Ghent, bigger and better than Bruges (picture heavy travel report)
Summary
If you want to take your girlfriend to a romantic weekend in Bruges, take her to Ghent instead. It is not far between them so you can do both in a long weekend but Ghent should be prioritized over Bruges. The buildings in Bruges are slightly older (in total war terms it would be high period and late period) but Ghent have the advantage of being a city with a good nightlife, lower prices and the best hostel I have ever visited (out of ~15 European and ~25 Swedish hostels I have been to). Personally I also find the more gothic look of Ghent to be more appealing.
Major attractions in Ghent are the three towers, Gravenstein castle and many opportunities to sit down and have a good beer while surrounded by beautiful buildings and lovely channels. I was there in late September and found the weather pleasant (please note I am Swedish so my perspective may be a bit skewed). It is not a very spectacular city but it’s central location in Western Europe makes it a good target for a weekend trip.
Background
I went to Ghent on a conference and then stayed there for a few days to have a nice weekend with my fiancée. We visited both Bruges and Ghent and the travel report from Bruges can be read here.
I have also attached a map showing the places I found notable to supplement the images.
Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
Korenmarkt, an old market area that is one of the most appreciated places to sit outside and drink beer. It is very touristy but a very nice location so it is worth sitting down there despite the mildly inflated prices and mediocre cafés/pubs. The conference organizers organized an event at a pub named Denis Foley's which is an Irish themed cellar pub (with Irish/British beer). This felt a bit stupid but it turned out quite nice since I got the opportunity to try Martin’s pale ale which is one of my favorite beers.
The southern end of the Korenmarkt and view toward the central parts of the old city.
I don’t remember the name of the city square but it is marked out on the map as my favourite spot for crisps and a very nice pub (Dulle Griet). Belgian pubs do not serve food so it is highly recommended to buy a large serving of crisps with sauce before heading to the pub.
Dulle Griet is a very nice pub with young customers and 1 L beer glasses that you have to deposit a shoe to use. I had a great time there with four Slovakians, an Englishman and a Malaysian bioinformatician.
View from Gravenstein castle towards the three towers of Ghent. From left to right Sint-Baafskathedraal, the Belfry and Sint Niklaaskerk. You can see the Korenmarkt to the left of the image just right of the narrow clocktower. Gravenstein castle, the Belfry and Sint Baafskathedraal are the three major historical buildings to visit in Ghent.
Gravenstein castle from up close. It is not very spectacular compared to other European castles but it is worth visit when you are in Ghent.
The castle viewed from the top of the Belfry
One of the dragons kept in storage in the Belfry. The first metal dragon was put at the top of the tower in the 1380s when the tower was completed. The dragon has been replaced several times but the remains of them are still kept on exhibition in the Belfry. I think the dragon on this picture is from the 19th century and was replaced in the 1980s. There is also a quite good beer named Gulden Draak that show the dragon on its label.
Sint Niklaaskerk viewed from the Belfry. They were conducting some sort of archeological investigation when I was there and it showed how much higher the current streets are compared to when the city was originally established (the cellar was originally the ground floor). Sint Niklaaskerk is currently undergoing renovation and on the north eastern side you can see how the outside of it originally looked.
Sint Baafskathedraal, it is not very beautiful on the outside but the inside is among the most beautiful I have ever seen. The marble and wooden artwork inside is exquisite.
Spoiler Alert, click show to read:
The City hall, nice looking but nothing for tourists on the inside I think. Evenings in Ghent are however highly enjoyable due to an efficient usage of spotlights to illuminate the historical buildings.
South of the historical city center you have the more modern city centre with a good night life.
The red light district got shop windows just like the more famous one in Amsterdam. It is strongly advised to avoid it on monday afternoons. The whole place stinks of ammonia and the women are ugly, I do not know if the women are better looking at more active hours.
Andromeda Ecohostel, an excellent hostel which is perfect to meet nice people or to spend a romantic weekend. I consider it to be one of the best reasons to visit Ghent since the combination of a nice historical city center and a highly romantic hostel makes it suitable for romantic weekends on a limited budget.
To sit down on the veranda with a good Belgian beer and pet the cat is a perfect break between an afternoon of sightseeing and an evening of pubs or night clubs.
The hostel is as you saw on the image a converted barge which has been converted to a hostel with dorm rooms and double rooms. I spoke a bit with the owners about their building philosophy and they have taken a lot of notice not only to eco-friendliness but also to other common issues with hostels. Therefore they have taken extra care to things such as sound proofing between the common room and the dorm rooms.
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Originally Posted by Taxandrius
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