Ghent, Belgium: The Medieval City Everyone Skips for Bruges, and Why That's a Mistake

How to Get to Ghent From Brussels

Ghent sits less than 40 minutes from Brussels by direct train, making it an easy day trip or, better, a base of its own for exploring the wider region. I stayed in Ghent itself rather than Brussels, using it as a hub for both this city and a day trip to Bruges, and found the connections between all three cities frequent and reliable enough that I never felt tied down by transport logistics.

The train station, Gent-Sint-Pieters, sits a short tram ride from the historic center rather than directly within it, which caught me slightly off guard on arrival, but the tram system is straightforward and I was standing in front of the city's medieval core within about fifteen minutes of stepping off the train.

Graslei and Korenlei: Ghent's Postcard Waterfront

The Graslei and Korenlei, two parallel quays facing each other across the Leie river, form the single most photographed stretch of Ghent, lined with guild houses dating from the medieval period through the Baroque era, their facades a mix of stepped gables and ornate stonework that traces the city's wealth across several centuries of trading history. I arrived at golden hour on my first evening, entirely by accident rather than planning, and understood immediately why this specific view shows up in nearly every photo of the city.

Unlike Bruges's most famous viewpoints, which I found genuinely difficult to photograph without dozens of other visitors in frame, I managed a solid twenty minutes at Graslei with only a modest scattering of people around me, mostly locals having an evening drink at the waterfront bars rather than tour groups working through a checklist.

Gravensteen Castle: Ghent's Medieval Fortress

Gravensteen, the Castle of the Counts, sits directly in the city center, a genuinely intact medieval fortress complete with battlements, a moat, and a history considerably darker than its picturesque exterior suggests it housed a torture chamber and courtroom used well into more recent centuries, with displays inside including actual historical execution and torture implements that made for a more unsettling visit than I'd expected walking in.

I climbed to the top of the battlements for a view back over the city's rooftops and spires, and found the audio guide, narrated with a wry sense of humor about the castle's own gruesome history, a genuinely engaging way to work through what could otherwise have been a fairly grim couple of hours. The castle sits close enough to the Graslei waterfront that I combined both into a single morning without feeling rushed.

Saint Bavo's Cathedral and the Ghent Altarpiece

Saint Bavo's Cathedral houses the Ghent Altarpiece, also known as the Adoration of the Mystic Lamb, a monumental 15th-century polyptych by the Van Eyck brothers widely considered one of the most important works in the history of Western art, and also one of the most frequently stolen and damaged artworks in history, with panels looted, forged, and recovered across multiple wars and thefts over the centuries.

Viewing the altarpiece requires a separate paid entry and timed slot, displayed in a dedicated, climate-controlled chapel with restricted photography, and I found the considerable buildup around it genuinely justified once I was standing in front of the actual panels, the detail and color still remarkably vivid for a work approaching six centuries old. The rest of the cathedral, a soaring Gothic space in its own right, is easy to underappreciate given how much attention the altarpiece pulls, and I made a point of spending time in the main nave separately rather than treating the whole visit as a single rushed stop.

Climbing the Belfry of Ghent for the Best City View

The Belfry of Ghent, a UNESCO-listed medieval bell tower standing alongside the cathedral and Saint Nicholas' Church in forming the city's iconic three-spire skyline, offers a lift partway up followed by a shorter climb to the open-air viewing gallery near the top. From there, the full layout of Ghent's historic center spreads out below, the Graslei waterfront and Gravensteen's battlements both clearly visible, along with the university district extending out beyond the medieval core.

I visited late in the afternoon, and the guide inside mentioned the tower's original purpose was as much about civic pride and independence from church authority as practical bell-ringing, a detail that reframed how I thought about the whole three-spire skyline afterward less a purely religious statement and more a genuine assertion of the city's own medieval wealth and autonomy.

Ghent's Student Population and Its Effect on the City's Energy

With a student population numbering in the tens of thousands tied to Ghent University, the city carries a genuinely different energy than Bruges's more purely tourist-oriented atmosphere. I noticed this most clearly in the Overpoortstraat area, a street lined almost entirely with student bars that apparently transforms into one of Belgium's busiest nightlife strips once the university term is in session, a stark contrast to the quieter medieval quays just a short walk away.

Even outside the dedicated nightlife strip, the general presence of students filtering through the historic center gave Ghent a lived-in quality that Bruges, for all its beauty, genuinely lacked in comparison cafés full of people working on laptops or chatting between classes rather than exclusively serving visitors working through a sightseeing list.

Belgian Food and Beer Culture in Ghent

Ghent has its own distinct culinary identity within Belgium, most notably waterzooi, a creamy stew traditionally made with chicken or fish, which I had at a small restaurant near the Graslei on a cool evening and found considerably more comforting than I'd expected from the description alone. Belgium's beer culture is obviously present everywhere, and I spent one evening at 't Dreupelkot, a small, famously eccentric bar specializing in Belgian genever (a juniper-based spirit) rather than beer, working through a tasting flight recommended by the notoriously opinionated bartender.

I also tried cuberdon, a distinctive purple, cone-shaped Ghent candy with a soft, syrupy center, sold from small carts around the city center, a genuinely local treat that I hadn't encountered anywhere else in Belgium and that locals seemed to regard with the same fond, slightly defensive pride Cork residents had shown toward their own city during my earlier Ireland trip.

Ghent vs Bruges: Which Belgian City Should You Visit?

Having done both back to back, I'd frame the comparison this way: Bruges is more uniformly, postcard-perfectly preserved, a city that essentially stopped developing after its medieval peak and has been protecting that snapshot ever since. Ghent has just as much genuine medieval architecture, arguably more when you account for Gravensteen and the altarpiece, but layered underneath a real, continuously functioning modern city rather than frozen around it.

If you only have one day for a Belgian city trip from Brussels, Bruges's compactness makes it slightly easier to see completely on a rushed schedule. But if you have two or more days, or want an experience that feels less like walking through a museum and more like visiting an actual place people live, work, and study, Ghent is the stronger choice, and I'd genuinely argue it deserves equal billing rather than playing permanent second fiddle in every travel guide that mentions it.

Conclusion: Ghent Deserves to Stop Being Belgium's Best-Kept Secret

I went into this trip prepared to confirm what everyone had told me that Bruges was the destination and Ghent was the consolation stop. Instead, I found a city with essentially the same depth of medieval history, a genuinely dark and engaging castle, one of the most significant artworks in European history, and a university-driven energy that made the whole place feel considerably more alive than its more famous neighbor forty minutes away.

What stuck with me most wasn't any single sight, though Gravensteen's battlements and the Van Eyck altarpiece both earned their reputations completely. It was standing at Graslei at golden hour with room to actually breathe, without the crowd density I'd fought through in Bruges the following day, and realizing that the city everyone kept describing as an afterthought had quietly given me the better version of the exact experience I'd traveled to Belgium for in the first place.

FAQ’s

Why is Ghent so famous?

Ghent is famous for its well-preserved medieval architecture, lively canals, and vibrant cultural scene. It is also home to the impressive Gravensteen castle and the world-famous Ghent Altarpiece.

What to see in Ghent in 1 day?

In one day, visit Gravensteen, Saint Bavo's Cathedral, and stroll along the scenic Graslei and Korenlei waterfronts. End your day with a canal cruise or enjoy Belgian cuisine at a local restaurant.

What language is mainly spoken in Ghent?

The main language spoken in Ghent is Dutch (specifically the Flemish variety). English is also widely understood, especially in tourist attractions, hotels, and restaurants.

Is Ghent better or Bruges?

It depends on your travel style. Ghent offers a lively atmosphere with fewer crowds, while Bruges is known for its fairy-tale canals and romantic medieval charm.

Which is the prettiest city in Belgium?

Many travelers consider Bruges the prettiest city in Belgium because of its picturesque canals and historic center. However, Ghent, Antwerp, and Brussels are also popular for their unique beauty and attractions.