Bruges was at the top of my wish list if we ever headed to Belgium.
Everything that I read, all of the pictures that I had seen, made me so very excited to visit this city. The City Centre (yes, the entire City Centre) is a designated World Heritage Site by UNESCO. This city makes you feel like you’ve walked into a fairy tale. I never wanted to leave.
If you’re in Belgium you should definitely add Bruges to your list of destinations. It’s a small city, so it only takes a couple of days to get through. You will definitely regret it if you don’t stop here.
Let’s go through what Two Days in Bruges can get you!
Visit the Basilica of the Holy Blood
This Roman Catholic Basilica is located inside De Burg (Burg Square). The Basilica dates back to 1134 and is home to the relic of the Holy Blood (which is said to be the Blood of Christ that was shed on the Cross). Regardless of your beliefs, this Basilica is worth visiting if you are fascinated with religious buildings like I am. It has been so well preserved and just oozes the Romanesque style. The rich colours and intricate patterns that you see all over the Basilica are mesmerizing.
I could spend hours just looking up and down the walls and at the stained glass windows.
Entry into the Basilica is free, but it is €5,00 to get into the museum and treasury room. You are able to enter every day of the week between 10 am and 5:15 pm but it is closed from 10:45 am to 12:15 pm for the celebration of the Eucharist, unless you wish to attend Holy Mass. Unfortunately, we did not enter the museum or treasury room, as we had tickets to go up the Belfry Tower and did not have the time, but if it’s your thing… do it!
If you’re looking for what there is to see in the museum/treasury room.. click here. While you’re here, make sure you get a good look around the Plaza De Berg. Here you can see Bruges City Hall and the old Bruges Court House which has been since turned into a museum.
Climb to the top of The Belfry Tower
The Belfry Tower is on the South side of Grote Markt. It is 83 meters high and was built in the 13th Century. There are 366 steps to the top, but there are different floor levels with information on the history of the tower, and the City, to read along the way. We love reading about the history and the break from climbing straight up to the top is necessary (however, I love a challenge and would do the steps straight up, any day. I am a bit obsessed with climbing bell towers).
The satisfaction from the view you get at the end of the climb is the real reason I like climbing these bell towers. This one didn’t disappoint either, just breathtaking. If you don’t like heights, like Trevor, it’s not as great of an experience, but he’s a good sport about it.
Tickets range from €12,00 – €14,00 depending on your age. I do suggest you book a time slot in advance as they do fill up quickly. We walked up without tickets and had to book a time slot later in the day, as the current time was full. It didn’t bother us at all, but if you have a full itinerary you don’t want to miss the Belfry. You can book online or you can book in person when you get there for a day later in your stay.
Take a canal cruise and see the sights of the city with a guide
This is not normally something we do. There are options to do this in Utrecht and Amsterdam and a lot of the other cities in Europe with canals. But up until this point, it just wasn’t on our radar.
It was such a beautiful, sunny day (not very windy either) and Bruges is such an incredible city that we thought, hey why not?!
The company that we went with was Bruges by Boat Rondvaarten De Meulemeester (Rondvaartboot De Meulemeester). You can walk up to the booth and buy a ticket right on the spot. There was a queue, but the boats fit quite a few people, so you won’t have to wait long. We went during the week, so I can’t speak to the weekend when everything is generally busier.
It was a really nice 35-minute cruise along the canals. The boat captain gave information on some of the bridges, buildings, and sites along the way. He spoke in different languages so everyone could understand and made a couple of funny jokes. The sun was starting to set, so it was an incredible view.
I think the most beautiful part of the boat cruise was when we ended up behind Our Lady of Bruges. The sun hit just right and it was a magical moment (that came with the most beautiful photo, see above!). If you’ve got the time and the weather is good, definitely hit up a boat cruise on your two days in Bruges.
Walk over to Minnewater Park &
see the Lake of Love & Lovers Bridge
I truly enjoyed walking through Minnewater Park. It is closer to the train station than the City Centre, but only by 6 minutes or so. I would suggest you get off the train and immediately walk through the park if you can. It’s a great introduction to Bruges. If not, no big deal, visit the park whenever it fits into your trip!
It is said that Minnewater Park is a place to find tranquillity in a rather busy city. They’re not wrong, the park was so quiet and peaceful. Not that Bruges is overly busy, but all you could hear in the park was nature; the water lapping on the shore of the lake, the birds chirping, and the wind blowing through the trees. We sat down on a bench and just … well sat … for a little while. It was a nice break in the middle of our day.
There are a couple of really neat stories about the park
First is the story of the Lovers’ Bridge, which you must walk onto and kiss your partner for good luck. The story goes that a young woman named Minna and a warrior, Stromberg, from a neighbouring tribe were star-crossed lovers. Basically, her Dad didn’t like him and arranged for her to marry another man that he chose (yuck). She ran away to the forest and by the time Stromberg ran after her and found her, she was so exhausted that she died in his arms (I’m not crying- you’re crying!) so the lake was named after her and he built the bridge in her honour.
There is also a legend about the swans in the park, some elves and the lace industry. But look those up yourself while you look into your trip to Bruges. I’m a sucker for a romantic story from time to time, so that’s why you got the Legend of Minna. I kind of also felt like a Disney princess walking through the park, perhaps Sleeping Beauty or Snow White, it’s just that fairy tale like.
Walk along the outskirts of the City Centre
to see the Ports and the Windmills
We normally like to put something on our tips list that isn’t “top of the tourist list” on our trips.
I know that we are tourists, and that’s why we’re fine getting sucked into climbing every bell tower possible, but we are always looking for something to do that’s off the beaten path.
Normally, it involves a cocktail bar frequently visited by locals
On this trip, however, we decided to take a walk along the outskirts of the City Centre. The City Centre of Bruges is surrounded by water (the Reie River) which connects to the North Sea. You can walk almost around the whole thing if you wanted (it would take forever) but if you’ve got some time and want to walk for an hour or two, I would definitely suggest it.
There were seven gates that formed a defensive belt around the city and four of them still remain; Ezelpoort, Gentpoort, Kruispoort & Smedenpoort. We saw the Gentpoort and the Kruispoort on our travels. The Damport gate, unfortunately, is no longer standing, but we did see the small lift bridge that is now there in its place.
We also made it to two windmills (which is more than what we can say we’ve seen in Amsterdam), the De Nieuwe Papegaai and Sint-Janshuismolen which are also along the same walk. It only took us about half an hour to make the venture, so if you have more time you could actually walk around the whole thing in just under 2 hours (says Google Maps).
Other noteworthy things to during your Two Days in Bruges;
Where we stayed during our Two Days in Bruges
Hotel Blabla
Hotel Blabla is a BEAUTIFUL 14-minute walk from the Bruges Station. It’s not a far saunter, but if you’re dragging a suitcase, beware, it’s cobblestone roads the whole way. You walk past Minnestone Park and through the fairy-tale-like streets of Bruges only to stumble upon this unique hotel where you’ll be staying.
The hotel is located right in the historic centre of the city, only a 7-minute walk from The Belfry of Bruges (you guessed it, cobblestone roads the whole way).
The hotel is really just the cutest. I’ve been trying to find a better word to describe it, but that’s the best one. It’s the cutest. All of the rooms have been recently renovated but it gives off such an old soul vibe.
We stayed in the Small Double Room. It was just the two of us and we only had carry-on backpacks, so it was perfect. It was on the first floor and offered a view of the street. Check-in was easy and the gentleman at the front desk was friendly and gave us a great suggestion for dinner and a drink (Rose Red- a definite must!).
The price was perfect and we were very happy to be so close to Noordzandstraat and Zuidzandstraat streets, which are busy with shops and restaurants. The hotel was tucked away on a side street which allowed us to keep our windows open at night without the sound of hustle and bustle to keep us awake.
Overall, we were delighted with our stay at Hotel Blabla. We would stay here again if our travels brought us back to Bruges.
Random Tips for your Two Days in Bruges
- Bring suitable shoes and watch your step. Bruges is all cobblestone roads.
- If someone tells you, while you’re in Bruges on a canal tour, to watch the movie “In Bruges” with Colin Farrell, just smile and say “okay!”. Then don’t watch it. Is it cool to see the sights in a movie, yes, but you can use the internet for that and save an hour and a half of your life. We didn’t even make it through the movie…it wasn’t great. This is just our opinion, but I thought I would share.
- As far as your luggage goes for Bruges, I would suggest having a backpack style instead of a wheeled bag. These streets will destroy your wheeled luggage. The cobblestones are beautiful but definitely not wheel-friendly. We watched multiple people struggle, pulling their luggage behind them down the streets, sidewalks and main roads alike. We have great PacSafe backpacks for when we travel (review coming soon!).
- If you’re going to Bruges in the summer check, out their list of festivals in Minnewater park. There is normally quite the line-up, including the Cactus Music Festival in July!
- Bruges is often referred to as “The Venice of the North”.
CLICK HERE to read about the Food in Bruges!