How many days in Ghent? 3 days, with Van Eyck at opening time and Bruges on the side
By Tony Panopoulos · travel-agency planner in Greece · Updated
Ghent has the medieval skyline, canals and castle of Bruges, but with a large university, far fewer tour groups and a city that stays awake after dark. Give it three days: one for the three towers and the Ghent Altarpiece, one for the castle, the old quarters and the museums, and one for a train trip to Bruges, only about 25 minutes away. Sleep in Ghent: rooms are cheaper and the streets are lit beautifully at night.
Short answer
Two days covers the Altarpiece, the Belfry, Gravensteen, the quays and a canal boat. The third day adds the art museums or Bruges.
The 3-day plan, day by day
Day 1: The three towers and the Ghent Altarpiece
Morning. Be at St Bavo's Cathedral when it opens to see the Ghent Altarpiece (the Adoration of the Mystic Lamb), the painted polyptych completed by Jan van Eyck in 1432. The ticket (around €16, including an augmented-reality visit of the crypt) is sold by time slot; book online for weekends. Allow 1.5 hours.
Afternoon. Walk 2 minutes to the Belfry, the 14th-century bell tower with a lift most of the way up and views over the city (around €12). Then continue past St Nicholas' Church to St Michael's Bridge, the classic viewpoint with the three towers lined up in a row: St Nicholas, the Belfry and St Bavo's.
Evening. Walk along the Graslei and Korenlei, the two quays lined with guild houses on either side of the river Leie, as the lights come on. Ghent has a city-wide lighting plan, and the old centre is lit after dark. Drink a Belgian beer at one of the cafés on the water (about €4-6).
The CityCard Gent (roughly €40 for 48 hours or €45 for 72 hours) covers the Altarpiece, the Belfry, Gravensteen, a boat trip, the main museums and city trams and buses. It pays off if you visit four or more sights.
Day 2: Gravensteen, Patershol and a canal boat
Morning. Visit Gravensteen, the moated Castle of the Counts from the 12th century, with its towers, armour and a museum of instruments of justice (around €13). The audio guide is told with humour by a local comedian, and is a good choice for families. Then walk 5 minutes into Patershol, a quarter of narrow cobbled lanes that was once the area of the leather tanners and is now full of small restaurants.
Afternoon. Cross Vrijdagmarkt, the large square with the statue of Jacob van Artevelde and the red cannon called Dulle Griet. Take a 40-minute canal boat trip from the Graslei or Korenlei (around €10-12), which gives the best view of the quays and the castle from the water. Then see the colourful street art in Werregarenstraatje, the narrow graffiti alley off Hoogpoort.
Evening. Have dinner in Patershol, where many restaurants serve Flemish dishes; expect €25-40 per person. Finish in one of the city's many specialist beer cafés.
Ghent closed its centre to through traffic in 2017, so cars cannot drive between sectors. Do not drive in; park at a park-and-ride at the edge of town and take the tram.
Day 3: Museums in the morning, Bruges in the afternoon
Morning. Head to Citadelpark, about a 10-minute walk from Gent-Sint-Pieters station, where two museums face each other: the MSK (Museum of Fine Arts), with Flemish masters including works by Hieronymus Bosch, and S.M.A.K., the museum of contemporary art (around €12-16 each). Allow at least 2 hours for one of them. Alternatively, visit STAM, the city museum in the old Bijloke abbey.
Afternoon. From Gent-Sint-Pieters station, trains run to Bruges several times an hour and take about 25 minutes (roughly €8-10 one way). Walk from Bruges station to the Markt and the Burg, climb the Bruges Belfry if you have the energy, and walk along the Dijver and the Rozenhoedkaai.
Evening. Return to Ghent for dinner and a late walk across the Korenmarkt; most day-trippers leave Bruges at about the same time, and Ghent is livelier at night.
Most museums in Belgium close on Mondays, including the MSK and S.M.A.K. Plan your museum morning for another day of the week, and do Bruges or the Altarpiece on Monday.
Only have 2 days?
With 2 days, do Day 1 and Day 2 as written and drop the museums and Bruges. If you need to choose, skip Bruges: Ghent's own centre is enough for two full days.
Got extra days?
A 4th day can go to Antwerp (about 50 minutes by train) for the Rubens House, the cathedral and the station hall, or to Brussels (about 30-40 minutes). In Ghent itself, add the Huis van Alijn folk museum and a bike ride along the Leie to the villages of Sint-Martens-Latem, known for its painters.
Where to stay in Ghent
| Budget | Area | Why | Typical double/night |
|---|---|---|---|
| Budget | Hostels near the Belfry and Korenmarkt | Central dorms and small private rooms in the old centre, walkable to everything. | €60-110 |
| Mid-range | Old centre (Korenmarkt, Graslei) | On the quays, steps from the three towers and the canal boats. | €130-200 |
| Mid-range | Around Gent-Sint-Pieters station | Practical for the Bruges and Brussels trains, with a 10-minute tram ride to the centre. | €100-160 |
| Comfort | Patershol and the canals | Boutique hotels in old merchant houses and former monasteries on the water. | €200-380 |
Getting around
Ghent's main station, Gent-Sint-Pieters, is about 2 km south of the centre: take tram 1 (about 10-15 minutes) to Korenmarkt, or walk 30 minutes. A single De Lijn ticket costs about €3 if bought in advance by app or SMS, and more on board. Trains from Brussels Airport take about 1 hour, from Brussels city about 30-40 minutes. The old centre is compact and largely car-free: the Belfry to Gravensteen is a 7-minute walk. Bikes are the local way to move, and you can rent one near the station for around €12-20 a day.
What to eat in Ghent
Try Gentse waterzooi, a creamy stew made with chicken or fish and vegetables, and stoverij, beef stewed in beer. Fries come from frietkoten (fry shacks), about €3.50-5 a cone, with a choice of sauces. Ghent's own sweet is the cuberdon, a cone-shaped purple sweet with a soft raspberry-flavoured centre, sold from carts near the Groentenmarkt. Buy mustard from Tierenteyn-Verlent, a historic shop that fills jars from a barrel. Ghent also has one of the largest choices of vegetarian restaurants in Europe, and the city once promoted a weekly vegetarian day. A three-course dinner costs €35-55; lunch menus are cheaper.
Best time to visit
April to June and September give mild weather (15-23°C) and long evenings. In July, the Gentse Feesten, a 10-day festival of music and street theatre, takes over the old centre; it is a great time if you want it, but hotel prices rise and sleep is hard. Winter is cold, grey and often wet, around 3-7°C, but there is a Christmas market around St Bavo's and the lighting plan looks its best in the long nights.
What a day costs
| Budget | Mid-range | Comfort | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bed (per person, sharing a double) | €40 | €80 | €150 |
| Food & drink | €30 | €55 | €95 |
| Sights & tickets | €15 | €30 | €45 |
| Local transport | €5 | €10 | €20 |
| Total per person, per day | about €90 | about €175 | about €310 |
Approximate 2026 prices; Ghent adds a city tourist tax per room per night to hotel bills, and the Bruges train is an extra €16-20 return.
Before you go
Common questions
Ghent or Bruges: where should I stay?
Ghent, for most travellers. It has the same kind of medieval centre, quays and towers, but more locals, more life in the evening and generally cheaper hotels. Bruges is only about 25 minutes away by train, so you can visit it in a day and come back to Ghent for dinner, after most of the day-trip crowds have left.
Do I need to book the Ghent Altarpiece in advance?
For weekends, holidays and summer, yes. Entry to the Altarpiece in St Bavo's Cathedral is by time slot, and the most convenient slots sell out. On weekday mornings outside peak season you can usually buy on the spot. The CityCard Gent includes the Altarpiece, but you may still need to reserve a time.
Is the CityCard Gent worth it?
If you plan to see the Altarpiece, the Belfry, Gravensteen, a museum and take a boat, the card pays for itself and also covers trams and buses. If you only want two sights and prefer walking, buy separate tickets. Remember that museums close on Mondays, which reduces the value of a card that starts on a Monday.
When is the Gentse Feesten?
The Gentse Feesten usually runs for ten days in the second half of July, with free concerts, street theatre and bars on most squares of the old centre. Accommodation fills months ahead and prices go up. It is loud late into the night, so book a room outside the centre if you want sleep.
How this guide was made
Compiled by TonyPlan from official tourism, transport and attraction sources and on-the-ground travel knowledge. Prices are approximate for 2026 and change with season; anything we could not confirm is marked as approximate.
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