Visit Ghent
!! All recent information regarding the current measures (as they apply to tourists) in the city of Ghent in the battle against corona/covid-19 can be found here:
https://visit.gent.be/en/additional-measures-against-spread-coronavirus-covid-19
In Ghent you will find a lively mixture of historical and contemporary sights. There are interesting places scattered all over the city.
Let’s begin with a first overall impression:
Very nice isn’t it, but we guess you prefer to discover Ghent in vivo.
GEtting around the city centER
The historical center of Ghent is one of the most beautiful and authentic city centers of Belgium. Recently, changes in traffic rules have made the city center a very nice place to walk around. Many of the points of interest are near the Congress venue.
https://visit.gent.be/en is a very complete website to prepare your visit to Ghent.
Looking for both the obvious must-sees and the more hidden or less-known but interesting places? So you know what you certainly cannot miss (or should avoid if you’re a cultural heretic!), go to https://visit.gent.be/en/see-do
How will you get where you want to go? Transportation in Ghent is quite user-friendly. You can find the details here: https://visit.gent.be/en/good-know/practical-information/getting-around
For rent-a-bike lovers: we wouldn’t quite recommend bicycling in the city center – remember that the Congress venue, the ‘Vooruit’ is on one of highest hills of Ghent! But if you insist, go ahead. You will get some support from the many students who still prefer their two wheels. (For the moment we have managed to keep the electric scooters epidemic out of the city.)
The Castle of the Counts
and don’t miss…
Perhaps best known as the home to one of the most coveted artworks of all time – the Renaissance masterpiece, The Adoration of the Mystic Lamb attributed to the brothers Hubert and Jan Van Eyck – St Bavo’s Cathedral has evolved into somewhat of a temple of the religious arts. To the architecturally inclined, however, the backdrop to precious altarpieces by Pieter Paul Rubens and the Van Eyck brothers is equally stunning. The majestic and mainly Gothic church was worked on for over 500 years, and it features an eclectic architectural mix of star-shaped vaults and octagonal towers.
St Bavo’s Cathedral
Detail of the Ghent Altarpiece (or the Adoration of the Mystic Lamb)
Ghent at night
MUSEUMS
In the city center you will find The Castle of the Counts. An attention-grabbing piece of the Middle Ages smack dab in the city center, the massive Gravensteen (‘Castle of the Counts’) boasts battlements, turrets, winding staircases of stone and even an intact moat. The stronghold used to be a significant seat of power for the Brabant counts, a fact emphasized by the suits of armour in the halls and the intact torture chambers below.
For a change of scene, be sure to visit the Design Musuem.
Then there is the S.M.A.K., the largest museum of contemporary art in Flanders. It is very near the MSK, whose permanent collection, From Bosch to Magritte, will go on through the end of 2020.
One of our personal favorites is The Museum Dr. Guislain, with several animated shows going on alongside their large permanent exhibition on psychiatric history and their diverse collection of Outsider Art. It is very easy to reach because the tram stops literally at the front door.
Discover the houses built by Hoecke-Dessel
Although Victor Horta was actually born in Ghent before he turned Brussels into his architectural playground, it was not the godfather of Art Nouveau that gave Ghent its most prominent townhouses in that style. That would be Achilles Van Hoecke-Dessel, who plopped a number of them down on the Kunstlaan and the Kattenberg, most notably this one at number 41 on the Kunstlaan. Hoecke-Dessel designed this 1903 creation for his own residence.
The Hoecke-Dessel House