Our history

The Fish

It is our pleasure to tell you a bit more about the story of Hotel Vé. Let’s start at where you are right now: the old fish smokehouse. You will find many aspects in our lounge that make it clear which product used to play the main role here.

Until 2003, this building was used as a fish wholesale company. That’s why today, this part of Hotel Vé is still called ‘De Vis’ (The Fish). Here, fish were pickled and smoked. Can you imagine the amount of fish this building has seen and the smells the building has endured? In 2005, renovations began to give the old fish smokehouse a new purpose and transform it into Hotel Vé where the first 37 rooms and the ‘De Vis’ meeting room on the third floor came into being. In 2006, we welcomed our first guests. This is how the story of Hotel Vé began.

As you step through the corridor towards the stairs, you will see a large piece of artwork by Luc Verschueren. He called it ‘De Voeten van De Maan’ (The Moon’s Feet).

The artwork symbolises the moon’s last rays that can be used in case the Mechelen inhabitants would try to extinguish the moon by mistake. ‘It is my dream that all the people would come to see these rays, just as they would go to Brussels to see Manneken Pis,’ Luc Verschueren said.

Going up the stairs towards the rooms, you walk through the old chimney or smoker where fish were hung and smoked. An engine was used to lift the fish to the top and the fire was lit at the bottom, letting the fish bathe in the smoke resulted in delicious smoked fish. You can find the engine on the 2nd floor at the top of the stairs. In the hotel and in the rooms, the chimney can be seen through the black painted walls to remind you of its previous function.

To find the next QR code, just walk on to the meeting room 'De Sigaar' (The Cigar) on the ground floor.