Highlights
- Discover striking Art Nouveau architecture in Antwerp
- Immerse yourself in Antwerp's colorful comic-style street art
- Appreciate Flemish masters to modern artists at galleries and museums
- Intersperse your artistic explorations with Belgian culinary specialties
Brief Itinerary
| Day | Highlights | Overnight |
|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | Arrive in Brussels, Transfer to Antwerp, Art Nouveau Architecture Tour | Antwerp |
| Day 2 | Take a Comic Street Art Tour, Visit M KHA Contemporary Art Gallery | Antwerp |
| Day 3 | Transfer to Bruges, Enjoy a Guided Tour of Ghent on the Way | Bruges |
| Day 4 | Explore Bruges on Foot, Groeningemuseum & Sint-Janshospitaal | Bruges |
| Day 5 | Free Time in Bruges or Brussels, Transfer to Brussels Airport & Depart |
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Detailed Itinerary
Day 1: Arrive in Brussels, Transfer to Antwerp, Art Nouveau Architecture Tour
Welcome to Belgium! From Brussels Airport, you'll catch a direct train to Antwerp's main railway station. When you arrive in Antwerp, you'll find yourself in the middle of the first major landmark in your discovery of the Belgian region of Flanders. Built in 1905, Antwerp's main railway station has magnificent interiors and an impressive facade. From the railway station, you can either walk or take a taxi to your hotel.
Today you'll embark on a self-guided tour of Antwerp's distinctive Art Nouveau architecture in the Zurenborg neighborhood, southeast of the central railway station. With a digital map and directions, you'll encounter all the different variations of the style and come to appreciate the characteristics that make Art Nouveau in Antwerp different from anywhere else. From the central railway station, you'll begin by taking a tram to the starting point and then gradually wind your way back to the railway station. The tour takes about two hours, including stops, covering a distance of about 3 miles (5 km).
Day 2: Take a Comic Street Art Tour, Visit M HKA Contemporary Art Gallery
Today you'll take a self-guided walk through Antwerp's city center with the aid of a practical online app, discovering many of the city's best murals and comic-style street art along the way. As you go, fuel up at one of the many cafés and eateries you pass. Small detours will take you to some of Antwerp's best city highlights as well, such as the Grote Markt (central square) and Steen Castle.
In the afternoon, pay a visit to the Museum van Hedendaagse Kunst Antwerpen (or M HKA for short). The M HKA is one of Belgium's best contemporary art galleries, housed in a converted grain silo and warehouse. The gallery focuses on art from 1970 to the present, spread over a whopping 43,000 square feet (4,000 sq m). Make sure to explore the surrounding Het Zuid neighborhood as well, one of the most artistically dynamic neighborhoods in Antwerp, where you can find an interesting mix of galleries and cozy cafés.
Day 3: Transfer to Bruges, Enjoy a Guided Tour of Ghent on the Way
This morning, a private car and driver will take you to beautiful Bruges. You'll stop for a guided tour of the city of Ghent on the way. On your tour, discover a medieval castle, graceful houses, modern street art, charming squares, and markets full of goodies. One of the best things about the center of Ghent is that major highlights are close together, making it easily walkable and densely packed with great things to see.
You'll visit Saint Bavo's Cathedral, a massive Gothic Catholic cathedral. The building itself is impressive, but the cathedral is also well known for the famous Ghent Altarpiece, a set of polyptych paintings from 1432 by local artist brothers van Eyck. One panel of the painting was stolen and has still never been found. Many conspiracy theories persist about the theft and the missing panel's whereabouts.
Day 4: Explore Bruges on Foot, Groeningemuseum & Sint-Janshospitaal
Today you'll explore the charming city of Bruges on foot at your own pace, home to quaint cobbled streets, picturesque alleyways, and bustling squares. Stop at one of the many chocolatiers that Bruges is famous for, or sip a locally brewed beer like Brugse Zot in one of the historic squares. Did you know the lace industry used to employ a quarter of all Bruges women? Today it is still being made and makes a nice souvenir from one of the local shops.
Lovers of fine art will want to visit the Groeningemuseum. Here you'll find six centuries of artworks from Belgian master painters such as Jan van Eyck, Hans Memling, and Gerard David. Take in the neoclassicist works of Joseph Odevaere and Joseph-François Ducq, the art of the Flemish expressionists, and the 20th-century modern art of René Magritte, Roger Raveel, and Raoul De Keyser.
Continue on your way to the Sint-Janshospital (Saint John's Hospital), which was once the most important medieval urban institution for the sick, poor, and needy in the city of Bruges. Now the site contains a museum of the history of the building, the medical care performed here, and the monastic community through fascinating medical artifacts and art. Here also is where you'll find an impressive collection of artworks by the Flemish primitive artist Hans Memling.
Day 5: Free Time in Bruges or Brussels, Transfer to Brussels & Depart
Today you may either choose to spend your free morning in Bruges and take the train to Brussels in the afternoon or take the train in the morning to explore more of Brussels. Afterward, you'll either take the train directly from Bruges to Brussels Airport (in the Zaventem municipality) or, if you're already in Brussels, catch a train or take a taxi there instead. Safe travels!
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