Visiting Ghent in a weekend: our must-sees

We are in early March, the days are starting to get longer and the weather is getting milder, the conditions are ideal for visiting one of Belgium's most important cities: Ghent.

We set out to explore this student city, its bell towers, canals, castle, parks,... so many points of interest that we detail in this article!

During our stay in Ghent, we used the Gent City Card with which we had access to many monuments, all public transport and also some museums for free!
You can choose to buy a card valid for 48h or 72h, the prices vary depending on the duration.

Saturday morning, we wake up early to see the sun rise over the city and we enjoy the quiet streets to discover the city of Ghent on foot away from the usual hustle and bustle.

We stop at Korenmarkt in front of St. Nicholas' Church to enjoy the rising sun's rays. The light filters between the three towers of St. Nicholas' Church, the Ghent Belfry and St. Bavo Cathedral.

We then reach the banks of the Lys, a river that allowed the city of Ghent to establish itself as a strategic trading city during the Middle Ages. Many buildings dating from that period and dedicated to commerce are still visible today, such as the Francs-Bateliers house or the Korenstapelhuis, which served as a grain warehouse.

We continue our journey along the Lys and cross at the Vleeshuisbrug, which offers a remarkable view of the Lys winding between the houses of the old city.

Having crossed the Lys, we arrive at Sint Veerleplein, where we observe the imposing Château des Comtes de Flandres, which seems to have appeared out of nowhere. This castle plays a significant role in Ghent's history; we'll detail a visit to the location a little further on in the article 😉

Sint Veerleplein was, in its time, the entrance to the fish market halls.

Today, these converted halls house the city of Ghent's tourist office and a banquet hall, and still have their impressive gate, which is definitely worth seeing!

We resume our walk along the Lys River towards the Zuivelbrug which we cross to return to the city center. On the way we pass through Graffiti Street, a true paradise for artists and street art enthusiasts.

In Graffiti Street there are no limits, everyone is free to express their art with spray cans as long as it respects other artists and residents, it is therefore a work of art in perpetual evolution.

Exiting Graffiti street, we head towards Gand Town Hall, which we follow until we reach the foot of the Belfry of Ghent. A true symbol of the city, we detail its visit a little further on in the article 😉

Before returning to our starting point, we decide to visit St. Nicholas' Church, whose entrance is on the side, along Cataloniëstraat.

The construction of the St. Nicholas church began in the 13th century, making this monument one of the oldest in the city of Ghent.
Like many monuments built at the time in the County of Flanders, the church's architecture is of Scaldian Gothic type, a style that combines both Romanesque and Gothic architectural concepts.

Undoubtedly the most famous symbol of the city of Ghent, the Castle of the Counts of Flanders was built in the late 12th century by Philip of Alsace who wanted a residence worthy of his ambitions. He wanted everyone to understand how rich and powerful he was just by laying eyes on his castle.

Such a monument was certainly a witness to many historical events that we discover during its visit.

We chose to take advantage of the audio guide included in the ticket price to learn a little more about the castle and the life of Philip of Alsace, in the company of Wouters who will give us precise explanations about every corner of the castle without ever forgetting a touch of humor always well placed 😉

Iconic building of the city of Ghent, the Belfry is a building built during the 14th century. It is listed as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO and is one of the most important belfries in the country!
At the time, the Ghent belfry served as a watchtower from which four watchmen monitored the surroundings. It still houses the city's bells but is mainly a very well-known tourist attraction in the city of Ghent.

Its visit is very interesting, tracing the history of the city we learn a little more about its construction, the life of the watchmen but also that of the fire-breathing dragon located at its summit!

But beyond the history of this monument, if what is really worth the detour during the visit of the Belfry of Ghent, it is the unobstructed view it offers on the city and St. Nicholas Church!

The river Lys played a very important role in the development of the city, making Ghent a strategic trading point. It is possible today to discover the history of the city of Ghent by enjoying a guided tour on the Lys.

We boarded the boats of "De Bootjes van Gent" and, during a guided tour of approximately 40 minutes, we explored the canals of the medieval city, enjoying this great way to discover the city of Ghent.

If you love botany, we really recommend visiting the Ghent University Botanical Garden. It's located along the Citadel Park, about 30 minutes from the city center by public transport.

The botanical garden includes a garden arranged as a very pleasant little park where you can already discover many species of flowers and plants, but what particularly attracted us to this botanical garden were its greenhouses in which species from different parts of the world are preserved, ranging from the most tropical to the most arid environments!

You will have understood, the city of Ghent is full of cultural wonders and is one of the art cities of Flanders! It is therefore quite natural that the city has had its article on the Art Cities Flanders website, which offers a detailed itinerary to discover the city and all its corners.

With its status as the most populous student city in Belgium, Ghent had to offer significant gastronomic diversity and the least that can be said is that you will have no trouble finding a place that suits you to eat!

Mémé Gusta is a brasserie restaurant specializing in traditional meat dishes.
Located in a former house near the Château des Comtes de Flandre, we enjoyed the atmosphere and had a very good meal! (special mention for the small peeled prawns served with the aperitif which were truly delicious 😋)

The restaurant Lepelblad aims to offer organic, seasonal cuisine with ingredients from local producers.

We enjoyed good refined dishes and had a lovely evening in the warm atmosphere of the restaurant located on the ground floor of a beautiful, recently renovated period house.

If you're looking for a place offering delicious vegan meals, Knol & Kool is the perfect address!
Located in a small alley perpendicular to the Catalonïestraat, this establishment welcomes us in a modern atmosphere offering a wide selection of vegan dishes. We recommend trying their speculoos cheesecake for dessert or as a snack, which is incredible!

Slightly off the beaten path, this vegetarian address full of pep offers breakfasts, brunchs, lunches or even afternoon snacks with quality vegetarian products that will delight your taste buds!

The ideal way to visit Ghent is to spend a weekend, but for that you need a place to sleep! We spent the night at the B&B Hotel Ghent which is located in the very city center in the commercial streets, 250m from the KorenMarkt and all the city center attractions!