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Bruges and Ghent - Belgium's Fairytale Cities - from Brussels

Brussels, Belgium

From $53.64

Select Date and Travelers

up to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)

10 hours 30 minutes
Mobile ticket
Offered in: English

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Overview

Immerse yourself in the medieval majesty and rich historical heritage of Ghent and Bruges on a full-day trip from Brussels. Accompanied by a knowledgeable guide, marvel at the UNESCO-listed city of Ghent as you visit legendary landmarks like the Castle of the Counts, St. Bavo’s Cathedral, and the picturesque old port. Then, travel through the verdant Belgian countryside to Bruges in order to witness the architectural beauty and winding waterways of the iconic city. Stroll quaint cobbled streets on the way to Market Square and absorb the sacred ambiance of the Basilica of the Holy Blood during your comprehensive tour of the city.

Full-day trip to the UNESCO-listed cities of Ghent and Bruges from Brussels
Discover top city attractions such as St. Bavo’s Cathedral and the Castle of the Counts of Flanders in Ghent
Take a scenic drive through the Belgian and Flemish countryside
Wander the cobbled streets around Bruges’ romantic Minnewater (Lake of Love)
Explore City Hall, the Market Square, and the medieval Basilica of the Holy Blood with your guide

What's Included

Professional multilingual guide
Air-conditioned vehicle
Radios and earphones

Gratuities
Hotel pick up & drop-off
Food and drinks
Boat trip on the Bruges canals (upon availability at an extra cost)

Meeting and Pickup

Meeting point

Bd de Berlaimont 18, 1000 Bruxelles, Belgium
Look for our staff and the Keolis coach outside the National Bank of Belgium.

Start time

09:00 AM

End point

This activity ends back at the meeting point.

What To Expect

Depart from Brussels in a spacious, air-conditioned vehicle and get acquainted with your knowledgeable guide during the scenic journey to Ghent. Disembark at the UNESCO World Heritage-listed city, considered one of Belgium’s most beautiful, and embark on a comprehensive tour with your accomplished guide.

Begin at the sacred structure of St. Bavo’s Cathedral, home to late-medieval treasures like the ‘Mystic Lamb’ painting. Delve into the building's rich history by listening to your guide’s commentary (entrance optional) and then embark on an explorative walking tour of Ghent to see the city’s most legendary landmarks.

Meander through charming streets to the Castle of the Counts of Flanders (Gravensteen), St. Nicholas’ Church, and the ancient port of Graslei as your guide recounts local legends and entertaining anecdotes.

After your enriching tour, return to your vehicle and travel to the beguiling city of Bruges to witness more historical wonders.

On arrival, stroll the quaint cobbled streets of the UNESCO-listed city to Minnewater (Lake of Love) and revitalize with lunch at a café overlooking the beautiful body of water (own expense). Afterward, begin your walking tour of the splendid city and see cultural highlights like the City Hall, Market Square, and the Basilica of the Holy Blood.

Opt to see Bruges from a different perspective during an idyllic boat tour of the city’s winding waterways at your own expense. After thorough exploration, return to your comfortable vehicle and relax during the journey back to Brussels, where the tour concludes.

Belfry and Cloth Hall (Belfort en Lakenhalle) (Pass By)

Graslei and Korenlei (Pass By)

St. Bavo's Cathedral (Sint-Baafskathedraal)

Admission Ticket Free

Gravensteen (Pass By)

Saint Nicholas Church

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Basilica of the Holy Blood

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekerk

15 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Stadhuis

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Minnewater Lake

15 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Burg Square

20 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

The Princely Beguinage Ten Wijngaarde

10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Historic Centre of Brugge

30 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Not wheelchair accessible
Stroller accessible
Near public transportation
Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level

Access to the Mystic Lamb at St Bavo's Cathedral is not possible on Sundays
Comfortable walking shoes are recommended
Our guides are pleased to guide the tours in English, Spanish and/or French depending on the language need of our guests on the tour
Please note that we cannot accomodate latecomers
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 200 travelers

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.

Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.
This experience requires a minimum number of travelers. If it’s canceled because the minimum isn’t met, you’ll be offered a different date/experience or a full refund.

Frequently Asked Questions

The answers provided below are based on answers previously given by the tour provider to customers’ questions.

Q:What time do we stop for lunch on the Belgium's Fairytale Cities Tour?

A:Lunch is usually between 12:00pm - 2:00pm. The time is subject to change.

Jun 2023

Traveler Photos

Featured review

Ann_L

I would highly recommend the tour. I am a solo traveler to Europe for about 18 days. I was on a English/Spanish tour. The tour guide Andrea was so impressive on explaining the history of both cities. Both places are beautiful just like the way they described. The price for the tour was very reasonable for a 10 hours informative day trip. I will definitely do it again with Viator.

Reviews

4.0

3,802 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travelers.

We perform checks on reviews

Showing 1-10 of 3,802 reviews

Emerging Experirnce

Patricia_O, May 2024

Our guide Stephan brought to life these magnificent cities with his extensive knowledge of its centuries of history. He was entertaining and vigilant in keeping the group together. We would highly recommend this tour, however it requires stamina and timeliness on the part of the participant. The bilingual aspect of the tour limits the time the guide can focus on participants questions.

WOW! Great views and history of Belgium

Steve_P, May 2024

Fantastic views and experiences with a good mix of free time and scheduled. These cities are amazing in their history and scenary.

Very good trip to two wonderful cities!

Nannette_R, May 2024

We really enjoyed this excursion and our guide, Bruno, was wonderful! However, we did not realize all of the narrative would also be given in French and that was a bit much to have everything repeated twice! Also, there were two serious safety concerns. First, our bus driver Giuseppe accepted at least 3 cell phone calls that I personally saw. Secondly, he had two thin yellow cloths placed down on the first two steps and when we got to our first location (Ghent), the young lady sitting next to me tripped/slid on one of them and literally fell down the four sharp stairs and onto the road/curb! It was a very bad fall and she could have really hurt herself!! Bruno picked up the cloths and placed them on the dash, but when we returned later I saw the bus driver had again put them right back down even though we had already had a very bad fall! This would have been a real legal issue in the U.S., and rightly so! I do have a picture of the towels on the stairs I am willing to share.

Perfect day out

Maria_H, May 2024

Perfect day out! Both Ghent & Bruges was very enjoyable! Driver and tour guide were very entertaining and knowledgeable Would recommend this tour to visitors 😀

Great experience

Jessie_L, May 2024

Bruno and Guiseppe made this a remarkable trip. Bruno has an incredible knowledge of what he shows with fun facts and jokes to go along with it.

Brussels trip

Sharon_H, May 2024

Two really lovely cities , great tour guide Veronica , well organised , great explanation , comfortable coach ,

Walking in Bruges

Elmer_P, May 2024

We like very much the ancient architecture. Nice surrounding and walkable attractions. Would highly recommend you try this tour.

Magical medieval city!

sueellen_d, May 2024

Bruges was magical and a beautiful midieval city!! We opted to buy the ticket to see Michaelangelo’s mother and child there- such an honor to see!

If you are looking for a proper English Speaking Tour, give it a miss

Suresh_P, May 2024

The trip started and finished on time, which was good. The guide appeared to be a little rushed (we lost him a few times), and the options for a decent vegetarian food at lunchtime are extremelly limited. We went to the place recommended by the tour guide, and could only get ONE item in the menu that was vegetarian and nothing that was vegan. However, the biggest disappointment was that we booked an English language tour, and our guide who was otherwise a very friendly person, spoke 80% of the time in Spanish. It ruined our experience, as the commentary was extremely disjointed and very hard to follow. Another minor complaint: while the tour ticket/website that it will finish at the starting point, in reality, it shopped 300-400m away, which inconvenienced us greatly.

Wonderful trip

amritanaik, May 2024

Stefan our tour guide was exceptional and so knowledgeable and humorous! He really gave us the best tour experience. Brugges was beautiful and we were able to see a lot on the trip. Would have been lovely to stay here overnight.

Show some enthusiasm

Wendy_V, May 2024

Have been on many tours. Guide was going thru the motions. While I loved visiting the towns, I was very unimpressed with the guide who did little to make a bad weather day memorable.

English Tour in French

Paul_S, May 2024

Paid and booked for an English tour. Turns out that this actually means 60% of the tour would be in French. Not very informative. We left the tour in Ghent. Would not recommend

We had a great time. Well worth the ticket price.

Deborah_M, May 2024

We had a very nice tour thanks to Stefan, our guide and Mahomet, our driver. Stefan’s extensive knowledge of the history of Ghent and Bruges was very impressive and delivered with style and flair and good humor. He was not boring. Mahomet was waiting for us when we finished and got us home safe and sound.

Very historical and now I understand the name

Alexandra_N, May 2024

Loved it, wasn't very pumped because of the "fairy tale" part because I was worried it was going to be tourist trap, but not at all. It was very historical and now I understand why the name. 100% recommend.

It was a good mix of guided tour and free time to explore.

Marcia_P, May 2024

Bruges is a must see when in Belgium. It was a long day but we were able to see and do a lot it was well worth the price. We did elect to do the canal boat trip which was an additional fee. We enjoyed it.

Not so good

JohnC_K, May 2024

Bruges was the best. The guide walked too fast leaving people behind !!! The guide realy walked to fast

Fantastic trip...

Carole_P, May 2024

Outstanding tour guide Stefan. An excellent trip from start to finish. Highly recommended for adults.

Opportunity Missed

WilliamD_W, May 2024

I was personally very disappointed in this tour. My reason for selecting it was that I had one day in Brussels and wanted to see Ghent and Bruges. In Ghent my prime interest was in the Ghent Altarpiece. I asked our guide (Josephine)when would we be near the Altarpiece so my wife and I could see it. She indicated that it was our last stop. However, when we arrived at St Bavo she said we only had 25 minutes until the bus was leaving for Bruges. There was a line to get in so we had no time to enter. A huge disappointment. The guide was more interested in her home town Bruges. There is only two hours in Ghent and more than four hours in Bruges with over an hour of free time. Why not balance the times between the two cities?

I really enjoyed our...

Vallery_L, May 2024

I really enjoyed our guide, Stephen. While obviously the sites were amazing, his knowledge and humor made it even better

Highlight of our trip

Tracey_M, May 2024

We absolutely loved visiting these two amazing locations. Our tour guide Stefan was well versed in history and humorous

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