Belgium Travel Guide: 4 Cities, Costs and Itineraries
Medieval city centres, world-class beer, and a train network that makes moving hotels pointless.
Overview
Belgium is small enough that its four essential cities, Brussels, Bruges, Ghent, and Antwerp, sit within an hour or so of each other by train, and that single fact should shape how you plan the trip. Brussels is the EU capital and the transport hub, with a genuinely mixed food and museum scene under the shadow of its Grand Place. Bruges is the postcard: a preserved medieval core that draws day-trip coaches by the hundreds, beautiful and crowded in roughly equal measure. Ghent is the one most itineraries skip in favour of Bruges, and the one a lot of visitors end up preferring, a real working university city with the same canals and gabled houses and a fraction of the tour groups. Antwerp is different again: a fashion and diamond city with a serious art history, less quaint, more lived-in. Language matters here in a way it doesn't in most countries: Dutch runs Flanders (Bruges, Ghent, Antwerp), French runs Wallonia in the south, and Brussels is officially bilingual. Beer is not a side note. Belgium has more beer styles than any other beer-producing country, five of the world's ten authentic Trappist breweries, and UNESCO recognition for the culture around it. Base yourself in one city, usually Brussels or Ghent, and day-trip the rest. Moving hotels every night wastes time this country doesn't ask you to spend.
Best time to visit
May-September brings the warmest weather and the longest daylight for canal walks and square-side terraces, with July-August busiest and priciest, especially in Bruges. April, May, September, and October balance mild weather with noticeably thinner crowds and are the best overall window. Christmas markets make late November-December worthwhile despite the cold and short days.
- Mar-May
- Cool and often wet early on, warming by May, fewer tourists, lower hotel prices than summer.
- Jun-Aug
- Warmest and busiest, long daylight hours, peak Bruges crowds, highest hotel prices of the year.
- Sep-Oct
- Mild days, thinner crowds than summer, a strong shoulder-season pick for all four cities.
- Nov-Dec
- Cold and grey, but Christmas markets run in Brussels, Bruges, Ghent, and Antwerp from late November.
- Jan-Feb
- Coldest and greyest months, lowest prices, short days, best suited to museums and beer cafes.
Visa
Canadian passport holders do not need a visa for tourism, business, or study stays up to 90 days in any 180-day period across the whole Schengen area, which includes Belgium. This is cumulative across all Schengen countries combined, not 90 days per country. Your passport needs to be valid for at least 3 months past your planned departure from the Schengen area, and Belgian entry checks can ask for proof of onward travel and sufficient funds. ETIAS, the pre-travel screening that will apply to visa-exempt travellers including Canadians, has not launched; the EU's current target is 2027 after repeated earlier delays. Do not pay any third-party site claiming to process an ETIAS application now, it does not exist yet. Check travel.gc.ca and travel-europe.europa.eu/etias before you book.
Money
Currency: EUR. Card and contactless payment covers most of what a visitor needs: hotels, restaurants, museums, and trains all take card without issue. Some bakeries, market stalls, small fry stands (frituurs), and older cafes are cash-only or set a small card minimum, more so outside the big four cities than in them. Carry EUR 30-50 as backup. Service is included in the bill by law at restaurants and cafes (service compris), so tipping is not expected the way it is in North America. Rounding up the bill or leaving small change for good service is appreciated but optional. Taxi drivers get a similar round-up, not a percentage.
| Budget | Mid-range | Splurge |
|---|---|---|
| 70 | 150 | 300 |
Getting around
NMBS/SNCB, the national rail operator, connects Brussels, Bruges, Ghent, and Antwerp with frequent direct or one-change trains, none of the four journeys exceeding about 1.5 hours and most under an hour. Book at belgiantrain.be or just buy on the day; fares are cheap enough by Western European standards that advance booking saves little. Within each city, walking and trams/buses cover everything; Brussels also has a metro. A contactless bank card taps directly on most city transit systems. Renting a car adds cost and parking hassle for zero benefit on this route.
Connectivity
An eSIM from a provider like Airalo or Holafly, bought before you land, covers Belgium easily and activates in minutes. Physical SIMs from Proximus, Orange, or Base are available at Brussels Airport and city-centre shops, typically EUR 15-30 for a few weeks of data. Wifi is reliable in hotels, cafes, and train stations across all four cities.
Where to go
Antwerp
Belgium's fashion and diamond city, built around Rubens and a working port rather than a preserved postcard centre, with real edges and less polish than Bruges.
Bruges
A near-perfectly preserved medieval core on canals, gorgeous before 9am and after the coaches leave, a crush in between.
Brussels
Belgium's rail hub and capital, built around a gilded main square, a tiny statue everyone overrates, and a beer culture with actual depth behind it.
Ghent
The canal city Belgium's itineraries skip in favour of Bruges: a real medieval castle you can walk through, the Van Eyck altarpiece, and a working university town with a fraction of the tour groups.
Frequently asked questions
How many days do you need in Belgium?
A week covers Brussels, Bruges, Ghent, and Antwerp comfortably as day trips or short stays from one or two bases, since none of them requires more than a couple of days and the train links between them are under 1.5 hours each. A long weekend can cover two cities well; four to five days is the sweet spot for all four.
Should I base in one city or move hotels?
Base in one city, usually Brussels for its central rail position or Ghent for its more relaxed pace, and day-trip the rest. Every pair of the four cities is under 1.5 hours by direct train, so moving hotels each night wastes packing and check-in time this country doesn't require you to spend.
Is Bruges worth visiting if it's so crowded?
Yes, but plan around the crowd. Bruges takes the brunt of Belgium's day-trip coach traffic, and the historic centre between about 10am and 5pm can feel like a theme park. Staying overnight and walking the same streets at 7am or after the coaches leave in the early evening shows a completely different, quieter city.
Is Ghent better than Bruges?
Different, not simply better, though a lot of repeat visitors end up preferring it. Ghent has the same canals, gabled guild houses, and a genuine medieval castle, with a working university population and a fraction of Bruges' tour groups. Most itineraries skip it in favour of Bruges; that's the gap worth closing.
Do I need to speak French or Dutch in Belgium?
No, but it helps to know which one applies where. Flanders (Bruges, Ghent, Antwerp) is Dutch-speaking, Wallonia is French-speaking, and Brussels is officially bilingual French and Dutch. English is widely spoken in hotels, restaurants, and shops in all four cities covered here.
What makes Belgian beer culture different?
Scale and range: Belgium has more distinct beer styles than any other beer-producing country, from Trappist ales to lambics and sours, and UNESCO recognised the culture around it in 2016. Five of the world's ten authentic Trappist breweries (monastery-brewed, monk-overseen) are Belgian: Chimay, Orval, Rochefort, Westmalle, and Westvleteren.