All main attractions of ghent are located at a few kilometers from our bed and breakfast.
The ancient graslei, St. Bavo's, the Belfry and Carollon, the Castle of the Counts...
We will be pleased to inform you about all curiosities of Ghent and we can provide you with plenty of documentation and maps of Ghent.
We have information about relaxing canal cruises in ghent.
Don't miss the "three towers of ghent" :
- The Saint Nicholas Church, built 12th-14th century in pure Schelde-gothic style.
A marvelous church with a troubled past: the original church built around 1050 was destroyed in two subsequent fires in the 12th century,
the newly erected church threatened to collapse in the 14th century and needed reinforcement,
used as a horse stable during the French Revolution, and again badly in need of reinforcement this century.
The church is getting into its last stages of restoration at the moment.
- The Belfort ("belfry") (13th century) and Lace Hall (15th century).
Hours : Mid-Mar to mid-Nov daily 10am-1pm and 2-6pm; free guided tours Easter and May-Sept Tues-Sun 2:10, 3:10, 4:10pm
Location : Sint-Baafsplein
Phone : 09/223-99-22
Prices : Admission 3€ adults, 1.75€ seniors/students, .90€ children under 12
The Belfort belfry was a symbol of the power of the guilds and the city.
In the lowest room were kept the precious charters and documents granting privileges
to the city and its merchants.
When you take the elevator up to the Belfry's upper gallery, 66m (215 ft.) high, you can see both the bells and a fantastic panoramic view of the city.
The carillon in the tower has 44 bells and is one of the finest in Europe.
The Belfry holds the great bells that have rung out Ghent's civic pride down through the centuries, the most beloved being a 1315 giant known as Roeland,
destroyed by Charles V in 1540 as a punishment for Ghent's latest act of insubordination.
No fewer than 37 of the 54 bells that now make up the huge carillon are from the remains of Roeland.
The enormous copper dragon on top of the spire dates from 1377.
The Cloth Hall dates from 1425 and was the gathering place of wool and cloth merchants.
- The Saint Baaf Cathedral, built 1274-1569, principal cathedral of Ghent, houses one of the most important Flemish paintings, "The Adoration of the Lamb of God" by Jan and Hubert Van Eyk.
Address: Sint Baafsplein (entrance: Gandastraat)
Phone: 09 225 1626
Open: Cathedral: daily 8:30-6, Apr.-Oct.; 8:30-5, rest of year. Closed Sun. morning & church holidays.
Ghent Altar and Crypt: Mon.-Sat. 9:30-5, Sun. 1-5, Apr.-Oct.; Mon.-Sat. 10:30-4, Sun. 2-5, rest of year
Restaurant: St.-Jorishof-Cour St.-Georges
Bus: 16, 17, 18, 19, 38; tram 12, 41
Admission: Cathedral free; altar and crypt €2-€4 (includes audio guide)
Graslei and Korenlei are the two wharves flanking the medieval harbor Tussen Bruggen (meaning between the bridges) that lies to the north of the bridge of St. Michielsbrug. Their names relate to their role in the early grain trade; their flanking buildings were the trade and guild houses of the medieval period, carefully restored for the World Exhibition of 1913. The facades of these magnificent buildings offer an impression of Ghent in the days when the wharves were alive with the raucous, colorful world of medieval trade.
Gravensteen (Castle of the Counts)
Hours : Apr-Sept daily 9am-6pm; Oct-Mar daily 9am-5pm
Location : Sint-Veereplein
Phone : +32(0)92693730
Prices : 6.20€ (adults), 2.50€ (seniors/students and ages 12-26), under 12 free
Season : Closed Jan 1-2, Dec 25-26
The Castle of the Counts was built by Philip of Alsace, Count of Flanders, shortly after he returned from the Crusades in 1180.
According to local legend the count built on foundations originally laid down by Count Baldwin Iron Arm in the 800s.
If the castle's walls, 2m (6 ft.) thick, battlements, and turrets failed to intimidate attackers, the count could always turn to a well-equipped torture chamber inside.
You can view relics of that chamber -- a small guillotine, spiked iron collars, racks, branding irons, thumb screws, and a special kind of pitchfork designed to make certain that people being burned at the stake stayed in the flames -- in a small museum in the castle. On a happier note, if you climb to the ramparts of the high building in the center, the donjon, your reward is a great view of Ghent's rooftops and towers.
Just make sure you bring your camera !