Located at the southern tip of Holland, Maastricht is well placed: next door to Liège and Aachen; two hours south of Amsterdam; and between Brussels and Düsseldorf, Luxembourg and Antwerp. Every year the forces of European art descend on the quiet town for the European Fine Art Fair (TEFAF), the most refined such event on the Continent. Here’s your insider’s guide to where to sleep, eat, drink and play.

Go:

TEFAF

WHAT: The grande dame of fine-art and antiques fairs, with more than 230 dealers and thousands of museum-quality works; best known for its Old Masters but also offering furniture, decorative arts and even some contemporary work.
WHEN: March 13–22, 2009.
WHERE: Maastricht Exhibition & Congress Centre, the Netherlands.
HIGHLIGHTS: The glam invitation-only preview party takes place on March 12. • Taking part for the first time this year are Galerie Boulakia (Paris), Haunch of Venison (London) and Yves Macaux (Brussels), all dealing in modern art; and Kraemer Antiquaire (Paris) and David & Constance Yates (New York), in the antiques section. In addition, seven young galleries will participate as part of TEFAF Showcase. • The Weiss Gallery of London will display the recently rediscovered Anthony van Dyck painting Saint Sebastian Bound for Martyrdom, circa 1622–23, which is priced around $8.9 million. • Hauser & Wirth will offer recent works by Louise Bourgeois. • Coinciding with TEFAF are programs of music and dance, including Raimund Hoghe’s Sacre—the Rite of Spring, choreographed to Stravinsky, on March 13, and Jazz Masters Maastricht, on March 20–22. • The food and service at Brasserie Fifth Avenue at the fair gets better and more efficient each year.
tefaf.com

Fly: OPENSKIES
There are daily flights between New York and Amsterdam on this business- and premium-class airline.
flyopenskies.com

Stay: CHÂTEAU ST. GERLACH
Heads of state and royals passing through the southern Netherlands prefer this grand château with 112 rooms and suites five miles outside Maastricht. Its elaborate gardens are popular with TEFAF-goers who want to shift gears after a day at the fair. “It’s nice to just get out of Maastricht, to have some change of scenery and some air,” says Sperone Westwater director David Leiber. The spa, indoor pool and two restaurants are incentives too.
1 Joseph Corneli Allee, Valkenburg aan de Geul
31-43/608-8888
RATES: $280–$540
chateauhotels.nl

GALERIE HOTEL DIS
Tucked away on a cobblestone street near a picturesque main square, Onze Lieve Vrouweplein, this charming six-room guesthouse has an art gallery on the bottom floor and provides a hearty breakfast in a breathtaking room with a Gothic vaulted ceiling.
28 Tafelstr.
31-43/361-7186
RATES: $180–$210
hoteldis.nl

HOTEL DERLON
In the lounge at this sleekly designed and centrally located 42-room property, European collectors sheathed in designer black sip cocktails over backlit, cube-shaped tables. London Old Masters dealer Johnny Van Haeften says he always has dinner at the hotel’s popular Dutch-French restaurant, Zes, “because it has a great chef and first-class food.” Ask about rooms in the overflow annex next door, Hotel Twee.
6 Onze Lieve Vrouweplein
31-43/321-6770
RATES: $260–$300
derlon.com

HOTEL LES CHARMES
An affordable, little-known hotel located in an 18th-century landmark building in the city’s center, les Charmes has 15 guest rooms decorated with antiques and oil portraits.
18 Lenculenstr.
31-43/321-7400
RATES: $165–$185
hotellescharmes.nl

KRUISHERENHOTEL
Although on the smaller side, each of the 60 rooms in this dramatic hotel (a former 15th-century monastery) has its own mural, as well as an interior by the renowned Dutch designer Henk Vos. William Noortman—son of one of the TEFAF founders and director of the famous local gallery Noortman Master Paintings, now owned by Sotheby’s—sends friends and collectors here during the fair. In the main res-taurant and in a magical inner courtyard are light installations by the German artist Ingo Maurer, including “UFO” chandeliers.
19–23 Kruisherengang
31-43/329-2020
RATES: $260–$500
chateauhotels.nl