Brussels vs Staying in Bruges???

[SakeDad]

We are on an NCL cruise in July and stopping in Bruges from 9am-6pm. I have never been and while Brussels sounds romantic I am worried about a 1-2 hour trip both directions as we know anything can happen to delay you. I am not impressed with the excursions to Brussels by NCL so would probably book my own but I worry about "missing the boat" as it's so far away. So my question is.....Is there enough to do in Bruges (beer tastings, restaurants. sites, etc....) to keep us happy & busy closer to the ship or should I really consider heading into Brussels for the day???

[gumshoe958]

The ship actually docks in the port of Zeebrugge which is about 10 miles and a 20-30 minute drive or train ride from Bruges.

 

Bruges is a compact but beautiful and very popular city with tourists, and a delight to wander around so I’d be minded to spend the day there. Brussels is pleasant enough but as world capitals go, it’s not particularly high on most people’s must see list.

[freaky_82]

Bruges is beautiful. There is a Chocolate Museum and a Diamond Museum There is also a Beer Brewery than can be visited. (Unfortunately all were closed when we visited on Belgium National Day, but they were my plan would they have been open)

https://www.visitbruges.be/museumsplacesofinterestattractions

 

You can also do a small boat Canal tour. We loved that one as we could see a lot of the lovely architecture of the town. 

 

And don't forget to taste some mussels a few beers and Belgian cheese.

 

[ontheweb]

2 hours ago, gumshoe958 said:

The ship actually docks in the port of Zeebrugge which is about 10 miles and a 20-30 minute drive or train ride from Bruges.

 

Bruges is a compact but beautiful and very popular city with tourists, and a delight to wander around so I’d be minded to spend the day there. Brussels is pleasant enough but as world capitals go, it’s not particularly high on most people’s must see list.

Is there easy transportation between Zeebrugge and Bruges, or do you really need an excursion? (We are on an NCL ship in August that makes this stop.)

[kilili]

We went to Bruges on a day trip from Brussels and really enjoyed it, so unless seeing Brussels is a must for you, I would stay in Bruges.  We walked around the plazas in town which are lovely.  We did the canal boat.  If you are interested in art, you can visit The Church of our Lady to see the famous Michelangelo sculpture Madonna and Child (https://www.visitbruges.be/highlights/churchofourlady).  You can also visit the Church our Holy Blood.  You can eat mussels, fries, chocolate and drink beer.  They also have a lovely park you can spend time at.  You will have a great day.

[John Bull]

The words "romantic, popular, a delight, beautiful, lovely" appear in earlier posts.

In every case they are appropriate to Bruges, not Brussels.

 

Bruges is a historic town easily explored on foot.

Brussels is a sprawling modern commercial city of office buildings like the European Commission (the bureaucratic arm of the EU).

Sights are well-spread, other than museums the only ones of note are the little boy peeing (Manneken Pis) in the city centre and an arty globe structure (the Atomium) four miles from the centre near the beltway.

IMHO not worth the hour each-way, or missing Bruges.

 

Zeebrugge port to Bruges

- taxi (pre-booked is safer) to Bruges centre (the Grotemarkt). Fix up sharers via your ships RollCall

- Privately operated shuttlebuses (introduced since we were last there, sorry I don't know the details but probably the best option)

- Ship's shuttle (nominal fee) 3 miles to the station at Blankenberge for the hourly train to Bruges (and it carries on the Brussels) . Inexpensive, but since travel to the station is by shuttle you can't be sure to time it right & be stuck at Blankenberge station for up to an hour

- Ship's "Bruges on your own" bus. The most expensive option but some folk like the security of being the ship's responsibility

 

All the bus options take you to Bargeplein, a pleasant 20 minute walk to the centre - big buses aren't permitted in the cobbled centre unless delivering passengers to hotels. There used to be a little local bus that shuttled to the centre for a euro or two, I don't know if it's still operating.

Train station is also a 20 minute walk to the centre. 

 

JB 🙂

[Simon-t]

Another vote for staying in Bruges from me. Brussels is pleasant enough around the Grand Place but it's not especially interesting. Bruges is much prettier, and a great compact centre making it a great day trip for a cruise. Around the canals Bruges is almost like a mini Amsterdam. 

[markeb]

So I'm going to confess I kind of like Brussels, but I've really only been to the area around the Grand Place and (old) NATO Headquarters building. 

 

Having said that, stay in Bruges. Just not enough time, and you can do almost everything in Bruges you could do in Brussels (mussels, frites, chocolate, beer, historic cobblestone plaza), and (if memory serves) there are windmills. There are plenty of lace shops and tapestry shops to separate you from your money, and a number of nice restaurants to just sit and have mussels et frites and a good Belgian beer.

 

You will, of course, miss the Mannekin Pis. But other than the huge crowds standing by it, you could do that in Brussels as well...

 

As JB said, the simple size of Brussels begs for time. Bruges should be much more manageable.

[SakeDad]

9 hours ago, John Bull said:

 

- Ship's "Bruges on your own" bus. The most expensive option but some folk like the security of being the ship's responsibility

 

JB 🙂

The other advantage is being first off the ship with an excursion sometimes.

[ISLABONITA]

We arranged taxi ride with another 4 members of our roll call, I had booked a "free" walking tour with the red umbrella group and had the best 2 hour tour ever. Just loved all the areas you can revisit and pubs around that you can relax and watch the world go by. We didn't do a canal ride but did so in Amsterdam.

Bruges was one of my favorite stops in our British Isles cruise back in Sept 2022

Don't miss it!  https://www.guruwalk.com/walks/36597-discover-the-historical-wonders-of-bruges-with-a-native-english-speaker

Edited February 12, 2023 by ISLABONITA

[mskaufman]

Another vote for Bruges.  We spent more than one day there last summer. I have a friend whose family is from Brussels and she told me to stay in Bruges.

 

[SakeDad]

5 hours ago, ISLABONITA said:

We arranged taxi ride with another 4 members of our roll call, I had booked a "free" walking tour with the red umbrella group and had the best 2 hour tour ever. Just loved all the areas you can revisit and pubs around that you can relax and watch the world go by. We didn't do a canal ride but did so in Amsterdam.

Bruges was one of my favorite stops in our British Isles cruise back in Sept 2022

Don't miss it!  https://www.guruwalk.com/walks/36597-discover-the-historical-wonders-of-bruges-with-a-native-english-speaker

Thanks....and of course they don't do tours the day we are there. But great info.

[ISLABONITA]

8 hours ago, SakeDad said:

Thanks....and of course they don't do tours the day we are there. But great info.

Do a Google search for walking tours, there a few others.