Belgium is one of the best destinations for a European weekend getaway. There are frequent and cheap flights from most European cities to Brussels. It is also a very easy to travel country as they have a very good railway system, making 1/2 day excursions to nearby cities very convenient.
If you’ve only got 2 or 3 days to visit Belgium, and taking into account that you’re very likely to arrive by plane to Brussels, my recommendation would be to dedicate one day to Brussels city centre, another day for the surroundings of Brussels and a third day to do 1/2 day excursion to Brugge and 1/2 day to Ghent.
Itinerary
Brussels
Downtown Brussels
You can’t miss the Grand Place, get lost in the surrounding streets and sit down at a coffee place to enjoy a Belgian beer. Walking by the city center streets you’ll also discover lots of murals with street art. At sunset you can climb up Mont des Arts to enjoy the views of the city from above, and enjoy the typical mussels with french fries for dinner and a delicious waffle.
The Grand Place or or Grote Markt in Dutch is the central square of the City of Brussels and one of the most beautiful squares in Europe with architecture from eras of Baroque, Gothic and Louis XIV.
Atomium
Do a 1/2 day excursion to get to the Atomium (in the North of Brussels, around 45 minutes by tram. Get off at Esplanade stop). Make sure to book your ticket to enter to the Atomium in advance to skip the lines, as queues for the ticket office during weekend are very common.
The Atomium was constructed for the first post-war universal world exhibition (
European Parlament
A visit to Brussels without spending at least half day in the European Parlament is not completed. You can get there walking from thee centre (around 40 minutes walk direction East), or renting one of the many electric scooters that you’ll find around the city.
They offer free guided tours to the Hemicicle and the House of European History. I encourage you to do this latter one as the museum has opened its doors recently and the collection of the history of Europe and democracy is spectacular.
Brugge
From Brussels Central train station you can take a direct train to Brugge (approximately 50 minutes). Once you arrive to Brugge simply get lost in its streets, it’s the best way to discover this little city.
Enjoy walking along the canals, the Love Lake, the market square, St. Paul’s Church… It’s very easy to move around on foot. On weekends it tends to be crowded and the good restaurants fully book, so it’s recommended to book in advance if you are interested in some restaurant in particular.
Thanks to its large number of canals and bridges (of which there are more than 80) Bruges is often referred to as Venice of the North.
Ghent
The same train that goes from Brussels to Brugge stops in Ghent, so I’d recommend you to use half day (in the morning) to enjoy Brugge and on the way back to Brussels stop in Ghent and spend there the other half day.
It’s not a very big city and the train station is just around 20 minutes from the center (make sure you get down at Gent-Sint-Pieters, since the Gent-Dampoort stations is more or less at the same distance but the trains from there don’t go directly to Brussels Central).
In Ghent all the highlights are near downtown: the cathedral, the castle, enjoy a coffee in one of the many coffee shops along the canal, the main square… Sunsets offer great opportunities in this city to take fantastic pictures.
Ghent is a university town and cultural hub. Its pedestrianized center is known for medieval architecture, like the Cathedral shown in the image.
How to get there
The easiest way to get to and from Brussels Airport is taking the direct train that goes from the airport to Brussels Central (or Brussels North, whichever is closest to your accommodation). It costs around 9€.
Are you planing your next European getaway? Belgium is a great option. If you have any questions or doubts feel free to write me below in the comments ?
