Photo: Wolfgang Staudt (CC BY 2.0, resized)
Bruges and Ghent — Private Day Trip from Amsterdam
A medieval city that survived intact — canals, cobbles, a belfry you can climb and chocolate on every corner. Add Ghent on the way and see two of Belgium's finest cities in one day.
- Whole day
- 6hours riding time
- Up to8passengers
- Mercedes sedan, V-Class or Vito
Tour highlights
- A medieval centre that was never bombed or rebuilt — it is the real thing
- The Markt, ringed by guild houses, with the Belfry above it
- Canals and stone bridges, best seen from a boat
- Michelangelo's Madonna in the Church of Our Lady
- Optional — Ghent, with its moated castle and the Van Eyck altarpiece
- Belgian beer and chocolate made where you are standing
Bruges — a city that got lucky
Bruges was one of the richest cities in Europe, then the river silted up and the trade moved to Antwerp. It spent four centuries too poor to knock anything down. By the time money came back, the fashion was for preserving rather than replacing — and two world wars passed it by without serious damage.
The result is a medieval city centre that is genuinely medieval, not a reconstruction. That is rarer than it sounds, and it is the reason the whole centre is UNESCO-listed.
Why we drive it
There is a train, and it takes the best part of four hours with two changes. By the time you have done that twice in a day, you have spent eight hours travelling and arrived tired.
We collect you from your door at half past seven, and you are walking into the Markt by half past ten. On the way back you sleep in the van instead of standing on a platform at Antwerp Central.
Your driver stays with the vehicle and with you all day. Shopping bags, coats and anything you buy go in the van rather than round your neck. If it rains, which in Belgium it does, you are ten minutes from a warm car rather than committed to whatever the weather does next.
Adding Ghent — €100, not a second tour
Almost everyone driving from Amsterdam to Bruges passes Ghent on the motorway without stopping. That is the whole reason adding it is cheap: it is already on the road.
Ghent is a different proposition to Bruges. It is Belgium’s second largest city, it has around seventy thousand students, and the centre is full of people who live there. The cafés are aimed at them, not at coach parties, and you feel it in the prices and the cooking.
- The Graslei and Korenlei — two quays facing each other across the old harbour, lined with guild houses going back to the twelfth century.
- Gravensteen — a proper moated stone castle sitting in the middle of the shopping streets. You can walk the walls.
- The Ghent Altarpiece in St Bavo’s Cathedral, painted by the Van Eyck brothers in 1432. It has been stolen, singed, hidden in a salt mine by the Nazis, and one panel has been missing since 1934 and never found.
Doing both means roughly two to three hours in each rather than a full day in one. Some people would rather see two cities; some would rather know one. We will tell you honestly which suits what you have described.
A long day, and we will say so
This is the longest trip we run. Twelve hours door to door, six of them driving, and more if you add Ghent. It is completely worth it if you want to see Bruges, and it is the wrong choice if you have small children who do not travel well, or if you only have energy for a half day.
We would rather tell you that now than have you find out at eight in the evening on the A16.
Where is it?
Photos
Your day
- 07:30
Early pick-up
We leave early on purpose. It is about three hours each way, and the hour you gain at the start is the hour you spend in the city.
- 10:30
Arrive in Bruges
We park close to the centre and walk in. The historic core is small and almost entirely on foot, which is the best thing about it.
- 11:00
The old centre
The Markt, the Burg, the canals behind them. Your driver will point you at the streets worth walking and the ones that are just souvenir shops.
- 13:00
Lunch, then the canal
Eat first, then take a boat. Half an hour on the water shows you courtyards and back gardens you cannot reach on foot.
- 15:00
Your own time — or on to Ghent
Stay in Bruges and climb the Belfry, or set off for Ghent, forty minutes up the same motorway, for the Graslei and the castle.
- 17:30
Head north
We leave in good time to get you back at a reasonable hour.
- 20:00
Back in Amsterdam
Dropped at your door.
What's included
- Private Mercedes V-Class or Vito minivan
- Hotel or apartment pick-up and drop-off in Amsterdam
- English-speaking driver for the whole day
- Fuel, motorway tolls and parking in Belgium
- Bottled water and free child seats
Not included
- Canal boat tickets
- Museum, belfry and cathedral entry
- Food and drinks
Can be added
Add Ghent on the way
Ghent is forty minutes from Bruges on the same road, and very different — bigger, younger, a real lived-in city with a student population and far fewer coach parties. Two or three hours there makes a long but excellent day.
€900 for 1–4, €1000 for 5–8 — both cities
Canal boat in Bruges
Thirty minutes on the water. The best single thing you can do in Bruges, and it is inexpensive.
Paid at the jetty
Chocolate stop
Not the chain shops on the main street. We will take you to one that makes its own on the premises.
Free to visit
Frequently asked questions
Do I need my passport?
Bring your passport or national ID card. Belgium is in the Schengen area so there is normally no border check, but you are legally required to carry identification and it is occasionally asked for.
How long is the drive, honestly?
About three hours each way without traffic, and the ring around Antwerp can add to that. It is a genuinely long day — roughly twelve hours door to door. If that sounds like too much, say so and we will suggest something closer.
Should we add Ghent, or just do Bruges?
If it is your first time in Belgium, Bruges alone is the better day — you get five or six unhurried hours in the prettiest medieval city in Europe. Add Ghent if you have been to Bruges before, if you dislike crowds, or if you would rather see two cities than know one well. Adding it costs €100, not a second tour, because Ghent is on the road anyway.
What is Ghent actually like?
Belgium's second city, with about seventy thousand students. The Graslei and Korenlei are two medieval quays facing each other across the old harbour; Gravensteen is a moated stone castle in the middle of the shopping streets; and St Bavo's Cathedral holds the Van Eyck altarpiece, one of the most important — and most stolen — paintings in Europe.
Is Bruges worth it in a single day?
Yes, because the old centre is compact. You can see the best of it in five or six hours on foot. What you miss by not staying over is Bruges in the evening, once the day visitors have gone.
What about Brussels instead?
We can drive you to Brussels, but most guests who ask end up preferring Bruges. Brussels is a working capital city; Bruges is the one that looks like the photographs.
Is there much walking?
Yes — both centres are cobbled and mostly pedestrian. They are flat, but cobbles are hard work with a pushchair or a wheelchair. Tell us in advance and we will plan the day around it.