Seeking Advice: Long Weekend In Brussels/Bruge -or- Amsterdam? WWYD?
 

We are two adult couples looking to add a long weekend trip to our conference in Germany (western border with the Netherlands). We would leave Germany (by train I think) on Thursday May 21, and need to fly home on Sunday May 24.
We would like to stay in one place for those 3 nights.
We would like to rent a self catering apartment.
We have never been to either Belgium or the Netherlands.
What would you do??
All recommendations appreciated!

Amsterdam. The Rijksmuseum reopened recently after a long refurbishment so that would be the clincher for me

I would spend it in Belgium and drink delicious Belgian beer.

With just 3 days I would do Amsterdam. Tons to see and do and very easy airport access.

(I love Bruges but find Brussels fairly boring.)

I too agree that for 3 days in one place - Amsterdam has more to offer

Are you flying out of Schipol? If so, AMS seems logical.

That said Bruges with side trips to Brussels and Ghent (or Ghent with the reverse) also sounds good to me right now!

Amsterdam (but avoid Dutch beer) :-)
Use the public transport to get out and about don't just stay in town especially if the weather is fine.

Bruges is ok but too dull for a long weekend. Brussels, well at least at the weekend most of the boring people have left, but even so....

Ms. Gidlaurie:

I favor Brugge, with Amsterdam a close second. In my mind and experience, I found Brugge to be more than just a place to visit. It's an institution reflecting the "olden" days. More than enough to keep you busy, even fitting in a half or full day in Brussels or Antwerp. After three visits over the years, I still feel it's a very picturesque, comfortable, educational, other-worldly and most pleasant destination for a three day holiday.

I'll post some samples of Brugge/ Brussels pix for you.

https://picasaweb.google.com/stuartt...russelsAntwerp

Rather than seeking a self-catering apartment, for the three nights I would suggest a reasonable hotel. Our favorite is The Egmond, just a colorful 10-minute walk to the Gros Markt mid-town. My whole family has stayed there at various times (see pix). It's still on my TopTen list.

I would echo tower's remarks that Bruges is a nice place to stay. It is magical at night (and the tour buses are gone).