8 Best Sights in Bruges, Bruges and the Coast

The 13th-century Beguinage Ten Wijngaarde is a pretty cluster of small, whitewashed houses, a pigeon tower, and a church surrounding a pleasant green at the edge of a canal. The Begijnhof was founded in 1245 by Margaret, Countess of Constantinople, to bring together the beguines—girls and widows from all social backgrounds who devoted themselves to charitable work but who were not bound by religious vows. Led by a superintendent known as the grand mistress, the congregation flourished for 600 years. The last of the beguines died about 50 years ago; today the site is occupied by the Benedictine nuns, who still wear the beguine habit. Although most of the present-day houses are from the 16th and 17th centuries, they have maintained the architectural style of the houses that preceded them. Visitors are asked to respect the silence.

A popular daytime meeting place and an enchanting, floodlit scene after dark, the Burg is flanked by striking civic buildings. Named for the fortress built by Baldwin of the Iron Arm, the Burg was also the former site of the 10th-century Carolingian Cathedral of St. Donaas, which was destroyed by French Republicans in 1799. On the south side of the square, the magnificent late-Gothic Stadhuis (City Hall) has stood here since the 14th century. It's worth a look inside to check out its magnificent Great Hall on the first floor, where the city council still sits. Although it looks like an original feature, it was actually remodeled in flamboyant neo-Gothic style in the late 1800s, following a fire.

The tremendous holdings of this gallery give you the makings for a crash course in the Flemish Primitives and their successors. Petrus Christus, Hugo van der Goes, Hieronymus Bosch, Rogier van der Weyden, Gerard David, Pieter Bruegel (both Elder and Younger), Pieter Pourbus—all the greats are represented. Here you can see Jan van Eyck's wonderfully realistic Madonna with Canon Van der Paele. There's also one of Hans Memling's greatest works, the Moreel Triptych. As if this weren't enough, the museum also encompasses a strong display of 15th- to 21st-century Dutch and Belgian works, sweeping through to Surrealist and modern art. The Groeninge is set back from the street in a pocket-size park behind a medieval gate. It isn't a huge museum; nonetheless, its riches warrant a full morning or afternoon. An audio guide is available in English.

Arguably the city's finest museum lies within a palace built in the 15th century for the Van Gruuthuses, a powerful family who made their money on the exclusive right to sell gruut, an herbal mixture used for flavoring beer. Louis, the patriarch behind its rise, was a businessman, diplomat, patron, and a lover of culture. The museum tells the story of Bruges through its most powerful family and their legacy of art and relics, and through the museum's own collection of crafts—lace, amber, porcelain, jewels—that formed the backbone of the city's trade. The building interior itself is magnificent in its own right---it's a warren of narrow staircases joining rooms with grand stone fireplaces, and some with balconies offering beautiful vistas across the city. As a mark of the family's power, a private chapel in the palace has a window built directly into the adjoining Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekerk, allowing family members to attend services there without having to mingle with the general public.

The Basilica of the Holy Blood manages to include both the austere and the ornate under one roof—not to mention one of Europe's most precious relics. The 12th-century Lower Chapel retains a stern Romanesque character. Look for the poignant 14th-century Pietà and the carved statue of Christ in the crypt. From this sober space, the elaborate, external De Steegheere staircase, built in a mix of late-Gothic and early Renaissance styles with a reconstructed bluestone facade, leads to the stunningly lavish Upper Chapel, which was twice destroyed—by Protestant iconoclasts in the 16th century and by French Republicans in the 18th—but both times rebuilt. (Note that the Upper Chapel is closed to visitors during Eucharistic Mass on Friday and Sunday 10:45–12:15.) The original stained-glass windows were replaced in 1845, and then again after an explosion in 1967, when they were restored by the Bruges painter De Loddere. The basilica's namesake treasure is a vial thought to contain a few drops of the blood of Christ, brought from Jerusalem in 1149 by Derick of Alsace when he returned from the Second Crusade. It is exposed in the Upper Chapel every Friday 10:15–11, and every afternoon 2–4: queue up to place your right hand on the vial and take a moment for quiet reflection. On Ascension Day, it becomes the centerpiece of the magnificent De Heilig Bloedprocessie (Procession of the Holy Blood), a major medieval-style pageant in which it is carried through the streets of Bruges. The small museum next to the basilica is the usual home of the basilica's namesake reliquary.

Used as a marketplace since AD 958, this square is still one of the liveliest places in Bruges. In the center stands a memorial to the city's medieval heroes, Jan Breydel and Pieter De Coninck, who led the commoners of Flanders to their short-lived victory over the aristocrats of France. On the east side of the Markt stand the provincial government house and the former post office, an excellent pastiche of Burgundian Gothic. Old guild houses line the west and north sides of the square, their step-gabled facades overlooking the cafés spilling out onto the sidewalk. These buildings aren't always as old as they seem, though—often they're 19th-century reconstructions. The medieval Belfort (Belfry) on the south side of the Markt, however, is the genuine article. The tower dates from the 13th century, its crowning octagonal lantern to the 15th century. Altogether, it rises to a height of 270 feet, commanding the city and the surrounding countryside with more presence than grace. The valuables of Bruges were once kept in the second-floor treasury; now the Belfort's riches are in its remarkable 47-bell carillon, which rings even truer thanks to the new bells it was given in 2010. (Impressing Belgians with a carillon is no mean feat, as Belgium has some of the best in the world.) If you haven't walked enough, you can climb 366 winding steps to the clock mechanism, and from the carillon enjoy a gorgeous panoramic view. At the base of the belfry is a gallery containing a permanent collection of sketches and watercolors by (of all people) Salvador Dalí. On the west side of the Markt, it's worth taking a look inside the neo-Gothic Provinciaal Hof (Provincial Palace), home to the West Flanders provincial government. The Provincial Council Chamber on the second floor is breathtaking for its cathedral-like vastness. Back in the square, you may be tempted by the horse-drawn carriages that congregate here; a half-hour ride for up to five people, with a short stop at the Begijnhof, costs €70 plus "something for the horse." 

Bruges's narrow and meandering canals, or reien, with their old humpback stone bridges, give the city its character, opening up perspective and imposing their calm. The view from the Meebrug is especially picturesque. Farther along the Groenerei are the Godshuizen De Pelikaan, almshouses dating from the early 18th century. There are several such charitable buildings in the city, tiny houses built by the guilds and by rich families for the poor, some still serving their original purpose. Steenhouwersdijk overlooks the brick rear gables that were part of the original county hall. The Vismarkt (Fish Market) has 19th-century buildings designed in classical style; fresh seafood from Zeebrugge is sold Wednesday–Saturday. Just beyond is the little Huidenvettersplein (Tanners’ Square), with its 17th-century guild house. Next to it, from the Rozenhoedkaai canal, the view of the heart of the city includes the pinnacles of the town hall, basilica, and Belfry—the essence of Bruges.

For a swan's-eye view of the city, 30-minute canal cruises costing €15 are offered by five different companies. All five ply the same route and depart from jetties along the Dijver, between the Gruuthusemuseum and Vismarkt, and from the Mariabrug beside the Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekerk.

This is one of the oldest surviving medieval hospitals in Europe. It was founded in the 12th century and remained in use as a care center for rich and poor until the early 20th century, when more modern facilities became available. The museum today hosts a themed exhibition on Care and Hospitality, using pathos and humor to juxtapose ancient art, modern art, and old medical equipment. One highlight in a separate glass-walled gallery---if slightly off-topic---is a collection of major works by Hans Memling (1440–94) that are of breathtaking quality and rank among the greatest—and certainly the most spiritual—of the Flemish Primitives school. Memling was born in Germany but spent the greater part of his life in Bruges. Don't miss the hospital's pharmacy, accessed through a separate entrance beside the museum. It was established in 1643 and has been restored to how it would have looked in its early days. Incredibly, it remained in use until 1971.