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belgian coast: Middelkerke: attractions
The rotonde
The unique Grand Hotel Bellevue was the first and the most extreme example of the new rational formprinciples of the architect Octave van Rysselberghe (1855-1929). He designed a rectangular building with a semi-circle addition on the east side of the building.
The reconstruction method was state of the art: a skeleton of reinforced concrete was covered with slate the grating of which being painted in contrasting colours. You could recognize the lay-out of the interior from the outside. Each room had a loggia and the staircases were indicated by using high window features.
The circular interior in Belle Epoque style, is still greatly admired by many visitors. This impressive building, dating from 1911, survived World War I thanks to the - at that time - unique construction material, re-inforced concrete.
It used to be a luxury hotel with quite exceptional accommodation. During the interbellum period, many members of the Belgian royal family spent their holidays there.
In 1983 the building was listed as a monument. Today the building consists of two sections: the Bellevue residence and the Rotonde beachhotel.
Zeedijk 300, 8430 Westende