Belfry of Bruges (Belfort)
The medieval bell tower that rules the Markt. Climb its 366 steps past the old treasury and the carillon for the best view in Bruges, on a timed ticket from Musea Brugge.
Belgium
Bruges
Bruges is the medieval city that never left the fairy tale: a ring of canals around cobbled squares, stepped gables, almshouses and church spires, with the Belfry rising over the Markt and swans drifting under humpbacked bridges.
In the fifteenth century it was one of the richest trading cities in northern Europe, home to the dukes of Burgundy and to painters like Jan van Eyck and Hans Memling, and its historic centre is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. You can climb the 366 steps of the Belfry, glide along the canals by boat, stand in front of the Flemish Primitives, venerate a relic in a twelfth-century chapel and then turn to the city’s lighter pleasures: Belgian chocolate, abbey-strength beer and a working brewery with a beer pipeline under the streets. Ghent, livelier and less polished, is a short train ride away. This guide books the tickets worth booking, flags the closing days and seasonal changes that catch visitors out, and matches you to the right hotel, from a palace of the Burgundian dukes to a good-value base near the Beguinage.
Don't miss
Belfry of Bruges (Belfort)
The medieval bell tower that rules the Markt. Climb its 366 steps past the old treasury and the carillon for the best view in Bruges, on a timed ticket from Musea Brugge.
Choco-Story Bruges
The chocolate museum of Bruges: the story of cocoa from the Maya to the Belgian praline, a live chocolate-making demonstration and a tasting at the end. Open daily near the Burg.
Bruges Canal Boat Tour
Half an hour on the canals between Jan van Eyck Square and the Beguinage, on open boats run by five family operators. The classic way to see Bruges from the water.
Groeningemuseum
Bruges’ great art museum, home to Jan van Eyck, Hans Memling and Hieronymus Bosch. Open until 11 January 2027, when it closes for a four-year refurbishment and its highlights move to BRUSK.
Things to do in Bruges
Musea Brugge Card (72 Hours)
One 72-hour card for the city museums of Bruges, including the Belfry, the Groeningemuseum, the City Hall and the Church of Our Lady museum. The best value for a museum-heavy visit.
Bruges Canal Boat Tour
Half an hour on the canals between Jan van Eyck Square and the Beguinage, on open boats run by five family operators. The classic way to see Bruges from the water.
Groeningemuseum
Bruges’ great art museum, home to Jan van Eyck, Hans Memling and Hieronymus Bosch. Open until 11 January 2027, when it closes for a four-year refurbishment and its highlights move to BRUSK.
FreeBasilica of the Holy Blood
A twelfth-century double chapel on the Burg: a dark Romanesque crypt below and a richly painted upper chapel that keeps the relic of the Holy Blood. Free to enter and minutes from the Markt.
30-45 minutesDetails →
Historium Brugge
A themed walk through medieval Bruges in its Golden Age, told through the story of an apprentice of Jan van Eyck, right on the Markt. Add the optional VR flight or the tower view.
Choco-Story Bruges
The chocolate museum of Bruges: the story of cocoa from the Maya to the Belgian praline, a live chocolate-making demonstration and a tasting at the end. Open daily near the Burg.
De Halve Maan Brewery
The family brewery in the heart of Bruges, home of Brugse Zot and Straffe Hendrik. Guided tours climb to a rooftop view, explain the underground beer pipeline and end with a beer.
Bruges Beer Museum
An interactive museum of Belgian beer just off the Markt, with an audio guide on the brewing, the styles and the abbey traditions, and a tasting bar at the end.
City Tour Bruges (Minibus)
A 50-minute minibus loop through the historic centre with commentary in eleven languages. The easy way to see the whole of Bruges, including the quieter edges, in under an hour.
Ghent Day Trip and Historic Boat Tour
Bruges’ livelier neighbour is a short train ride away: a medieval castle, the Ghent Altarpiece and the Graslei quays, best seen from a 40-minute guided boat tour.
Where to stay
Hotels we would book ourselves, from splurges to good-value bases.
$$$$Dukes’ Palace Brugge
Prinsenhof (west of the Markt)
A five-star hotel in the restored fifteenth-century palace of the dukes of Burgundy, with 93 rooms and suites, a spa with sauna and hammam and Restaurant Manuscript. The splurge of Bruges.
Rates on Expedia →
$$$Hotel Heritage, Relais and Châteaux
Markt (north side)
A Relais and Châteaux boutique hotel in a nineteenth-century mansion fifty metres from the Markt, with a Sothys spa and a fitness room under twelfth-century vaults. Bruges’ most personal luxury stay.
Rates on Expedia →
$$Hotel Navarra Brugge
Sint-Jakobs (near the Markt)
A historic mansion near the Markt with an indoor pool and sauna, a garden bar and its own car park through a historic gate. The best all-round mid-range choice in Bruges.
Rates on Expedia →
$$Canal View Hotel Ter Brughe
Sint-Gillis canals
A historic canal-side hotel in the quiet Sint-Gillis quarter, with canal-view rooms and breakfast room, a terrace and garden, and the Markt about six minutes away on foot.
Rates on Expedia →
$ibis Styles Brugge Centrum
Katelijnestraat and the Beguinage
A good-value 3-star base on Katelijnestraat, five minutes from the Beguinage and ten from the Belfry, with 140 rooms, a bar and a public car park underneath. The budget pick.
Rates on Expedia →Bruges guides
First Time in Bruges: What to Book, How to Get Around & How Many Days
The practical primer for a first visit to Bruges: the few tickets worth booking, the Monday and seasonal closures that catch people out, getting around on foot and how to fit the Belfry, the canals, the museums, chocolate, beer and Ghent into two or three days.
Where to Stay in Bruges: Markt, Sint-Gillis or the Beguinage
How to choose your base in Bruges, from a palace of the Burgundian dukes and a Relais and Châteaux mansion by the Markt to a canal-side stay in quiet Sint-Gillis and a good-value base near the Beguinage.
