Activities in Flanders
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Fietsen Popelier
A recommended bike rental outfit. Children's bikes (same prices as adults') are available, and baby/toddler seats and baskets are provided for free. Helmets can also be hired. No deposits are required for bikes. The cycles here are in excellent condition - never more than six months old, with moulded seats, six gears and good suspension. Some regional cycling maps, including the Riante Polder Route, are sold.
Stay around town - there's no better way to see a sizable swath of the city in a relatively short time - or head out along the Damse Vaart canal to Damme (30 minutes, 6km one way). Alternatively, the Riante Polder Route is a full-day excursion, clocking up 44km and t…
reviewed
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Quasimodo
Quasimodo is a small company that's been offering two excellent day trips for years. The Triple Treat tour explores Damme plus nearby castles and promises a waffle, beer and chocolate at various establishments around Bruges. The Flanders Fields tour takes in Ypres and its famous WWI battlefields. The price includes all admission charges and a picnic lunch. Reservations are necessary.
Both trips operate Tuesday to Sunday from April to October. The rest of the year there's a Triple Treat tour on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and a Flander's Field tour on Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday. Tours don't run between mid-December and mid-February.
reviewed
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Canal Tour
Taking a Canal Tour is a must. Yep, it's touristy, but what isn't in Bruges? Viewing the city from the water gives it a totally different feel than by foot. Cruise down Spiegelrei towards Jan Van Eyckplein and it's possible to imagine Venetian merchants entering the city centuries ago and meeting under the slender turret of the Poortersloge building up ahead. Boats depart roughly every 20 minutes from jetties south of the Burg, including Rozenhoedkaai and Dijver, and tours last 30 minutes.
Expect queues in summer.
reviewed
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Horse-Drawn Carriage Rides
The clip-clop of hooves hitting cobblestones resounds constantly in the streets of Bruges. In summer, aim to jump on board between 18:00 and 19:00 - by this time day-trippers have left the city, locals are stirring dinner at home, and most tourists are taking a shower. Bruges' streets take on a semitranquil air at this time of day, and the gold-topped buildings shimmer in the late sun rays. Carriages depart from the Markt, and their route takes 35 minutes (including a pit stop at the Begijnhof).
reviewed
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QuasiMundo Bikes
Cycle tours are big business in Bruges. QuasiMundo Bikes is highly recommended. The guy who runs this company has been involved in cycle tourism for more than a decade. Three tours with English commentary are offered: a 2½-hour (8km) tour of Bruges; a four-hour (25km) cycle to the Dutch border and back via Damme; or tours of Bruges by night. Bookings are necessary.
reviewed
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Antwerp is Burning
One of the best known dance parties is Antwerp is Burning. It takes over a huge field on the Linkeroever, converting the left bank of the river into a one-night party bash in early September. Half a dozen clubs band together, and more than 30 artists beat out hard dance, trance, techno, house and drum'n'bass until well into the next day.
reviewed
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Flandria
One for boaties. The 50-minute Scheldt excursion departs from Steenplein and affords great views of the city skyline. The 2½-hour harbour cruise departs from Kaai (quay) number 14 in 't Eilandje, 1km north of the Grote Markt, daily at 14:30 from May to September and 14:30 Friday to Sunday in October.
reviewed
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Het Ruihuis
Next door to the Etnografisch Museum is the city's newest attraction, Het Ruihuis, an adventure through the city's underground sewer system. Expect things to be a bit pongy at the start, but then highly sanitised. Choose a three-hour guided tour, or pop in for a visit zonder gids (without guide).
reviewed
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Laundry Day
Smack in the heart of Antwerp's St Andries fashion district, this party with an unlikely name sees seven stages set up on and around Vrijdagmarkt and Oudaan, with 50 DJs pulsing throughout the day and into the night. It all happens in mid-September, the week after Antwerp is Burning.
reviewed
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De Bootjes van Gent
De Bootjes van Gent is a canal-cruise company. Ghent lends itself to being viewed from the water; the aspects only seen from a canal cruise, and the relative serenity of being on a boat, lend the city a whole new persona.
reviewed
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Peerdentram
Old-fashioned coach drawn by two stocky Brabant horses. Does a 40-minute tour of the old city centre, departing hourly from the Grote Markt.
reviewed
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Gent Watertoerist
Gent Watertoerist is a company that runs canal cruises. Enjoy the relative serenity of being on a boat, and see Ghent in a whole new light.
reviewed
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De Gentenaer Rederij
De Gentenaer Rederij runs canal cruises, which are a great way to see some of the aspects of Ghent that you would otherwise miss.
reviewed
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Illusion
Illusion, a trance odyssey, takes over Antwerp's Sportpaleis for one full night in late September. This party is legendary.
reviewed
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Sightseeing Line
Sightseeing Line runs a don-your-multilingual-headphone, 50-minute minibus City Tour, leaving the Markt hourly.
reviewed
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Caroline Flokman
Take a stab at making lace with Caroline Flokman, who gives half-day private lessons in her Bruges home.
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Rent A Bike
This bike-rental company also runs good two-hour guided tours around town.
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Diamond Bus
Hop-on hop-off double-decker bus that runs continuously around the city.
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Illusion
Illusion, a trance odyssey, takes over Antwerp's Sportpaleis for one full night in late September. This party is legendary.
reviewed
Advertisement
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Fietsen Popelier
A recommended bike rental outfit. Children's bikes (same prices as adults') are available, and baby/toddler seats and baskets are provided for free. Helmets can also be hired. No deposits are required for bikes. The cycles here are in excellent condition - never more than six months old, with moulded seats, six gears and good suspension. Some regional cycling maps, including the Riante Polder Route, are sold.
Stay around town - there's no better way to see a sizable swath of the city in a relatively short time - or head out along the Damse Vaart canal to Damme (30 minutes, 6km one way). Alternatively, the Riante Polder Route is a full-day excursion, clocking up 44km and t…
reviewed
