Day Trip from Amsterdam- Antwerp vs. Brussels?
 

Hi all,

My husband and I are visiting Amsterdam for four days next month. We have been told that it is fun to do a day trip to Belgium and are debating between Antwerp and Brussels. We will be looking to your casually and eat good food / drink good beer while there. Any advice is greatly appreciated!!

Cheers,

Regina

I didn't love either one. Brussels has a beautiful, huge town square, the Grand Place, though (especially beautiful at night). Both have a few interesting museums. (I'm not a museum person myself.) I'm sure you can find good beer in either one - but probably just as good of beer in Amsterdam if you ask around and find a good recommendation.

For ambiance, I'd prefer Bruges to either one, hands down, but of course it requires more train travel time.

I prefer by far Brussels, but it is a city that is not easy to discover. For atmosphere I'd actually recommend Leuven. Full of students.

Bruges is too artificial imho. No 'real life there'.

Ps : never, ever, believe someone who tells you you can have good beer in NL !
It cannot be. No way.
Beer = Belgium. All others are either poor copies or poor taste.
Me, a chauvinist ? come on ... :-)

... and I prefer Antwerpen (to use the Flemish original), if only because it's a more lively city. Their Grand'Place (Grote Markt) is no less grand than the competition in Brussel and the area around still has the medieval atmosphere you'll miss in the capital.
Brugge is a museum. Beautiful and lovely, but indeed artificial. Besides it involves significantly more travelling time.
There are two musea you shouldn't miss in Antwerpen: http://www.museummayervandenbergh.be...VanDenBergh_EN and http://www.rubenshuis.be/Museum_Rubenshuis_EN. Both are special, very special.
Make a wise decision, whatever the result, and enjoy!

And if you select Antwerpen don't miss the trainstation, absolutely fabulous.

I also would back up the suggestion of Antwerpen/Antwerp.
I would recommend a visit to the café/bar Het Elfde Gebod alongside the cathedral, very nice display of statues with a balcony above overlooking the main bar.
https://www.facebook.com/hetelfdegebod

Just to complicate things further, consider Gent!

I haven't made my trip yet to Belgium (3 nights in October), but Gent may give you the best of both worlds in that it has similar architecture and picturesque canals as say Brugge, and is a real city without a museum like ambiance, but still compact enough for a full day trip. Lots of churches and a cathedral, some art museums, Gravensteen Castle, wandering the riversides and parks, and searching out great beer, mussels, fries, chocolate could make for a lovely day trip.

I'm deciding between 2 nights Brugge 1 night Brussels with a full day in Gent, or 2 nights Gent 1 night Brussels with a full day in Bruges.

You probably won't go wrong no matter where you choose to go.

Antwerp, of course! It's Central Station, Our Lady's Cathedral, Grote Markt (Market Square), its lovely squares and cobblestoned streets, ... Lots of cafés for good beer, and some really good restaurants in the centre (for lunch I recommend Lunch-Lounge Het Gebaar (1* Michelin) - reserve way ahead! - closed on Sunday and Monday, no reservations possible for Saturday lunch). http://www.rogervandamme.com/

If you come by fast Thalys train, the journey takes only 1 hr 15 mins.

Personally I'm not a big fan of Rubenshuis Museum. It's much of the same, if you know what I mean. I do like the Rockoxhouse Museum, though. A witness to one of the most important periods in the history of Antwerp.

Agree with pariswat about the beer! :-)

Het Elfde Gebod ... unfortunately a tourist trap.

Carrying on my post as I had to stop to help out some guests.
Vlaeykensgang. A small ally Way and very interesting and old.
Beguinage. Like a hidden garden.
De Ruien maybe of interest, certainly something different. Old canals which have had many uses over the centuries.

Did not like the so called diamond district. Nothing of interest except jewellery shops and run down buildings.