A great, easy, and cheap way to travel around Belgium (and Europe in general) is by planning your trip with Flixbus! It has bus stops at all larger European cities, so it’s perfect for your road trips and city trips.

Check your train routes with the Belgian NMBS app.

1. Brussels
2. Bruges (Brugge)
3. Ostend (Oostende)
4. Ghent (Gent)

Brussels

Maria (from Finland, whom I met during my exchange) was only passing through Belgium, so I showed her around Brussels before she continued her journey. The best-known attractions of Brussels are most likely the Atomium and Manneken Pis (Peeing Man), who is often dressed according to international occasions. When we went, he was dressed up for St Patrick’s Day. In fact, we actually have three peeing statues in Brussels: a boy (Manneken Pis), a girl (Jeanneke Pis), and a dog (Het Zinneke)! There are a few large buildings in Brussels that are definitely worth checking out, such as the Royal Palace, the Brussels Stock Exchange, the Cathedral of St. Michael & St. Gudula, and the Palace of Justice. Other breathtaking places are Grand Place and the Royal Galeries St. Hubert, especially at night.

Now, for the less touristic spots. Rue de la Cigogne is a small and cute street, that forms the perfect setting for photos. The same goes for the ‘Grote Zavel‘ neighborhood that gives some old French vibes, in my opinion, that is. I’ll also add La Gare Maritime, Passerelle Tondo, and BNP Montagne du Parc (currently offices) to this list, because of their interesting architectural structures. If you’re looking to slow it down and hide a bit from the busy streets, I think Jubelpark and the Botanical Garden are the best way to go. Jubelpark reminded me of Berlin, LOL, can anyone relate? We ended our day by grabbing dinner at Wolf. It’s a large indoor place (food court) with different small world cuisines such as sushi, Texas grill, Thai, Italian, …

I pinned the locations on my maps so it was easier to plan a route and decide which way to go. I hope this link works for everyone?

Bruges (Brugge)

A few weeks later, Ashley (HK, a friend I met online 3 years ago) came over during her Europe trip and stayed at my place for a few days. On her first day here, I took her to Brugge. The city is known for its old town.

Bruges is not that large, especially in the city center, so you can really take your time to wander around and explore new places on your own. You should be able to find the locations I saved through this link.

Ostend (Oostende)

On the second day, we went to Ostend. The pictures aren’t the greatest because we had A LOT of wind. Even though it was cold and windy, we did end up having a good time and laughing a lot. Ostend is the largest city near the beach. Many people go there to go shopping and enjoy the sea. There are a lot of stores and cafes in the area of the Vlaanderenstraat and Kapellestraat, so be prepared to spend a lot of time here. If you’re lucky, you might also find some street art in the Crystal Ship area, but a lot has been removed.

Near the train station, you find the St. Petrus and Paulus Church, and you can admire some of the ships that are docked there, which are definitely worth checking out.

Maria Hendrika Parc must be the largest one in this city. It has a large pond that provides the perfect habitat for many birds and ducks. Leopold Parc is smaller and closer to the busy streets but has a lovely layout with flowers and statues, such as the flower clock (made in 1748) and a mermaid statue. The King’s Parc is right next to the beach and has a Japanese Garden within it. However, you can only visit the Japanese Garden during the weekends from April to October. During July and August, it opens its doors daily though.

From the beach and near the King’s Garden you can see the beautiful Royal Galleries of Ostend (with the former Spilliaert’s House). The Royal Galleries were completed in 1905 and are about 400m long, served to protect wealthy citizens from sun and rain as they walked. Against the Galleries, the Thermal Palace was built in the early 1930s, and today serves as a 4-star hotel that still exudes Belle Epoque atmosphere.

Other unique activities you can experience in Ostend are taking a walk on the pier or taking a little boat (near “Visserskaai“) that brings you to Napoleon’s Fort.

We had lunch at Bavet (near the casino)! It’s a restaurant known for its pasta and where customers get a bib (like a baby bib since that is what ‘bavet’ means in flemish). You can find a Bavet in almost every bigger city in Belgium. In fact, you can find one in every city I’ve mentioned in this post!

You can find all these places here, along with some museums.

Ghent (Gent)

You know those videos of people claiming they have arrived at a Hogwarts-looking scenery? Chances are big they’re talking about Ghent! Most likely even filmed at the St. Michael’s bridge, viewing the St. Michael’s Church, the St Nicholas Church, the Belfry, and the St Bavo’s Cathedral. This is definitely the heart of Ghent and really the place to be. When the weather is nice, you might catch people having a picnic or drinking some wine along the water at Graslei. You’re also in between the two main shopping streets Veldstraat and Langemunt. As are you near the Castle of the Counts.

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Hope this was somewhat helpful. What cities are you planning to visit? Share your recommendations in the comments!

Lots of love

Lara