Amsterdam, Bruges and Ghent Itinerary Question

It could be cold and windy in March. There is no need to change hotels if you just want to see Ghent. Most unreserved local train rides in this area are around an hour, and there are five or more trains per daylight hour. Only issue might be your credit cards in the station ticket-selling machine, so have a second card to try.

I personally love Antwerp, but I don't mean to push your itinerary one way or the other. You could save a train trip by flying home from Brussels, if that suits your home air routing. May have to change trains in Brussels to get to the airport, but there are plenty of those trains too. Note that every trip to Bruges is a "spur" from Brussels or Antwerp. You can't, realistically, ride one train from Amsterdam to Bruges.

Don't forget to buy advance tickets to the Anne Frank House and the Mystic Lamb (in Ghent). Also maybe the biggest art museums in Amsterdam.

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/the-netherlands-belgium-april-2024-brought-the-rain-pants-needed-the-rain-pants

Spend the nights in charming Bruges. Ghent is only a 30 minute train ride .
Also, consider staying in Haarlem and/or Leiden if you find Amsterdam Lodging too expensive. We loved both those towns.

Hopefully my recent Trip Report will include some helpful info. You are in for a treat in this delightful area. Safe travels!

We liked Ghent (and Bruges). We felt that both Ghent and Bruges are a bit annoying in terms of logistics. We had traveled from Amsterdam to Bruges and noted we passed Ghent on the way. The historical areas of both Ghent and Bruges are more than an easy walk from the train station. So, the day we "daytripped" from Bruges to Ghent, we took a bus to the Bruges train station, took the train to Ghent, took a bus to the Ghent historic center and then the reverse to go back to Bruges.

We are rather efficient travelers. We do carry on only and packing cubes, it takes us no time to transfer accommodations, Hence for us, we wished we had stayed one night in an inexpensive hotel near the Ghent train station, visited Ghent historic center, picked up luggage at the Ghent hotel and then take the train to Bruges.

Folks think changing hotels is a time suck and sometimes it is. But, by stopping in Ghent on the way to Bruges, we would have eliminated 2 of the bus trips, and saved some money. Likely accommodations near the Ghent train station are less expensive than the place we found in Bruges. The bus rides weren't long, but they were crowded and sometimes a longish wait for the bus.

jules m, thank you very much for your important and perhaps less frequently expressed travel ideas. I agree that it's probably easier to find inexpensive lodgings in Ghent than in Bruges, especially near the train station or otherwise "away" from the historic center. However, I DON'T like changing hotels, or touring with my luggage. I have walked from the Ghent train station to the historic area at least twice, and it wasn't a bad walk without luggage, in good weather. I have also walked back to the train station in Bruges, twice.

Bruges is an incredibly popular, high traffic, high-daytripper city. But most posters on this newsboard seem to find it the most beautiful and romantic medieval city on the planet! So they can't spend enough nights there, to get a few hours without the daytrippers especially. I actually was taking those comments into account when I supported not sleeping in Ghent.

I also based my suggestion on many weeks I've spent in Antwerp, taking a few daytrips by train every week. These links reflect that, but again, I'm not criticising the OP's particular plans and preferences.

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/belgium/day-trips-from-brussels-768c7c85-75b9-4374-ad13-ae36967bc521

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/belgium/day-trips-from-brussels-besides-bruges-and-ghent

@Tim,I have never stayed in a hotel that wouldn't store my luggage, and I've never schlepped my luggage around while siteseeing. My plan would have been to pick up the luggage on the way back to the train station. Also, I should have also mentioned that staying in Ghent would eliminate two legs of a train ride.

I have no skin in the game, but if you go back to the original query, the OP did ask about spending 2 nights in Bruges and 1 in Ghent so I provided my perspective. I do know that the widespread opinion on the forum is that it takes time to make a hotel change, but we have found in many situations that not changing hotels created back tracking thus increasing the in transit time and decreasing available time for sightseeing.

Yes, Bruges is wonderful, we loved it. We stayed 5 nights. And one reason why we sometimes change hotels more often than others do is because we do like to spend evenings and mornings in certain cities. For, example, on our upcoming trip to Puglia, we are spending at least 3 nights in five different cities. Some would probably just pick two, however, these cities are so atmospheric, we would like the opportunity to see them at the "golden hour" or in the early mornings.

We have also walked between the train station to Bruges city center, twice, because of the less than ideal frequency of the almost always full buses. The walk in Bruges to city center is attractive. The walk from the Ghent train station to the historic center is fine, though not particularly attractive.

There is more than one way to achieve travel goals.

In Bruges, there is a Centrum bus that is free, operates 7days a week, 7am-7pm, every. 20 minutes, and does a loop from the train station to the old town. We found it to run on schedule and be quite convenient.
Have a great time.

I like the option of staying in Bruges for the 3 nights. I loved Bruges and was not a fan of Ghent. Everyone likes different things. The forum would be pretty boring if we all had the same opinions. :-)

I suggest watching some you tube videos of Ghent and Bruges and see which appeals to you.

My trip report might give you some ideas:

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/solo-in-the-netherlands-and-belgium-my-trip-report

Thanks, Tim, Pat, Carrie and Jules! I truly do appreciate all of your perspectives! I have been to Amsterdam/Bruges before but it has been about 8 years and for a shorter duration of time so grateful for your suggestions.

Still going to mull it over a bit - but I think my original plan with the three nights in Bruges with the day trip to Ghent likely may work best for us. We are keeping our larger luggage in Amsterdam at the hotel and only traveling with a small carry-on size bag for ease of travel.

Tim - I hear you on Anne Frank House - I already have a calendar notice set!

Thanks again all. I wouldn't dream of finalizing a trip without the sage advice of fellow travelers.

I think that either of the two options you mentioned, day trip to Ghent from Bruges or one night in Ghent after Bruges, would work out fine. As mentioned, some people find switching towns/hotels more inconvenient than others do. My two comments are: (1) If you decide to spend a night in Ghent, I would stay in the historic center, not out by the train station. There are lots of good restaurants in the center and I enjoyed walking around the center at night. (2) With only one day Ghent, if you want to see the Ghent alter, be sure to reserve a time that fits your schedule, especially if you are daytripping. It probably won't be a problem in March, but that was a highlight for me that I would not want to miss.

FYI
If you're going to the Corrie ten Boom House in Haarlem, get your free tickets asap. The info in the RS Guide is outdated.
Carrie, I agree with you on Bruges. I'm considering ordering some Belgium chocolate for the holidays, tho the shipping is expensive......hmmmmmm.....

We stayed in Haarlem, too, and really liked it there. We were also sad to not get into the Ten Boom House, but there have an amazing website to check out.

The tram from the Ghent train station to the tourist center is out of commision for three years. You would have to catch a shuttle bus or a taxi with your luggage.

From the Ghent Sint Pieters train station to the city center, we took the P4 bus. We were just there this last April, 2024, and this was a tip an OP here shared with us.
Have a great trip. Safe travels.