Bruges is a beautiful Gothic city, known as a fairy tale town and also the “Venice of north”. It wasn’t built in a day, however, it’s such a picturesque small town that you can explore it in less than 24 hours.

Bruges is the most magical town I have seen so far.

I managed to see the whole town and eat most of the traditional dishes that Belgium culinary has to offer the world in a period of less than a full day (it was such a hard work 🙂 ). I still have many places to cross off my list, but I’m sure Bruges will never fall off of the top 10 ones. But first, why did I consider to go to Bruges?

My first time in Europe – from Paris to Bruges (in between Amsterdam)

On August 2016, I took my first trip to Europe. I can remember the magic feeling of putting my feet on a new continent and making a dream from childhood come true. It was also an ancestral soul fulfillment feeling for getting close to my roots, although I was not going to Italy. To become more exciting, for the first time I was traveling alone! What I didn’t know was that traveling for me would never be the same again after I let my spontaneous solo travel adventure take birth.

My original plan was to go from Paris to Amsterdam, however, there was an interesting country in between that I had to cross. As a food advocated and fan of waffles, the little Belgium territory dividing both of my destinations was made as a necessary stop on my plan.

I took a train from Paris to Bruges train station. There are trains every couple of hours from France or Amsterdam, which makes it easy crossing the countries. It takes about 2:45–3 hours from Paris, unless you decide to stop in Brussels or either Ghent and Antwerp (other beautiful medieval Belgian cities on the way to Bruges).

When I got off the train in the Bruges station I realized it was about 20 minutes walk from the train station to the downtown of Bruges. I didn’t know what to do with my big luggage and surely it didn’t make sense to drag it around. I then learned that I could rent a locker at the station to leave my baggage. It was the first little mission I had to figure out. I crossed my fingers hoping I was able to find my way back to it later (which apparently I did.). As I started walking into the city downtown I got me thinking… so what should I see and do in Bruges?

If you are thinking about checking out this beautiful medieval town, here is all you need to know about how to explore Bruges in less than 24 hours.

Top Things to See & Do in Bruges

The Markt (“Market Square”) – Historic center of Bruges

The Markt is considered the heart of Bruges and you won’t miss it. It is surrounded by medieval buildings and inviting cafés that spill out into the streets. Horse-drawn carriages are very common to see around. In 1995 the market was completely renovated, and the area became mostly traffic-free. The colorful and pointed buildings are fascinating either during the day or at night.

Church of Our Lady

The church of Our Lady is located just a six-minute walk from Markt. It is stunning and with great architecture to stop to admire. Was completed in the 15th century, and the construction of this church took two centuries to construct. The result is a soaring 381-foot brick spire (the largest in the world) that can be seen for miles. Inside there is an artistic treasure: Michelangelo’s “Madonna and Child” sculpture. I didn’t go to see the sculpture since they started charging for it.

Belfort (Belfry & Carillon)

Bruges is known for its famous landmark is its 13th-century belfry, housing a municipal carillon comprising 48 bells.This is the most important of Bruges’ towers and stands 83 meters tall. It’s worth taking up the challenge of climbing the tower. After 366 tiring steps your efforts are rewarded with a breath-taking and unforgettable panoramic view of Bruges and her surroundings. If you are claustrophobic, I would recommend you to think twice, but besides that, it is a great experience and workout to burn the beer and waffles calories, plus only $10 will get you in.

Stadhuis (City Hall)

The Bruges’ City Hall is one of the oldest in the Low Countries (1376). It is from here that the city has been governed for more than 600 years. Its construction lasted for centuries, due in part to constant problems with a lack of space. At the end of the 19th century, city architect Delacenserie performed a radical 20-year long renovation. It’s open every day from 9:30 am – 5:00 pm and it’s around $4 to get in.

Basilica of the Holy Blood

On the other side of the Stadhius square is the Basilica of the Holy Blood. The Relic of the Holy Blood is kept in the chapel. In the middle of Burg Square there are always a dozen or so handsome horse-drawn carriages who, for a small fee of 25 euros for up to 4 people, will take you on a 35 minute trot around the cobbled, narrow streets while the driver tells all about Bruges. I preferred to take the ride by foot and later I surrendered to a quiet boat ride through the Bruges water canals.

Canals 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 the town in the canals and imagine Venetian merchants entering the city centuries ago. It is part of the magical fairy tale experience of Bruges. The prices are around  €7 – €8 per adult for an hour of stressless touring through ancient stone bridges over quiet waters.

The Old Chocolate House

If you didn’t know, you will learn in practice by visiting Bruges, that it’s the chocolate city par excellence. The city has more than 50 passionate chocolatiers and acts as a genuine chocolate laboratory. You can see from the streets workers doing art with chocolate. The old chocolate house is a place where established names and fresh up-and-coming talent complement each other. The presence of so much creativity raises the quality of Bruges chocolate to new heights. Nowhere in the world will you find better chocolate.

Transportation – How to get around in Bruges?

The best way to get around Bruges is on foot. The city is very small — in fact, you can walk from one end to the other in 30 minutes. It feels like a little Amsterdam, but prettier.  Biking is the second best way. There is a bus to get from the train station to the city center, but I really recommend to explore the city on foot (although I had 5 blisters on my feet at that time). Cars are really not recommended since Bruges’ streets are narrow and webbed with canals.  The closest major airport is Brussels International (BRU), so most visitors take the train into Bruges. I took the train from Paris to the Brussels train station and from Brussels to Bruges, which is located just southeast of the city center, about a 12-minute walk from Minnewater Lake. On the way back, I took an easy train from Bruges station straight to  Amsterdam train station.

The Belgian food – What foods is Belgium known for?

Everyone is aware that Belgium is known for foods like waffles, fries, chocolate and beer. But what food is Bruges famous for? Well, I would say the same, but there’s far more to Flemish cuisine than just what you heard of. Let’s start with the alcohol… the hunger will unconditionally follow.. 🙂

Belgian Beer & Breweries in Bruges

Even if you don’t like beer you will become a beer fanatic while in Belgium. As a Brazilian, it is hard to escape from it. There are so many amazing beers and intrinsic flavors in Belgium that is really hard to make a bad choice. I honestly prefer to try the local artisan beers instead of big well-known brands. Embrace the local and drink a beer that you can only have in Bruges, so next time you crave it, you will have to come back for it.

The famous “Brugse Zot” is the city beer that is brewed in Bruges. In 2016 a unique two-mile underground pipeline was built to connect the brewery in the city center to its out-of-town bottling plant. They offer tours in the brewery and beer sampling as well. I ended up passing on that since I’ve had my fair amount by then.

My favorite Belgium beer was Kriek Mystic. One sip and I was already in love with it. The name reveals most of its flavor. Crisp and intriguing with a suave finishing. This Belgian beer tasted more mysterious than its looked.

If you prefer a richer body with sweet flavor, I would recommend the Hoegaarden Framboise. I was trying to stay always from the big brands but my choices were few for lunch the day. It didn’t disappoint me, but I definitely don’t recommend having it with a meal since might be too filling. Maybe as a dessert or for an early evening start would be a better fit.

Interesting fact it that some of the most popular Belgian beers are made by monks in monasteries and that using the correct glass is considered improving the beer’s flavor. Still a lot to learn about beer. Now let’s get hungry…

Belgian Waffles

The waffles…. forget everything you ever knew about them before you go to Belgium. First lesson is that there are 3 different types of Belgium waffles (my favorite waffles in Bruges were the liege style).

Liege waffles

Richer, denser, sweeter, and gooier. It is made with sugar cubes on the dough and worth eating by itself with butter or whipped cream. Definitely the most common type of waffle available.

Brussels Waffles

Bigger, lighter and crispier. The form is a perfect rectangle. It is not as sweet as the liege waffle and I would recommend having it plain with butter or powdered sugar (if you prefer your pancakes without syrup) or adding sweeter toppings like Nutella, strawberry or melted chocolate with ice cream. Yummy!

Galettes

These are thin and crunchy. It’s buttery, crumbly and soft in the mouth (not to be mistaken with the French galettes which are like pancakes). Not my favorite but definitely delicious too.

You can get a waffle in Bruges at any corner with all types of toppings you can imagine. It’s mesmerizing all of the combinations you can make that I decided to go with a plain flavor in order to be able to really taste the true essence of a Belgium waffle dough. Well, before I left I had to try one with Nutella (I couldn’t resist).

The Belgian Chocolate

You can enter any chocolate store and try their samples. By the end of the day I believe I had already eaten at least one big chocolate bar just by sampling the different creations and flavors from couple different chocolate houses. I did bring home some chocolates, probably from the store where they let me try the most samples (which got me so high of sugar) that I redeemed to make a purchase. I was trying to be good! Dumon Chocolatier is also a very well known chocolate house by the Markt worth stopping by.

The Belgian Fries

I heard of Belgium fries before in the USA, (never in Brazil) but I could never imagine the Belgians had the same obsession as me. Fries + MAYO! Yes!!!! Americans say that I’m crazy… well maybe when I mentioned the times I ate mayo with cookies or on the pizza… (I know it sounds weird). But fries, they NEED MAYO! Belgians surely know about fries… and mayo!

What is different about Belgian fries? Well, they’re thick-cut and fried twice. Better than straight up mayo is their traditional flemish frittes sauce or also called andalouse sauce. It is made with mayo, ketchup or tomato paste, onions and peppers. Perfect combination! A must try and you can have from any little cafe or street vendor.

Carbonnades Flamandes – Traditional Flemish Beef Stew

It is like a hearty beef stew. You can get a cheap version from street vendors and try adding all of this saucy beef stew on top of fries with mayo = a winning combination! You can walk around the city with a box of those or have it as a midnight snack (as I did on my way back to the hostel late at night). Perfect choice for a deep sleep.

Mussels

The Moules-frites as the french say is a popular traditional dish originated in Belgium made with mussels and fries. Have you noticed they eat everything with fries? I’m definitely not complaining (as long as I have my side of mayo). 🙂
I did tried this dish for lunch before I left to the train station that day to go to Amsterdam. Nothing special about their mussels besides the fact I have no idea that it would go well with fries too. Honestly, what doesn’t go well with fries?

Speculoos / Speculaas

The cinnamon sugar cookies – a Belgic must try deliciousness. Now I understand the world better. I just don’t understand why Delta is the only airline company that offers these delicious cookies and why it didn’t become popular in the USA much earlier. In Brazil it is still almost unknown – SHAME.

After I tried the cookie butter in NYC back on Thanksgiving week in 2016 my world was never the same. I know… and now I know where this cookie butter comes from… the speculoos cookies! Eureka and 2.5lbs extra… this probably was not the most favorable discovery of my life… I have a new food obsession now.

Waterzooi

It is a traditional Belgian dish of stew with chicken, cream, eggs and potatoes. The rich creamy sauce is great with rice or to dip the french fries. They also eat a lot of grey shrimp. I didn’t have enough space on my stomach to try all of it in less than 24 hours. I might have to go back for the shrimps. I had more than enough food for even the following 24 hours.

Bruges Trip Highlights & Overview:

• Language: the official language spoken in Bruges is Flemish, which is almost the same language as Dutch. However everyone speaks English fairly well.
• Visa: Belgium is a party to the Schengen Agreement. U.S. citizens can stay for up to 3 months (90 days) as a tourist without a visa. The same goes for Brazilians.
• Currency: Euro
• Safety rating: Ranked with a 1.525 4 GPI score on the Global Peace Index . GPI score goes from 1 to 2.5 where lower numbers means more peaceful and higher numbers means less peaceful. This means that the country Belgium is a safe country and definitely safer than USA (2.232) and Brazil (2.199). Bruges is a safe city, and I felt very at ease even walking around during late hours.
• Average Daily Spent: $35 – accommodation ($20/hostel), food ($15), transportation ($0 – you will walk everywhere).
• Transportation: you can get around by foot everywhere but there are carriages and bus from and to the train station.
• Climate: the Bruges weather in August starts getting a little cold. It is their fall and the median temperatures are around mid 60 degrees.
• The Food: beer, waffles, fries, chocolate, mussels, fries again, beef or chicken stew and the speculosos cookies (not necessarily in that order.) I would add beer 2 more times in between each.
• Must See & Do: walk around The Markt square (Historic center of Bruges. Go see the Church of Our Lady, go up the stairs at the Belfort, Stadhuis (City Hall), Basilica of the Holy Blood. Take a boat tour through the canals of the city and visit a chocolate house. Eat waffles and fries, washing it down with a local artisan beer.
• Culture/Friendliness: They love foreigners in Bruges. The Flemish people are very friendly and welcoming.
• Fun Facts & Useful Tips:
  • Teenagers here are legally allowed to drink beer and wine at the age of 16, but 18 for spirits.
  • Bruges values the importance of education and it’s against the law to leave school before the age of 18 throughout Belgium.
  • Like the country, the city of Bruges recognized the institution of same-sex marriage since 2003, and it’s also legal to possess up to five grams of cannabis.
  • The country Belgium has distinctive regions including Dutch-speaking Flanders to the north (Bruges), French-speaking to the south and even German-speaking community to the east. In the capital Brussels you get both Dutch and French speaking.
  • On my opinion, the french-speaking people are not as friendly as the Dutch-speaking ones and they will be reluctant to speak English with you (perhaps it is a French thin, lol, since I have the same experience in Paris) – “Parlons Français!” (- Let’s speak French!”)
  • The movie “In Bruges” (2008) is a great crime/drama movie with a hint of black humor, performing Colin Farrell and written by Martin McDonagh. This is a must see movie if you want to get a better feel of what is to visit Bruges. You will also understand why Bruges is known by “a fairy tale town”, besides its obvious magical beauty.