Flights for our next trip to Europe are now booked - hooray! Husband and I will fly into Amsterdam at the end of September and fly out of Brussels 7 nights later. We love history, architecture and art, good food and wine, active stuff like hiking and biking, and musuems in limited doses (usually pick a couple in each place) plus plenty of "down time" for strolling, reading, cafe sitting, etc...Also are soccer/football/calcio fans and have gone to a couple of matches when that has been an option. We generally mix time in cities with smaller towns/villages, but that is not an absolute.

Rough itinerary looks like this:
4 nights Amsterdam (with a day trip to Den Hague/Delft and possibly one to Haarlem, maybe even by bike if weather and mood permit)

2 nights Bruges/Brugge - was originally considering base of Antwerp or Gent, but keep reading about lots of construction in Gent and Antwerp does not seem as convenient for some of what we want to see and do. I am hoping to stop in Antewp during train from Amsterdam to Bruges - put bags in lockers at station (do they have them?) and spend a few hours in Antwerp before heading on. We thought we'd enjoy Bruges in the evenings. As history buffs, we are interested in using our full day there for a visit to Ieper and surrounding WWI sights.

1 night Brussels - We'd like to explore around a bit and hopefully meet up with a family friend for dinner.

Does this sound like a good itinerary? Would welcome thoughts and suggestions. I will follow up with some dining and sightseeing questions soon.

Thanks!

I leave on Tuesday for two weeks in the Netherlands. We are staying in an apartment in Leiden for two weeks and will day trip from there. I, too, would like to see Bruge but I am planning on two days/one night there. Will let you know how it is when I return!

When you take the Thallys train from Amsterdam and stop in Antwerp (takes about 2 hours)I should try to overnight in Antwerp.You arrive at Central station and in front of the station you just follow the wide boulevard (De Keyser and Meir)
and you'll arrive at the oldest part of town where you can either take horse and carriage (at the townhall) or a sort of shuttle train from the Groenplaats.They will show you some interesting parts of town.

You mention wine, and I am a wine lover, but it really is a revelation to drink beer in this region. Dutch beer is tasty but Belgian beer is heavenly.

I prefer Antwerpen but if it poses logistical problems, so be it. For Brugge, you might be interested in reading this;

http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/201...d-tour-belgium

Soup in the Netherlands in satisfying. Belgium is the land of non-stop treats. Belgian waffles (in Brussels) truly are memorable, chocolate everywhere is fantastic (in Antwerp was my fave), restaurants can be heaven, and if you can track down a real jenever bar -- a real one -- give it a try.

You say you like to cherry pick your museums. Take a hard look at the Amsterdam museums usually shouted to be "must-sees" and make your own guilt-free choices. The Rijksmuseum is currently under renovation, but they are displaying their most prized works in an annex, which makes for a brisk visit. (If you have any interest at all in Delftware, what is on display in the annex is astounding.)

If you end up in Den Haag, the Mauritshuis is a gem of museum that I have never heard anybody say anything bad about. And one of the quirkiest and most enjoyable museums of painting on the planet is the Panorama Mesdag in Den Haag.

I did not find the museums of Brugge compelling, but others claim they do. You might as well track down the Michaelangelo Madonna, but I was disappointed it wasn't possible to get a closer look.

You don't mention shopping, but Amsterdam has some of the most enjoyable shopping in the world, if only window shopping. Head out to area of the "Nine Streets" amongst the canals, or to the Jordaan, of if you really want to fill up your suitcase, Amsterdam has got some major shopping troughs, miles long and wide, for wannabe fashionistas.

For me personally your itinerary would be much too loaded: Amsterdam + Den Haag + Delft + Haarlem + bike riding in four days. Yes, you will have been to all these places but what will you have seen/experienced?
Same for Belgium: 2 nights in Brugge for Brugge + Antwerp + Ieper ...?
The food in the Netherlands is nothing to write home about, unless you eat at the more expensive (Michelin starred) places. Belgium is indeed the land of non-stop treats, both food and drink-wise.

Just got back from Brugge! Ah~ a lovely place an a must see. If you can, try and land their on a Wed. That is when they have their market in the center and it is really amazing. I stayed at a great B&B. The host's name is Tine and she is lovely. I would highly recommend staying there. She will pick you up from the train station, bring you a lovely breakfast (included in the price) every morning, and you can use her bicycles free of charge. I've stayed with her twice already.
http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserR...tml#UR68809069

Go directly to her website: http://www.tinesguesthouse.com/

Thanks for the thoughts and suggestions so far. Sorry for my delayed reply. I appreciate the article, zeppole, as well as input on hotels, itinerary, etc... from everyone. I don't know that adding an overnight in Antwerp makes sense as we are already tackling quite a bit and know we can't do everything. As MyriamC suggests, the itinerary is pretty full so we will just have to make our plan and then be flexible.

My thoughts right now are as follows:

Day 1 - We arrive quite early in the morning so will spend most of the day exploring Amsterdam, particularly the various neighborhoods and peeking in smaller sites like various churches and such. Maybe Van Gogh museum? We will be pretty tired, but I always think it works best for us to be outside and walking on arrival day. Then enjoy a nice, earlyish dinner before crashing early.

Day 2 - To Haarlem with bike ride. I have read that we can rent a bike and then pedal to Haarlem and train back? Or is it better to train to Haarlem and rent a bike there for the day? If weather is not good, we will not bike.

Day 3 - Anne Frank House and Rijksmuseum.

Day 4 - Den Hague and Delft. Day trip. Mauritshuis high on list along with Binnenhof and Panorama.

Day 5 - Train to Bruges with possible stopover in Antwerp for lunch and a stroll around. Arrive Bruges mid- late afternoon. Enjoy Bruges for the afternoon and evening.

Day 6- Flanders Fields tour. Back to Bruges for dinner - probably not going to work to stay for the Last Post, but thinking about it.

Day 7- Enjoy the morning in Bruges. To Brussels early afternoon. Grand Place and meet up with friend.

Day 8- Depart for US

We plan to eat good food and sample plenty of beer and chocolate along the way.

I know this is not a super-detailed itinerary, but hope the overall sketch is good. Thanks!

I think it sounds pretty good - nice balance between seeing a lot and not rushing around too much. You do only have the 8 days. And you don't have any 1 night stays, which will make the trip feel less rushed and have more flexibility if you decide you've included too much. You can ditch a day trip for example.

Bruges is neat in the evenings and the early mornings - a lot of people day trip there, but at non-peak times it is truely magical. Also in Bruges, if you are interested in beer, the brewery tour at the Halve Maan Brewery is very good.

Thanks n_m. I agree that we can (and may) easily drop a day trip or a particular sight as we go. We do have a one night stay, however. In Brussels at the end of the trip, but I am ok with it.

I will check ou the brewery tour.

That sounds like a very doable itinerary. We never biked from Amsterdam to Haarlem. It's 19 km, say about one hour. I remember we rented (good) bikes at the station in Haarlem and had a very enjoyable day.
If you want an excellent (be it pretty expensive) lunch in Antwerp, I can recommend Lunch Lounge Het Gebaar (http://www.rogervandamme.com/). Flamant Dining is good, too. (http://www.flamantdining.be/) You will need reservations for either one and you must take your time. Both are in the historical centre. Anyway, if you want to see a bit of Antwerp you mustn't stay in the vicinity of the Central Station. A short metro ride, really only a few minutes, will take you to the historical centre. The entrance to the metro is in the Central Station, at the lowest level.
If you need more information, let me know.

marking for later comment

Thanks, MyriamC. If we stop in Antwerp, is there a luggage storage locker at the train station? If yes, then we can drop our bags and take off for some exploring - would welcome your suggestions for a brief visit. Thanks for the restaurants.

Yes, there are lockers in Antwerpen Centraal.
For a brief visit, I suggest you just stroll the historical centre: Grote Markt and surrounding streets, walk up to the quays along the river Scheldt to see the 'castle' Het Steen (which is the oldest building in the city). Maybe take a quick look in some of the churches.

4 nights Amsterdam (with a day trip to Den Hague/Delft and possibly one to Haarlem, maybe even by bike if weather and mood permit>

The bike ride between Amsterdam and Haarlem IMO does not go thru the best part of the Dutch countryside, but along busy roads and the rail line and thru virtually no cities - oh any bike ride in Holland is nice but i would consider taking the train to Haarlem and renting a bike at the train station there and then heading to the VVV (Tourist Office) in the town center and getting a detailed map to ride thru the Flower Fields that start just south of Haarlem and ride the 15-20 or so flat miles to Lisse and Leiden - it's practically all flower fields and neat paved side roads and bike paths - and there are pulchritudinous blooms abounding throughout the summer. At Leiden put yourselves and your bikes on a train to return to Haarlem - perhaps first pedaling around lovely lovely Leiden a bit.

I like your itinerary as posted - if going by train you may want to investigate the Benelux Railpass - good in Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg - hop on any train anytime (except Thalys which costs a huge supplement for pass holders and there is no need to take it between Amsterdam and Antwerp anyway as IC trains are not that much slower (and if buying tickets can be a whole whole lot cheaper than Thalys tickets - though Thalys have a Byzantine fare structure and if you book 9 years in advance or so and snag one of the really cheap non-refundable non-changeable tickets then you could save a few euros over the IC train i guess - point is Thalyy to Antwerpen is not worth the hassle - just buy the IC ticket in Amsterdam - flat fare or with a pass just hop on.

For loads on trains in Holland and Belgium i always spotlight these info-laden sites - www.budgeteuropetravel.com; www.seat61.com; www.ricksteves.com - for fares in euros to compare with the pass go to www.ns.nl - Dutch trains and Google Belgian state railways for their site. There is no problem buying tickets as you go along - no trains except Thalys in these countries require reservations nor can you even make them if wanted. As usual for a one-time trip first-class IME of four decades of riding trains in these countries makes for a much much more leisurely trip. In Holland especially second class can get SRO anytime - first class always lots of seats empty even when folks are standing in 2nd class. If going first class compare first class fares to the cost of a first class pass - the pass is a better deal vis a vis regular fares in first class than in 2nd class i believe. Passes not sold in Benelux IME.

Personally, I think the cathedral in Antwerpen in spectacular. And if you are at all a fan of un-renovated, old-fashioned, grand imperial art museums, Antwerpen has an amazing one.

If museums aren't your thing, strolling the historic quarter -- which is actually quite sophisticated with modern art galleries, boutique clothes stores and chocolate shops -- is a beautiful blend of old and new worlds. Food in Antwerpen can be fantastic, and if you can handle potent spirits, the bar of Da Vagant serves a staggeringly wide variety of Belgium's unique "jenevers" -- which will change your mind about "gin" forever:

http://www.devagant.be/

Thanks again, all! OK, it sounds like a few-hour stop in Antwerpen will work well - historic quarter with suggested buildings, lunch, and cathedral. Probably will not have time for museum, but sounds like a great one.

As for the biking, I much prefer the suggestion to rent the bikes out of Haarlem and ride from there. Sounds great!

Will investigate Benelux pass...usually have found point-to-point better, but maybe a pass will be advantageous this time around.

Any favorite dining spots in any of the above locations? Anything else I may not be thinking of that is just great...a favorite neighborhood, out of the way park or small church, logistical order of anything (like is Anne Frank better in am and Rijks in afternoon or vice versa)? I welcome any additional thoughts. Otherwise, this is a great start and we are excited for a fantastic trip.

Actually there are plenty of sights in Bruges that aren't packed even during the day at the height of the tourist season. Most of the daytrippers mill around the main square area, and that leaves a lot that is not packed with tourist bodies.

Paul - We found that as well. The route from the train station to the main square and that square had lots of people, but wander away a few blocks and you leave a lot of people behind. Twilight time was my favorite there though.

Haarlem: I like the idea of cycling from Haarlem to Lisse and Leiden, but in September there won't be many flowers in bloom (if any). Late spring is the perfect time to see the flower fields.
This time of the year I would rather cycle through the nature reserve of the Kennemerduinen National Park to Bloemendaal or Zandvoort at the Northsea (10-15 km).

My absolute favorite part of Brugge was around the river and windmills and the church of St Anne's -- a great, classic early 20th century Belgian residential neighborhood, with Belgian lace in the windows and Belgian block streets. If there were other tourists there, I didn't see them. It's an easy stroll away from the GroteMarkt.