Trying to take in as much of Bruges as possible in one day

One day cruise stop in this beautiful city and I have no idea where to stop. Wanting to take in the local food and check out some city history with some of the old cathedrals and the canals.

Can anyone point me in the right direction?

Thanks

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Brugge is tiny, and the tourist office is right in the centre (Burg 11). You can get a map from them showing all the sights, and they organise walking tours: but all you really need to do is take a canal tour to get your bearings and then just walk around.

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The tourist office is now on t%26#39;Zand on the ground floor of the Concertgebouw. This map shows where it is and also where you can catch the boat rides and the other major tourist sites.

I agree with Gaminari that the best thing you can do is walk - and look up occassionally, some of the best sights are above the eyeline.

http://foto.brugge.be/dl/mapbruggea4.pdf

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Take a canal cruise in any case. 1/2 hour in a small boat, seeing the city from a low perspective with nice commentary. The horse-drawn carriages are not worth doing, 35 minutes for 35 Euro but they don%26#39;t go very far.

For Tourist Office info see www.brugge.be (English)

click on %26quot;Tourism and seminars%26quot; and then both %26quot;sights%26quot; and %26quot;sightseeing%26quot; for a range of options, including Guided private tours (25 Euro per hour, minimum 2 hours) to be booked a week in advance.

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I%26#39;d suggest taking a canal tour - tney are not too long and you get to see the city from a different viewpoint.

For another viewpoint I%26#39;d walk up the Belfort (Belfry) for the magnificient views over the city.

Other than that I%26#39;d suggest simply arming yourself with a map and walking around (the centre of Bruges is compact and very pretty so you won%26#39;t get too lost and there is always something good to see).

The Markt and Burg are good focal points and the Stadhuis in the Burg is worth a visit to see the reconstructed gothic hall.

If you do fancy a museum the Groeningmuseum has some fantastic paintings, the Memling in Sint-Jan - Hospital Museum is fascinating and Onze Kieve Vrouwekerk (Church of Our Lady) is very impressive especially Michaelangelo%26#39;s %26#39;Madonna and Child%26#39;.

Treat yourself to a good meal, sample a couple of lovely Belgian beers , buy some chocolate and you%26#39;ll have had a good day!

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Thanks to everyone for the excellent information. I%26#39;m sure this will make our day in Bruge a memorable one!!

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Question on the Canal Cruises.

We will be in Bruges for 1 day only, on a Friday.

I read somewhere they run from 10am to 6pm (i think?)

i can%26#39;t ascertain with confidence if i need to book ahead of time, or just %26#39;show up%26#39;.

if just showing up, is one time better than another, so we don%26#39;t ruin our day by just waiting in line ?

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Just turn up. The boats are small.

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This map shows the locations of the boat joining points.

http://foto.brugge.be/dl/mapbruggea4.pdf

The one on Mariastraat by St Jan often has smaller queues than some of the others (and there are toilets there so any wait may be put to good use).

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Hi travelingcheap,

For information on the Canal Tour read my review.

tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g188671-d120…

Have a look through the link below for additional information on what to do in Bruges.

tripadvisor.com/GoListDetail-i19667-Getting_…

Have Fun,

EM.