Culture beat: 10 April

It’s all the fun of the fair as circus festival Hopla! rolls into town for its annual spring rendezvous, 13 to 19 April. The 9th edition of the event is setting up its big top in Place Sainte-Catherine. Aimed at all ages, the programme includes shows by professional companies plus circus skill initiation workshops. New this year is a tour of five areas of the city by Bardaf Circu with a show combining acrobatics, tightrope walking, juggling and trapeze.

The American Theatre Company encourages new talent via its Café Theatre series of cabaret entertainment. The next event on 15 to 18 April includes a debut production of Acoustics, winner of ATC's play writing contest, plus comedy by ATC Improv and its resident troupe, The Ghost Sheep. At Peit Théâtre Mercelis in Ixelles. Tickets €10, dinner + show €25.

Family days out across Belgium

Plopsa Indoor Hasselt, the family park in Limburg province, is open all year. New attractions include Mayaland (meet Maya the bee and her friend Flip) plus weekend shows by Flemish singers. Five colourful princesses from the Flemish TV show Prinsessia also make an appearance. Tickets €9.99-18.50.

Bellewaerde is an adventure park near Ypres, West Flanders. A €4million investment this year is the Gold Rush Stunt & Dive Show which transports visitors to a 19th-century gold mine. The 4D cinema is screening the adventure of the Little Prince and don’t miss a new bird of prey demonstration from the lake bridge. Tickets €22-30.

Bobbejaanland in Lichtaart, Antwerp province has a new attraction The Forbidden Caves opening 1 May. Visitors are taken on a multisensory journey through underground grottoes thanks to a high-tech animation film. €24-34.

Plopsa Coo is a park for all ages near Stavelot, Liège province. Opening this summer is the latest attraction, Dino Splash. Consisting of three different toboggans, the sound and light experience is a €2 million investment. €2.50-25

Walibi, just outside Wavre, in Brabant Walloon, has installed a super-fast toboggan in its water park Aqualibi and a 4D short animation Tempo Attack to celebrate its 40th birthday. During the Easter holidays there’s a daily egg hunt for children three to 12. €25-35

15 Plopsaland De Panne on the Belgian coast, has just opened a water park, Plopsaqua. The 4,000m2 complex consists of three swimming pools, six toboggans, plus water cannons and other aquatic features. Each park has a separate entrance, but you can buy a combined ticket: €18.50 (Plopsaqua); €35 (Plopsaland).

Among other family attractions now open for the season are three animal parks:

Monde sauvage, south of Liège, has a new bear canyon. Tickets €10-27.

Grottes de Han is a multi-themed attraction in Namur province. With the addition of a pair of wolverines, its wildlife reserve now boasts Europe’s ‘big five’ mammals which also includes the lynx, bear, bison and wolf. €17-27

Pairi Daiza, north of Mons in the Hainaut province, already attracts crowds thanks to the arrival of a pair of pandas from China last year. It is currently installing a steam train and during the Easter holidays, a Cambodian temple village, complete with panthers, opens its doors. €22-27.