand, the Antwerp Classic Car Event is free for the general public, who will be welcomed at the renewed Cockeril Quay in Antwerp on May 3 and 4. Next to the loading of the Tour Amica cars, the ACCE is organizing the 9th edition of the Antwerp Classic & GT Tour, a one-day tour that is open to both old–timers (built until 1994) and newer GT cars.
In the GT class, they hope to welcome car types like Porsche, Lamborghini, Ferrari, etc. The day tour takes place on both Saturday and Sunday, with departure and arrival on the stage of the ACCE and drives along scenic roads through Flanders.
Comments
Ready to join the conversation?
You must be an active subscriber to leave a comment.
Subscribe Today