Bruges (Belgium) > Reviews > Venice of the North

Author's product rating:   

Value for Money
Sightseeing
Shopping
Nightlife
Ease of getting around

Advantages:	Old charm retained .   Architecture impressive
Disadvantages:	some restarants can be expensive  -  look around

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

This City is known as the Venice of the North due to the 12 miles of canals that run through the city. Despite the fact that I have never visited Venice, I was very impressed with Brugge which will be European City of Culture next year.

We decided to visit Brugge for a short break during the October half term holidays. It was chosen because it was less than a 2 hour drive from Calais. It was easy to find and there were few traffic problems until we arrived at the City itself which was to be expected as we arrived at 5.30 in the Evening.

We stayed at the Novotel in the Centre of Brugge which was ideally situated for exploring. Most of the major attractions were no more than 15 minutes walk away. The Hotel was very friendly and not too expensive (approx £65 room only for a family of 4).

Upon arrival, we studied the City map and decided to go for a short walk. We were very impressed with the City as it retained its old charm and had very few modern developments. The Buildings were delightful and it was nice to see a relatively clean canal running through them. We returned to the Hotel and planned our next couple of days. We then ate at a Chinese restaurant over the road which was very reasonably priced.

Day 1 : A 40 minute cruise along the canal to see the sights was well worth doing and only cost about £3 each. We visited the inpressive Belltower with its 366 steps which gave excellent views over the city. We also visited the old monastry and spent a couple of hours shopping. That evening, we decided to splash out and visited one of the many restaurants in the square where I was able to sample the special Kwak beer in yard of ale type glas! The food was excellent and service very frioendly.

Day 2 : We began with a walk around the town, more shopping, and visited a couple of Cathedrals. Afterwards we took a guided tour around the local Brewary which only cost £3 with a beer thrown in! It was the most interesting tour I have ever taken and I now know more than ever about Beer, not only Belgian but other countries as well. We then checked out of the hotel and began our journey home.

We were sorry to leave and are determined to visit again in the near future. I would recommend Brugge to anyone seeking a relaxing short, or even long, break.