Local guide
A weekend in Ghent: two days, without the queues
How to spend two days in Ghent: the classics on day one, the neighbourhoods locals actually live in on day two.
Two days is the sweet spot for Ghent. Day one buys you the medieval centre without rushing; day two is where the city stops performing and starts being itself.
Day one: the centre
Cathedral, belfry, castle, canals, with long breaks between them. Finish with the night lighting, which is the single most underrated thing about the city.
Day two: the neighbourhoods
Rent a bike and head out: the old harbour at Dok Noord and the Nieuwe Dokken, the workers' alleys, the parks, the street art. Lunch somewhere with no tourists in it.
Where to base yourself
Anywhere inside the ring is walkable. Around Sint-Pietersplein you get students and terraces; around the Vrijdagmarkt you get the nightlife; near Portus Ganda you get quiet and water.
Getting here and around
Gent-Sint-Pieters is thirty minutes from Brussels and under three hours from Paris, London or Amsterdam by train. Once here you will not need a car; you will want a bike.
Two tours, two days
Build one walking tour for the centre and one cycling tour for the neighbourhoods. Each tour stays available for 30 days.
Build my weekendMore Ghent guides
- Things to do in Ghent: what locals actually recommendThe places people who live in Ghent send their friends to: the castle, the canals, the hidden gardens and the bars tourists walk straight past.
- A self-guided walking tour of GhentA walking route through Ghent built by locals: three hours, the medieval centre, the begijnhof and the old harbour, with the stories behind each stop.
- Cycling in Ghent: routes, rentals and what locals doHow to see Ghent by bike: where to rent, which routes are worth it, and the parts of the city that only make sense on two wheels.
- One day in Ghent: an hour-by-hour planA realistic one-day itinerary for Ghent, from morning coffee to the last terrace, written by people who live here.