Anyone who's stayed in either or both of these hotels? What did you like/dislike about each? Which would be better insofar as distance to center, comfort of rooms (beds), not tatty in furnishings, helpfulness of staff, views?

I only stayed in the Pand Hotel, and can recommend it to everyone who wants to stay in Bruges! The hotel is in a quiet street but only 2 steps away of the canals, market place, city hall, museums...
From our room (a suite with Ralph Lauren decorations) we had views on different churches and historic buildings. Even when enjoying a relaxing bath we could see the Bell Tower!
Breakfast was very delicious, with a glas of champagne, and they prepared your eggs on that beautiful stove.
It is a small hotel with no restaurant, but the staff helped very well with choosing between the many restaurants around, and made all reservations for us.

Thanks so much for your input. If there's no restaurant, how did you get breakfast? Do they cook on the premises and bring to you?

Did you (or anybody else who wants to jump in here) go to Ostend? Or one of the other coastal towns near Bruges? Worthwhile? We'll be there in mid-April, so it might be still too cold. I was thinking Bruges might be a good point from which to explore surrounding towns. We will travel by train only.

You might also want to consider The Grand Hotel Casselbergh. It's on a quiet street but less than 5 minutes to the Markt.

http://grandhotelcasselbergh.com/index.asp?taal=uk

I stayed there in September for 2 nights and loved it. They also provided a very generous buffet breakfast every morning, though there are lots of places to get breakfast in Brugge if you are interested (Tea Room Carpe Diem and Het Dagelijks Brood being my favorite).

...and for visiting surrounding towns by train, you really can't beat Ghent or Antwerp.

That's good to know--Thanks! I'll check the web site of the Grand Hotel Casselbergh.