London to Bruges

Well, I haven’t done that — never actually considered it. My Bruges (or Brugge) visit was for several days and nights, as part of a greater Belgium trip. My day trips from London have all been kept to other places in England. I’ve also taken a train or plane from London to another country, reaching that country that same day, but didn’t return to London that same day as well.

Are you considering a round-trip Eurostar train journey, along with a round-trip Brussels-to-Bruges connection? Or a round-trip flight between London and Belgium, with land travel thrown in? Anything’s possible, if you have the desire and the money. But I wouldn’t even try it in a single day ... how would you have any time to even see any of Bruges in that day?

Bruges/Brugge is in Belgium. You have to cross the channel to get there.

The faster way to go is to take the Eurostar train via Brussels to Bruges. Then reverse to get back to London.

Currently, the schedule appears to leave St. Pancras at about 11:00 and arrives in Bruges at about 15:30, local time. The return train heads right back to London at about 16:00, so you'd have to spend at least one night.

Having spent a week in Bruges the last time I was there, and considering the train schedule, I think you'd actually need to spend 2 nights, with the full day between them to explore the city adequately.

Keep in mind that you will be leaving the UK to go to the EU. Brussels is one hour ahead of London. You'll also be facing border controls and changing currencies.

So, no, it's not a realistic day trip, or even overnight one, IMHO.

Take a look at Rome2rio.com
(https://www.rome2rio.com/) to get a hint of the transportation options and the time involved for your planned travel dates.
Those should be pretty close to right. The costs won't be.

I'm going to assume that you're keeping up with any Covid-19 issues related to travel between England and Belgium.

Francis,

A day trip from London to Bruges is not possible due to the distance and travel times involved. Getting to Bruges is going to take the better part of a day. Keep in mind that you have to get to London St. Pancras in lots of time to board the Eurostar and go through airport style security. You'll also clear passport control there. You'll first arrive in Brussels and will then have to change trains to get to Bruges. Total travel time will be at least 3H:26M. Travel by air will take longer, when all is considered.

Keep in mind that current timetables for the Eurostar are NOT what you’ll find when it is possible to visit UK and Europe again as a tourist.

Due to current restrictions and a lack of demand, there is only one train a day between the continent and the UK in each direction (well, there may be one each for Paris and for Brussels, but in any event, nothing at all like the regular schedule).

Keep in mind when planning too that Bruges is an hour later than London. That plays into the length of time you have as well.

Kim

The direct train to Brussels then the local line to Bruges takes at least 3.5 hours plus you need to allow an hour in each direction for checking in. Unless you are staying very close to St Pancras, allow an hour to get to get there, as you will be travelling in rush hour. So that’s about 6 hours door to door each way, so as others have said, it’s not possible as a day trip from London.

There should be more train services a day once Covid restrictions are lifted than are currently shown.

Why Bruges? It’s a pleasant place, but there are lots of pleasant places that are easier to get to from London. Lille in France is easier to get to (direct train) and is a charming place. York or Bath in England etc.

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/belgium/bruges-to-london-by-train

Post-Brexit (and Post-Covid), it might be expected that border formalities will be slower, and the rail company may require an even earlier check-in before each departure.

Most people are missing the best London-Bruges connection, which is London to Lille via Eurostar (hour and a half plus check in time); then rent and drive to Bruges (another hour and a half). Avoids waiting for train connections. Three hours total.

This is the way I did it a few years ago and it worked very well. Can park easily and affordably at Bruges train station.

There are also local trains from Lille to Bruges with one change in around 1,5 hours. But no matter what mode of transport you choose, you can't escape the fact that it will take over 3 hours to get there.

So is a day trip possible? Yes, but it would only be a short visit. And the more important questions is "is it worth it?". My answer to the 2nd question is no, but others might have different opinions.

Thanks for all the responces. Re-thinking now that it might be better to fly in to Bruges, stay a few days, then take a day of travel to get to our main destination London. FlixBus to Dunkerque (2 hrs by bus), ferry to Dover (2 hrs), then train to London (65 minutes). Time wise it would be a long day, but the maps are showing its only about 160 miles. We're planning for 2023. Edit.... Huh... looks like we will have to take a ferry from Calais, as the ones from Dunkirk/Dover DON'T ALLOW foot passingers: Thats freaken weird. :)

there is only one ferry company (of the several) - pre-Brexit and pre-covid- at Dover/Calais that accepted foot passengers. They made it hard for them too. There is absolutely no way on God's little green apple for anybody to know if that one remaining foot service will remain in 2 years. The ferries are almost exclusively for trucks, with a few cars for holiday-makers and anybody left with a British passport and a second home in France, and a very few foot passengers.

If you want to cross the Channel take the Eurostar train from either Brussels or Lille direct to St Pancras International station in London.

Cobbling together buses, taxis, walking, ferry, walking or taxi ( a long way), train is asking for an unhappy day. Take it from a frequent Channel crosser.

Yep. Eurostar can't be beat. And its not expensive if you buy in advance.

I would only take a ferry if an uncomfortable day on a poorly-appointed ship is part of the draw. I took train-ferry from London-Holyhead-Dublin once. ONCE. I will never do that again.

Re-thinking now that it might be better to fly in to Bruges, stay a
few days, then take a day of travel to get to our main destination
London. FlixBus to Dunkerque (2 hrs by bus), ferry to Dover (2 hrs),
then train to London

Can't help wondering how the OP plans to fly into Bruges from the US. Hopefully she means Brussels, then a train to Bruges. And the plan for bus, ferry and train (and taxis in between?) just makes no sense when the train (Eurostar) is so much easier.

I remember taking the ferry from Dover to Calais once; long before the Channel Tunnel was completed. What a completely miserable experience that was. Even with a double dose of Dramamine.

One can fly to Oostend-Bruges (OST) which is only a few miles out side Bruges, though Brussels, then train to Bruges, makes more sense. Disappointed in the foot traffic ferry situation. Strange that they don't have e-scooter rentals as an option. :) Thank you Nigel for the insights on changing travel habits. That sort of first hand info is what I value on this site. Thought it would be fun to experience crossing OVER the English Channel, rougher the better - I like boats, and would love to experience a little of what people experienced before the tunnel. Should have researched a bit more before the first post - and mentioned sans car. It looked so easy on the maps, but after more study, it just gets more and more complicated.. As they say in New England, USA, "Ya can't get ther'r from he'rer." :) We'll save Bruges for another trip.

Francis, you’d probably want several days, not just a day trip from the mainland, but how about a visit by boat to Jersey and/or Guernsey in the Channel?

Wonderful suggestion Cyn. If it was just me, I'd be there. Thing is, i need to balance the cost and interests between my wife and i. Bruges was a good place because it has boat activity - for me, and historically it was a center of the fabric arts - for her. Bruges is a Win Win. Always looking for the same place: Boats and Fabric. Oddly, they do seem to go together historically around the world. Last trip to Lyon was great for me. I got boats on the river, and being a computer nerd, programmable looms, and she got to see and experience the Red Cross District and the Fabric museums. It was a wonderful trip. Trying to plan for a '23 trip based around London with day trips. Odd that each time, in our case, the eighth time to Europe, it gets harder and not easier. :)

where are you looking for e-scooters?

Francis, as I was reading your “boats and fabric” part at the beginning, I immediately thought of Lyon, before I got to your mention of Lyon. That truly had to be an exponential Win-Win! We rented bicycles (not e-bikes) one trip, and pedaled around the park in the lower town, which gave Lyon a bit of the bike focus you’ll find throughout Belgium.

When you make it to Bruges, Kortrijk (Courtrai in French) is another nearby location worth a visit. Situated along the Leie River, it was the epicenter of the Linen trade for a long time.