Antwerp or Leuven??

I've spent more time in (actually, near) Leuven than any other city in Belgium. That being said, if you're staying in Ghent, I don't think a trip to Leuven will add anything for you. Like Ghent, it has a very large university population. However, for the average tourist, there isn't really enough to see or do to occupy a full day. It's also significantly smaller than Ghent, although I wouldn't describe it as "cozy" either. If you're within a few years of college age, hanging out at one of the Oude Markt on a warm night when university is in session could be a memorable experience... but you can find the same kind of scene in Ghent. Antwerp, being a large port/industrial city, is very different from both. Not cozy at all, think more along the lines of big and slightly gritty. Personally, I find the Grote Markt here the most impressive in all of the low countries, even more so than Brussels' more famous example. The towering late-Gothic cathedral is also one of the more under-rated churches in Europe. Being a port city, it also has somewhat of a reputation for vice (my favorite European TV show, the excellent police drama Zone Stadt, is set here for good reason). If you only have a day, I would probably choose Antwerp.

I've been to Ghent and Antwerp. If I had to pick one to have dinner it would totally be Ghent. Ghent is very cute and charming. Antwerp is gray and dirty. We were in both cities back in November. I took a side trip to Antwerp from Ghent and left after 3 hours as it was doing nothing for me. We did the Rubins house and the Rockox museum, both, in my opinion slightly on the blah side. Instead of eating in Antwerp, we just got back on the train so we could enjoy more time in Ghent. I found Brussels more charming than Antwerp. Just my opinion though, I know there are many who frequent this forum who are Antwerp lovers...I am just not one of them.

Look, Ghent has the Ghent Altarpiece, one of the most important pieces of art in Europe. It's a lovely town, with even more culture than Leuven. But visiting Antwerp is like visting Boston, while visiting Leuven is like visiting Princeton, NJ or New Haven, CT (all right, it's not a perfect comparison, and I love Leuven. Check the time for the Town Hall tour, and don't miss the newer Art Museum.) and visiting Ghent is like visiting ... er ... Baltimore or Cleveland. (That's not a slam - I'm including the Walters Art Museum, which has the rest of a panel painting series that's in Antwerp, or the Cleveland Museum of Art, which is right behind the Met Museum in NYC. I lived in Cleveland for two years.) Alas, the big art museum in Antwerp is closed for renovation, but there are still about ten world-class museums there. The cheapest dinners would be in Leuven and Ghent, but there are even more restaurants (and more high-end ones) in Antwerp. What I'm saying is that you can "do" Leuven or Gent in a day, but not Antwerp. Keep Mechelen in mind, and only in the summer, Oosteende.