Day Trip to Antwerp and Ghent with the Atomium

We will depart at 08:30 am from the city centre of Brussels, where you will firstly visit the amazing Atomium. You will then be taken to the majestic town of Antwerp, where the locals are named "sinjoren", the gentlemen. Enjoy one of the most artistic cities in Europe with an English-speaking guide, and discover why so many merchants were attracted by this city. 

You will have an hour and a half of free time for lunch after the guided tour, so you can explore the city as you please. Our guides will recommend some of the city’s most exclusive shops, where you will find the best Belgian fries, and pop into some legendary diamond workshops

What are we going to visit in Antwerp?

Our first stop will be Steenplein, literally meaning Stone Square.  With its gorgeous skyline and the river in the background, we will enjoy an introduction to the history of the city. Next, we will discover the Steen Castle. As you may have picked up on by now, steen in Dutch means stone, and here our guide will explain the history of the castle that protects the access to the city from the Scalda river.

We will of course pay a well deserved visit to the emblematic Grote Markt, the square that makes this city renowned in the whole world for its beauty. This is the location of the Town Hall, the different guild houses and where we will hear the legend behind the sculpture of Standbeeld van Brabo.  The St Borromeo Charles Church, our next stop, is known for its Baroque architecture and for its Rubens influence, who made considerable contributions to the decorations on the facade and the top of the bell tower.

We will also be visiting the Cathedral of Our Lady of Antwerp, the largest Gothic church in the Low Countries. The Cathedral has an impressive treasury, with a stunning collection of incredible art works, including a series of paintings by Rubens. Another focal point of our visit will be the Groenplaats. This square is one of the most prominent places of the city, it is located near the old cathedral and cemetery, and it has become the current “Green Square”, a nice place to have a little rest before continuing our trip.

After visiting Antwerp, we will travel to Ghent, the city with the largest number of historical buildings in Flanders. This is a destination that you shouldn’t miss on your trip to Belgium, since it is one of the best-preserved medieval cities in Europe.