Don’t worry, Belgium’s not too big; you can walk across it in about a day.
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We did it by train. Couple things to keep im mind though.
I don’t think the Europass is worth it only for 3-4 days. You can get 10 trip (inside Belgium only) cards for 73 Euros I think. This may be worth it. During the week-ends, there are 50% rebate for a "back and forth" trip anywhere in Belgium. Check the website b-rail.be for more info.
If you are there during week-ends, make sure that there is a train connections during week-ends for your destinations (and not only during week days... I made that mistake...).
Know that it will be very hard to get anywhere in the Ardennes (Orval, Fantôme, Bouillon Castle...) by train. Same thing with Westvleteren.
As far as to where you should establish your HQ, I liked Brussels a lot because I’m frenchspeaking and its way easier for me to get close to french speaking belgians. That being said, for an englishspeaker, I would say that Gent was a very nice place. Brugges is nicer but there are way too much french tourists.
However, if I was to go back to Belgium for 3-4 days, I would stay in Brussels to hit DHVL, Moeder Lambic (they have a new place opening in brussels center) Delirium, Drie Font and the bottle shops. It seems that with only 3-4 days on your hands, Brussels makes it easier to do a lot of stuff as there is a lot of great place not too far around so you won’t have to sit in the train half the day to go where you want.
You can BM me for details if you want.
Cheers
Fred
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I think Antwerpen needs to be added to the list, if not surplant Ghent. Brugge is lovely agreed and is easily worth the time to spend gazing and generally having a good time.
But Antwerpen is 40 mins from Brussels by train and you have a chance to have a go at the best beer cellar in the world at The Kulminator. Go, seriously, just go.
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I have been to Belgium over 70 times in the last 15 years. Forget Brussels. Ghent, Brugge and Antwerp are where it’s at for great beer and bars (probably in that order too).
Enjoy Belgian Beer Paradise.
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Thanks for all the great advice. I ended up sticking to Bruges for the duration of the trip, which for 3 days, was a perfect destination. Great city, great beer, and everyone speaks english. It was maybe a little more touristy (and therefore expensive) than I had expected, but otherwise a great place. Thanks again.
Max
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Glad to hear it! Next time try Ghent, almost identical to Bruges and less touristy.
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I liked Ghent, but there is no Church of Our Lady or Basilica or Belfort. I think Brugge is much prettier all around, with more to see.
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The cool thing about Europe is that MOST of it, the cities and travel routes, were well-developed long BEFORE the advent of cars. Particularly, WITHIN cities public transit can be unbelievably easy, and BETWEEN cities you will find well-supported rail links which everyone uses so they are comfortable, convenient & cheap.
The United States is kind of the opposite, to the extreme that in a city like Los Angeles you almost NEED a car to travel IN the city. Companies like Firestone made sure of this when they bought & then dismantled the LA streetcar system. Getting to or from such a city, It’s kind of ridiculous we don’t have high-speed trains crossing between major centers, and instead we rely too much on "cheap" air travel with it’s high carbon cost.
Which is a long-winded way of saying this: while the Automobile has spoiled most of North America, creating urban sprawl and a mentality "I must have a car" Europe has been spared this mess and many people do fine without if they choose. So, just go and don’t worry!
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Very sad. Maybe you need a decent guide.
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