If you’re looking for the best day trips from Ghent, look no further!
Ghent, a beautiful city in Belgium, is the perfect spot for a memorable day trip. Whether you’re looking for a peaceful escape from the hustle and bustle of urban life or an active adventure, Ghent has something to offer everyone. From its picturesque inner city canals to its many historical attractions, there are plenty of options for exploring this charming city and its surrounding areas.
From bike tours through cobblestone streets to boat cruises on tranquil canals and beyond, Ghent offers an array of unique experiences that will leave you with lasting memories.
In addition to the local attractions such as Gravensteen Castle and St. Bavo’s Cathedral, several nearby villages and towns offer their own cultural riches and activities—perfect for day trips away from Ghent’s larger city center. Whether you’re interested in visiting quaint Belgian cafes or exploring ancient ruins, Ghent is the perfect place to find your ideal getaway experience.
For those looking to explore the area just outside Ghent’s city limits, countless opportunities await to be discovered—from biking trails around meandering waterways to strolling along quaint cobblestone streets lined with colorful townhouses.
For those seeking a little more activity during their trip, nearby beaches offer fantastic places for swimming or building sandcastles during summer months or walking along sea cliffs during wintertime.
For outdoor enthusiasts wanting something more rigorous, day hikes take visitors through parks filled with towering pines and fragrant flowering bushes, past stunning vistas at each turn. No matter what type of adventure you seek, Ghent has it all!
Spend a day in Bruges—just half an hour away by train—and enjoy wandering amidst medieval architecture while sampling some world-renowned Belgian chocolates or waffles. In Ypres—about an hour away by car—take in views of silent battlefields while paying homage at iconic monuments honoring those who fought during WWI within its hallowed halls. Or take a trip back into history at nearby Tournai, where Gothic cathedrals dating back centuries stand guard atop hilltop fortresses offering sweeping views across lush valleys far below them.
No matter what direction your travels take you, one thing is certain: when you visit Ghent for a day trip, you won’t be disappointed!
Do you need help planning your trips? Start here!
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Top Day Trips from Ghent, Belgium
Brussels
Ghent and Bruges‘ day trip to Brussels is mesmerizing. Brussels is known as the heart of Europe. It grew from the rural settlement on the Senne River and had become the major city region in Europe. It has become a prominent center for global politics, and it houses a lot of tourist attractions.
It is the de facto capital as there are a lot of EU institutions, and Brussels is often used to describe its establishments. You can take regular trains from Brussels to Ghent to have panoramic city views.
Brussels has a lot of outdoor and indoor activities to enjoy. You will find a lot of attractions, even when it rains every day. The Shower Radar, Buienradar, shows clouds’ real-time status and estimates rainfall predictions. It can tell when it will rain at your location with an accuracy of 10 minutes.
Where to stay in Ghent? Book your hotel and find great deals from this link!
Read full blog posts: Things to do in Brussels and Day trips from Brussels
Bruges
Bruges has kept most of its medieval architecture alive. So, it has been known as one of the most preserved medieval towns in Belgium. This historic center is ranked as UNESCO World Heritage Site.
It has many remarkable medieval buildings, such as the Church of Our Lady, one of the world’s highest brick buildings or towers. Madonna and Child is an ancient sculpture, which can be spotted in the transept. It is the only statue by Michelangelo that left Italy during his lifetime.
The 13th-century belfry is the most famous landmark here in Bruges. It houses a municipal carillon, which consists of 48 bells. The train from Ghent to Bruges takes you through many tourist attractions.
Where to stay in Ghent? Book your hotel and find great deals from this link!
Read also: What to Pack for Winter in Europe + Printable Ladies Packing List!
Antwerp
Antwerp has many attraction centers and is well connected to the north of the Netherlands and Essen; to the south to Mechelen; to the east to Turnhout, Charleroi, and Brussels. International trains also link it to Paris and Amsterdam, and national trains to Bruges, Ghent, Ostend, Brussels, Charleroi, and other cities.
Regarding tourist attractions, Antwerp Central station is a sightseeing attraction in itself; before it was completed in 2007, the tunnel used to run northwards under the heart of the city to reach the old Antwerp Dam station.
Where to stay in Ghent? Book your hotel and find great deals from this link!
Read also: Top Tourist Attractions and Things to do in Ghent
Are you planning your travels? Here’re my top travel resources!
I’m a serial planner both in life and in travel – I have bucket lists, things to do, see, and everything. So, I always love when my life is sorted easily using tools and resources that would make my general planning a little smoother and easier. Therefore, in my many years of traveling the world, I’ve seen myself returning to these travel resources repeatedly. And here I am, sharing my tips to make your life easy and breezy so you can stress less, travel heaps, and focus on the fun part of travel!
- Booking.com – I book all my hotels through this website and don’t honestly use anything else. They always have the best prices, in my opinion.
- Airbnb – If I’m traveling long-term to one destination, I book my flats through Airbnb.
- Skyscanner – The best place to find cheap flights on flexible dates. I use this a lot to score cheap flights within Europe!
- SafetyWing – Always travel insured! Never leave your home country without one. It is worth the extra money, I promise you!
- GetYourGuide – Hands-down, the best place to find cool and unique tours if you don’t feel like winging it, and go straight to a local expert. I use this a lot in new destinations to get acquainted with the area!
- My Pretty Wild World Travel Diary (coming soon) – A book you can write down your travel plans, create itineraries, track down your budget, and dot down memories along the way! A handy book you can keep and read later to revisit memory lane.
- Pretty Wild World Travel Planning Printables (coming soon) – Are you a nut like me when it comes to planning? Yes? Good. My travel planning resource in one zip file is an easy-to-use printable planner that comes with tips that helps you plan your travels during the planning stage, a pre-flight checklist, an itinerary planner, and so on.
Diksmuide
Diksmuide is known for its belfry, which has a carillon of 30 bells. It is one of many belfries of France and Belgium listed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Diksmuide is located near several military cemeteries, including the German War Cemetery, which is a resting hub for over 25000 German soldiers.
Around 1.5 km from the heart of the city, there is the Trench of Death, which houses the trench setting were Belgian soldiers survived and battled under very extreme conditions until the final war in September 1918.
Where to stay in Ghent? Book your hotel and find great deals from this link!
Read also: Top 10 Best Christmas Markets in Europe
Ypres
The Romans once conquered this ancient medieval town, Ypres, in the 1st Century BC. It is well known for its Town Centre. The impressive Cloth Hall was constructed in the 13th century and was among the leading commercial complexes in the Middle Ages.
After the war, the town of Ypres was rebuilt well with money paid in reparations by Germany. The main square houses the Town Hall, and the Cloth Hall was restored as near to the original designs. The structure is a replica of the ancient medieval building. The Cloth Hall houses the In Flanders Fields museum, which is devoted to the role of Ypres in World War I.
The Menin Gate Memorial to the Missing is a tribute to the brave soldiers who fell in Ypres Salient during World War I before August 16, 1917. Another significant sight here is the War Graves, in which both the Central Powers and Allied sides cover the land across Ypres.
Followed by Bruges and Ghent, Ypres is the third-largest city in the County of Flanders. It played a vital role in the textile industry. Textiles could be found in Novgorod markets in Kievan Rus in the early 12th century.
Where to stay in Ghent? Book your hotel and find great deals from this link!
Read also: Top 10 Beautiful Castles in Belgium
Tournai
Also known as Doornik in Dutch, Tournai is a Walloon municipality in Belgium, and it is located 85km southwest of Brussels on the Scheldt river. Tournai is situated in Hainaut province and is among the oldest cities in the country. It played a vital role in the cultural history of Belgium.
Tournai is known among the prominent cultural attractions. The mixed Gothic- and Romanesque-style cathedral and the belfry are known to be the oldest in Belgium. It has been ranked a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. The Chasse de Notre-Dame Flamande is a striking ornate reliquary from the 12th century.
Where to stay in Ghent? Book your hotel and find great deals from this link!
Read also: The 10 Inspiring Destinations Worth Visiting in Europe
Hold up! Have you thought about the importance of travel insurance?
Remember this: anything can happen. Travel is fun, but your health is more important; thus, I always, always, always recommend getting insured during the duration of your trip. I have benefitted from having one multiple times, and it has been covered for thousands of euros!
The latest one is not necessarily “health” related – it was during the peak of the unspeakable terrible C that consumed the world. I was living in Vietnam when I received an email from SafetyWing (my travel insurance) that if I want they’ll fly be back home to Finland as the world goes through a global emergency alert. I flew back fully covered, and dealing with SafetyWing was a breeze despite the roar of people in contact with them trying to get back home.
I can’t highly recommend them enough. Otherwise, I rarely get sick; hence I don’t always need to head to a hospital, but knowing that I have travel insurance makes me feel safe at the very least.
Read my post about why you should get travel insurance for more information. Otherwise, you can get a free quote from SafetyWing – they’re the best, in my opinion.
De Haan
De Haan is a coastal village known for its low skyline. Most of the buildings here are visible prominently. The town has an 18-hole golf course founded by King Leopold II in 1903. It is the only link course in Belgium. Albert Einstein lived in the most famous villa, Savoyarde, for six months after leaving Germany.
It is a beach resort in West Flanders, on the sea coast of Belgium. It has maintained the old-world charm of the 1930s thanks to its strict and smart real estate norms. It has a range of white villas. It has a limited area of postwar blocks of apartments as compared to other seaside resorts. Here, it is restricted to building more than five floors.
Getting around in De Haan is relatively easy. The coastal tram is the most comfortable way to get there through public transport. The tram runs from De Panne around the French border to Knokke around the Dutch one. You can quickly get there by train from Bruges, Ghent, or Brussels.
Where to stay in Ghent? Book your hotel and find great deals from this link!
Read also: Top 10 Places to Visit in Belgium
Leuven
Leuven is a lively and prosperous town with more than 100,000 residents. It is the capital of Flemish Brabant, a Belgian province. It is the typical university capital which is reflected in the streets. The city has no lack of young people during the academic year, especially on weekends.
The city has an impressive long-back history since it was founded in the 9th century. It was quite extraordinary due to the Dilje River location and Brussel’s proximity. Most of the city was burned and ruined by the German invasion in the First World War. It was also damaged during the Second World War.
The historic center has been preserved well, and monumental buildings have been recovered, such as the University Library, partly because of foreign relief funds.
Leuven has the Province Building and a range of administrative services, where the provincial council is positioned. It is known for the beer and technology industry.
The Grand Beguinage “Groot Begijnhof” is one of UNESCO’s most amazing World Heritage Sites. St. Peter’s Church is another major attraction, and its belfry is a part of the Belfries of France and Belgium.
Where to stay in Ghent? Book your hotel and find great deals from this link!
Read also: Best Cities in Europe to Visit: Top Weekend Getaways in Europe!
Damme
Damme’s picturesque village is strategically positioned in the north of West Flanders. Damme is placed only around 3 miles (5km) northeast of Sasplein, Bruges, on Damme Canal. It is a favorite side Ghent day trip if you are getting to Bruges and is a great venue to eat out. It is a world-renowned destination for boating.
Getting to Damme is very simple through a direct bus from Bruges to Damme. There is no service on holidays and weekends. So, it is advised to check bus info on the De Lijn website. It is always recommended to take a boat trip along the canal.
Located in Central Bruges, Noorweegse Kaal is only 5km from Grote Markt. You can take bus 4 if it is too far for a walk, from Brugge station via Grote Markt. You may want to walk only 10 minutes to the boat.
Where to stay in Ghent? Book your hotel and find great deals from this link!
What are my favorite travel must-haves?
As a frequent traveler, I’ve learned a lot throughout my years of travel, and there are five items that I always carry with me regardless of where I go and how long the trip is. Here are my five travel must-haves!
- Warm packable jacket – I always carry a light jacket, even when heading to warm countries. There hasn’t been a time I never used it, especially in airports and planes.
- Transparent toiletry bag – I often bring a carry-on if I’m only traveling within Europe for a few days. Life is so much easier to go through security checks with a transparent toiletry bag.
- Kindle Paperwhite – I love a good read and always take my Kindle everywhere. It keeps me entertained during long flights and waiting times.
- Powerbank – I don’t know how I could travel without one! Having a power bank saved me a ton since I carry a lot of electronic devices with me.
- Travel Adapter – I never leave my luggage without a travel adapter! I carry one with me all the time. It is just one of that travel-must haves that doesn’t hurt to have in your bag at all times.
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