Bruges is known as one of the most beautiful cities in Europe so it was about time to go here and see for myself if that was true.

When I visited it was by no doubt summer. The sun was shining, no clouds in the sky and selfie-sticks upon selfie-sticks as far as the eye could see. The flight was delayed, the train was delayed, yes, most things took a bit longer when all of Europe were on vacation at the same time.

I was therefore a bit concerned about visiting Bruges. No matter how beautiful a city is it does not look the same behind a wall of tourists.

To my surprise it appeared that the army of tourists had not arrived yet. Sure there were plenty of tourists around, but not more than you would expected to see in Paris or London on a hot summer day.

What surprised me at first was how well planned the city seemed and the consistency of it. While other cities have some old and some new buildings strewn about Bruges feels like a city where time has stood still for centuries, which is partially true as well. There are thousands of restrictions on restoration and construction of buildings, modern and poor looking objects like satellite dishes are not allowed and no buildings can be higher than four stories, at least not without special permission.

Bruges is one large collection of canals and bridges, joined by either stunning looking buildings that makes you feel like you are in Venice, or green parks that makes you forget that you are in fact in a city.

Despite the vast number of tourists coming here each year the city lacks the plague this usually brings with it: People tying strings to your fingers, want to bring you on overpriced tours or sell you selfie sticks that break after two minutes. Freeing the city of these plagues makes the experience so much better and I hope other cities can learn from this as well.

As much as I enjoyed this city it is not perfect. Everything has it’s price, quite literally. Accommodation is Bruges is more expensive than many other European cities and the food is not cheap either. It is certainly worth the cost, but if you are backpacking through Europe a stop in Bruges can quickly challenge your budget.

If you insist on walking down the most touristic streets you will meet the grand army of other tourists, but because the entire city is so beautiful there is no problem finding a more quiet place to enjoy.

Most activities revolve around slowly walking around and enjoying architecture and beautiful views. At the belfry in the city centre you do have to overcome 366 steps to get to the top, but that is as hard as Bruges gets. But who minds relaxing with a picnic in the park and a cold beer while watching the wind slowly sweep through the trees?

Some other activities can of course be found here as well. The blood of Jesus is allegedly stored here, although verification is a bit tricky. Watching the lady in charge of keeping everyone quiet do her job was almost as entertaining as watching the blood itself. She took her job bloody seriously (pun intended!) and gave everyone super angry looks if they blinked too loud, and this includes young children who were getting tried of waiting in line. It’s always those weird moments of travelling that I remember the best!

The most interesting sight I found in Bruges was a brewery. They transport beer out of the city using underground piping that runs under the streets! The guide ensured us that state of the art leak detection technology was in place, just in case any of the citizens were feeling a bit thirsty one day… I’ve written more about that here.

Have you been to Bruges? Leave a comment with your experience below 🙂