My parents and I have 3 days to spend in Belgium before we head to Paris. We looked at both Bruges and Ghent, and they look almost identical. We are flying into Brussels and found out both placed are about and hour away and you can get to Ghent by train from the Brussels airpoer by train on level -1. What would you pick to do if you could only pick one. We want to see water, bridges, old buldings, walkable town and good food. We decided to hit Antwerp instead of doing both of these places. Thanks!
Posted by
California
494 posts
Brugge!!!
Posted by
OP
Auburn, Washington, USA
515 posts
Thanks everyone for the replies. We were leaning towards Bruges anyway, so Bruges it is!!! Thanks!!
Posted by
maplewood, new jersey, usa
818 posts
Ghent! Favorite city.
Posted by
Danville, VT
12040 posts
Gent. Better museums, better urban park, and the historical center still functions as a real city, not a tourist fun house. And the Adoration of the Mystic Lamb really is as impressive as it's reputation suggests. If that small statue in Brugge wasn't sculpted by Michelangelo, nobody would give it a second look. Doesn't even begin to compare to Gent's Mystic Lamb.
Posted by
maplewood, new jersey, usa
818 posts
Ghent also has a great castle and the new STAM museum is really really good. Also has an interior design museum which I skipped but my sister loved.
Posted by
Antwerp
34 posts
They're both stunningly beautiful places. What tips the scale in favor of Ghent for me, is that the historic center is larger, plus there is simply more to do in Ghent. More tourists sites, more chocolate, more fr. fries, more beer but less swans and less tourists ;-)
Posted by
Atlanta, GA, USA
142 posts
Just got back from Bruges, amazing :)
Posted by
Ontario Canada
668 posts
Was just going to do Bruges after taking the Chunnel from London to Brussels. After reading this post and only an hour by train to Ghent - I will do this for a day then go on to Bruges for a day.
Anything that is a must see in either.
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32353 posts
Brendon, I visited Brussels, Ghent and Bruges several weeks ago, and while they all had their "charms", my absolute favourite was Bruges. I can't really provide a definite reason why I prefer it, but I found that I enjoyed it more than the others. Happy travels!
Posted by
Beverly Hills, MI
813 posts
Having been to both places this year my suggestion would be 2 days in Brugge and 1 in Ghent. For what you want, Brugge has it all over Ghent although 3 days may be a bit long depending how early you arrive on the first day. There are lots of great old buildings in the old town and I would happily go back for dinner at the Gruuthuse Hof, or for hot chocolate and a waffle at The Old Chocolate House. (Both are on the Mariastraat). Also don't miss the canal boat tour.
Posted by
Grapevine, TX, USA
875 posts
We stayed in Brugge for 5 days and just loved it. I'd love to go back and do it again.
Posted by
Gettysburg, PA
1589 posts
We did both in April. They are under 1 hour apart by a direct train trip. If I had to do only one - Bruges, hands down.