Getting Here and Around

To reach Ghent from Brussels by car, take the E40 motorway before turning off onto the B401 (signed Gent-Centrum); it should take around 50 minutes. By rail, take a Belgian Railways (SNCB) train from Brussels's Gare de Midi/Brussel Zuid station; there are up to four an hour. The trip usually takes around 30 minutes and costs €14 one-way for a first-class ticket. A special "weekend ticket" (€10.20 return) is valid from 7 pm on Friday until Sunday night. Gent St-Pieters station is a little distance from the city center, so hop on a tram or take a taxi when you arrive. Tram 1 (Flanders Expo to Evergem) leaves from perron (platform) 2 and heads toward the center. Get off at Korenmarkt. Tickets can be bought either from vending machines at the tram stop or direct from the tram driver and cost €3 for an hour's travel across all forms of public transport. Cheaper €2.15 tickets can be purchased via SMS; simply text "DL" for a 60-minute or "DL120" for a 120-minute ticket to 4884 (a list of mobile phone operators that provide this service is available on the De Lijn website). Other options include a day pass (€8 on board, €6 in advance), which is available at De Lijn offices and the tourist office.