Need your opinion

I am only able to travel once a year to Europe and am wondering about Bruges. I am seeking a beautiful town with alot of history that isn%26#39;t a tourist trap. Any recommendations for european cities or towns would be kindly appreciated.

|||

It might be useful to know your definition of a %26#39;tourist trap%26#39;. Brugge is touristy, very touristy, but so are Paris and London.

|||

I mean with lot%26#39;s of shops catering to tourists and trinkets to bring back home.

|||

There are a lot of souvenir shops for tourists in Bruges indeed, but when you stroll along the %26#39;normal%26#39; shopping streets (Steenstraat) you will find %26#39;normal%26#39; shops where Belgians go.

Have you considered Antwerp or Ghent as alternatives? Two beautiful cities full of history, but here history is mixed with vibrant contemporary culture.

I always think it%26#39;s such a pity that so many people seem to think that only Bruges and Brussels are worth visiting!

Take a look here:

http://www.visitgent.be/ and choose %26#39;EN%26#39; for English

And this is the Anwerp website:

http://www.antwerpen.be/

No matter what you decide to do: have fun!

|||

I will absolutely consider everything. I am not knowledgable about Belgium and the cities and appreciate any and all recommendations.

Thanks

|||

I agree with Kathleentjev. There%26#39;s more than Brugge (Bruges) in Belgium.

Knowing your definition of a tourist trap, no, Brugge is not a tourist trap in that sense. It is a bit %26#39;Disneylandish%26#39; compared to the other cities in Belgum (Gent, Antwerpen, Brussel) because it caters mainly to tourists. But it%26#39;s worthwhile, very scenic, very Flemish. It%26#39;s a small city, easily walkable and (IMO) not suitable to spend more than a few days.

How much time do you have to spend in Belgium?

If you have - say - a week, you could easily see the main cities of our country. A day in Brussels, 2 days in Brugge, 2 days in Antwerpen, 2 days in Gent.

|||

Hi,

I have about a week to spend. When you say Disneylandish what exactly do you mean? If I needed to pick one or two cities, which would you chose?

Thanks!

|||

With %26#39;Disneylandish%26#39; I mean that it looks as if the city is built for tourists. Which, of course, isn%26#39;t so. It%26#39;s a genuine historical city but the city lives mainly from tourism. I would not hesitate to visit Brugge, though. We often go there for a day and we always enjoy it very much.

Second city is a difficult choice for me. I lean towards Antwerpen because that%26#39;s the city where I%26#39;ve studied and worked and I live very near to Antwerpen. But Gent has also a lot to offer. Last week we made the city walk that we got at the tourist office. We did it in half a day because we ran out of time, but if you visit all the museums/churches on the way, and have a drink or a bite every now and then, you can easily fill a day. Yes, Gent is a very pretty city!

|||

-:- Message from TripAdvisor staff -:-

This topic was inactive for 6 months and has been closed to new posts. We hope you'll join the conversation by posting to an open topic or starting a new one.

To review the TripAdvisor Forums Posting Guidelines, please follow this link: http://www.tripadvisor.com/pages/forums_posting_guidelines.html

We remove posts that do not follow our posting guidelines, and we reserve the right to remove any post for any reason.

Removed on: 5:16 pm, October 05, 2009