Picturesque and peaceful: Laurens van Hoepen on his hometown

Currently the third-highest ranked rookie in the 2024 Drivers’ Championship standings, Laurens van Hoepen has already impressed so far this season in the two Rounds so far.

The ART Grand Prix driver is the latest to give us the lowdown on his hometown from the best spots to eat to the ideal places to go. Get to know van Hoepen a little bit better ahead of Round 3 and Imola.

WHERE DID YOU GROW UP?

“So I grew up and first lived in Belgium for a little while and then moved to Rotterdam before moving to where my family is now which is pretty close to The Hague. I’d say that is home now.”

WHAT LANGAUGES ARE SPOKEN THERE?

“Dutch.”

HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE IT TO SOMEONE?

“It’s super beautiful, very close to the beach. The nature there is very nice, there’s not much to do though. You can go to cities which are quite close but in the little town itself there’s not so much to do. There’s a very, very nice golf course there though which is nice to go to. You can play tennis or play other sports too.”

WHAT WOULD YOU RECOMMEND TO SOMEONE VISITING FOR THE FIRST TIME?

“Probably to go to the beach. Not to swim but just for a walk, the walk to the beach is very nice. But the beach itself and the sea, I wouldn’t go in!”

WHERE WOULD YOU GO FOR FOOD?

“When I go there from Rotterdam, there’s this restaurant quite close to the last exit I have to take and it’s an Indonesian place, and it’s super nice, I really, really like to go there. It’s not necessarily a secret or a hotspot, but people do know about it. My go to I would say is seasame chicken, satay, also salt and pepper fish, which is really nice.”

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WHERE WOULD WE GO FOR KARTING?

“Everything is quite far in the Netherlands and not everything is great track-wise but probably Bergham. It’s a track in the South, quite technical, quite nice to drive. Sometimes I go there still for a drive and I always enjoy it.”