Advance booking of sites in Bruges

For climbing Belfort, there's a machine at the base of complex where you purchase tickets for selected time/s. Sometimes that same day is full, but usually there's no problem securing a time for the following day. I would check it the morning of your first full day and you should have no problem. Be warned, those carillons are LOUD when you're at the tippy-top. Definitely woke a few people up the morning we climbed the stairs. :)

Regarding DeHalve Maan Brewery, we didn't book in advance, rather we just arrived ~20 minutes ahead of the last (16:00) english-speaking tour on a Wednesday [also in September] and there were maybe 10-12 other folks waiting. Not sure over which days (of week) your two-day itinerary falls, if it's over a weekend it might be wise to pre-book [ www.halvemaan.be ].

No need to pre-book Church of our Lady. Once you enter the church (free), it's then €8 to access the various naves, tombs and artwork, including 'Madonna and Child' side chapel.

Have a great trip!

Thanks, Matt. This is all good to know. We're arriving mid-afternoon on Monday and we'll be in Bruges all day Tuesday and Wednesday, so we have options for the bell tower. I appreciate the warning about the carillon!

You'll want good weather for the tower, so wait. There's no view in the rain.
We did book the brewery in advance ( spring) and it seemed pretty busy. It is a fun tour, with a live guide.
Have a great trip!

We were in Bruges in May and it was magical! I did book everything in advance; I bought a Musea Bruge Card and then booked my time slots using that as payment. The MBcard doesn’t get activated until you actually use it for the first time and I think it’s good for 72 hours. We went to the 366 step Belfort, the Groeningemuseum and the Church of our Lady. You can actually book several time slots, but cannot delete or change a time slot once it is booked. This prescheduling gave me a plan for the day, which I like to have in advance (and May is crowded). We also did the DeHalve Brewery tour, which was great! Lots of stairs to climb during the tour, so be aware. You get a free beer afterwards, so I had booked lunch in their cafe for after the tour so we could enjoy the beer with a meal. The food was very good there too.
There is a free shuttle from the train station to city central. The number of chocolate shoppes is astounding, and the smell emanating from them is wonderful! The canal boat cruise is definitely something you should do. We had a terrific city personal tour with Patrick from City Compass tours; he might be referenced in the RS book - I know he has done some videos for RS. He also does food tours. Great pub food and 400 beer selection at Cambrinus; excellent Flemish food at DeGastro. I had reservations at both.

The tourist office folks told me the only thing on the €33, 72-hour tourist card that needs to be prebooked is the belfry climb. I covered a bunch of other places yesterday and found that to be accurate. The card, which did save me money, doesn't cover the brewery tour or canal-boat ride.

The only things I pre-booked were a free walking tour and the brewery tour, but for both of those the “pre” was either the day before or the morning of. For the Belfort, I arrived close to opening time & was able to go right up…and that was on a holiday weekend. I really loved all three of those experiences. Bruges is great place to just wander and take in the beauty (with plenty of stops for chocolate, waffles, beer, and frites), especially in the evening when the crowds have thinned out and all the buildings are lit up. As others have mentioned, the museum pass is a great deal and makes it easy to pop into sites as you come across them. Enjoy your trip!