Travel Belgium

[richardfinegold]

We want to go to Belgium in the fall. Most of the organized tours spend a significant amount of time in Amsterdam, which we have been to relatively recently. We don’t mind spending some time there again but not as much as these trips allocate. My priority is Bruges, Ghent, Antwerp, Waterloo, Bastogne, and I would if possible like to add the Hague and Rotterdam. I am asking for advice: is the rail system the best way to go? Here our Amtrak is best described as “Dodgy”. Are there reasonable places to stay located close to rail lines? Are there reasonable taxi or ride sharing options? Are Tour Guides easy to engage? We would rather not rent a car if possible. Any advice from your side of the Pond would be helpful

[JasonPalmer]

Nomadic Matt seems to have some tips https://www.nomadicmatt.com/travel-guides/belgium/

He has travelled the world, writes guides, Tim ferris interviewed him some time ago for his podcast.

[french frank]

I am asking for advice: is the rail system the best way to go? Here our Amtrak is best described as “Dodgy”. Are there reasonable places to stay located close to rail lines?

It's how I travel in Europe (currently eying the Lyon, Grenoble region in April/May). Some countries are better than others but western Europe is generally good for trains, fast and slow.

The Man in Seat 61 is the one to read/ask about train travel.

Are there reasonable taxi or ride sharing options? Are Tour Guides easy to engage? We would rather not rent a car if possible. Any advice from your side of the Pond would be helpful

No knowledge of these: I only use public transport (a taxi only if I'm really lost), guide books and my legs.

[Ein Heldenleben]

We want to go to Belgium in the fall. Most of the organized tours spend a significant amount of time in Amsterdam, which we have been to relatively recently. We don’t mind spending some time there again but not as much as these trips allocate. My priority is Bruges, Ghent, Antwerp, Waterloo, Bastogne, and I would if possible like to add the Hague and Rotterdam. I am asking for advice: is the rail system the best way to go? Here our Amtrak is best described as “Dodgy”. Are there reasonable places to stay located close to rail lines? Are there reasonable taxi or ride sharing options? Are Tour Guides easy to engage? We would rather not rent a car if possible. Any advice from your side of the Pond would be helpful

Richard. Rail will be fine .You might want to consider an interrail pass . Cheaper than buying individual tickets. There are plenty of battlefield guides for WW1 and WW2 sites and I’m sure there are also guided tours of Waterloo. Sometimes the areas around railway stations can be a bit run down - but better accommodation is usually very nearby. There’s plenty of good public transport. I’m doing London -Paris- Chur - Bernina Express - Lugano - Lyons - Arles - Paris - London then Westcountry all for £ 353 . 7 rail journeys in 14 days . Plus another 150 in 1st class rail reservations which are compulsory in faster services.

[french frank]

Richard. Rail will be fine .You might want to consider an interrail pass . Cheaper than buying individual tickets.

Eurail perhaps rather than Interrail for non-European citizens/residents. Pretty much the same thing, I suppose.

Tourist destinations of any size tend to have accommodation round the stations, so seldom a problem if you haven't reserved anything.

I’m doing London -Paris- Chur - Bernina Express - Lugano - Lyons - Arles - Paris - London then Westcountry all for £ 353 . 7 rail journeys in 14 days . Plus another 150 in 1st class rail reservations which are compulsory in faster services.

Excellent! I love Chur - you can get the Arosa "Express" from there. Takes an hour to travel about 10 miles - but the scenery is lovely. And it does climb c 4,000ft.

[Frances_iom]

Dutch public transport is also near perfect, many years ago I used to commute to Nordwijk using public transport - if you are staying in one area you could buy daily passes for a mix of transport modes - much easier for those unfamiliar with the system; Suspect the same is true of Belgium - both countries had excellent tourist offices and suggest contacting them before you leave as these local transport schemes are not always publicised.

[HighlandDougie]

We want to go to Belgium in the fall. Most of the organized tours spend a significant amount of time in Amsterdam, which we have been to relatively recently. We don’t mind spending some time there again but not as much as these trips allocate. My priority is Bruges, Ghent, Antwerp, Waterloo, Bastogne, and I would if possible like to add the Hague and Rotterdam. I am asking for advice: is the rail system the best way to go? Here our Amtrak is best described as “Dodgy”. Are there reasonable places to stay located close to rail lines? Are there reasonable taxi or ride sharing options? Are Tour Guides easy to engage? We would rather not rent a car if possible. Any advice from your side of the Pond would be helpful

Hmm. You don't mention Brussels. Belgium is not a very large country - with very good and reliable rail services. So, my advice would be to base yourselves in Brussels (it has all the amenities you would expect of a capital city) and then do 1 day/2 day trips from there using SNCB, i.e. belgian railways. It's not far from Waterloo, for instance, and is an easy train trip to/from Bruges or Antwerp or, indeed, Rotterdam. Or Aachen. One becomes aware very quickly that modern (i.e. post-1815) Belgium is a marriage of convenience between French-speaking Wallonia and Dutch-speaking Flanders. The former resent the fact that the latter rather look down on them. Large towns/cities in Wallonia are not exactly hugely attractive (Charleroi/Namur for example) but then there is the Ardennes region - as in Bastogne. In my more prejudiced moments, I would say that the Belgians are bloody awful drivers (that reflects getting hopelessly lost trying to get from Liège to Luxembourg) but then the same might be said of any Western European country. And, sensibly, you would rather not drive. But, hey, go for it!

[vinteuil]

.

... and Antwerp railway station itself vaut le voyage - but don't use French in them parts - and don't call it Anvers...

.

[gurnemanz]

We visited Bruges and Ghent a few years ago having bought a Eurostar ticket to Brussels. We were pleased to discover that the tickets within Belgium were very heavily discounted for senior citizens. I assume this is still the case.

Day trips from Brussels, as mentioned above, are certainly an option but we spent 3 days in Bruges and 2 in Ghent. There is plenty to see and do. We even managed a classical concert in the new Concertgebouw hall in Bruges - well worth it.

[richardfinegold]

Hmm. You don't mention Brussels. Belgium is not a very large country - with very good and reliable rail services. So, my advice would be to base yourselves in Brussels (it has all the amenities you would expect of a capital city) and then do 1 day/2 day trips from there using SNCB, i.e. belgian railways. It's not far from Waterloo, for instance, and is an easy train trip to/from Bruges or Antwerp or, indeed, Rotterdam. Or Aachen. One becomes aware very quickly that modern (i.e. post-1815) Belgium is a marriage of convenience between French-speaking Wallonia and Dutch-speaking Flanders. The former resent the fact that the latter rather look down on them. Large towns/cities in Wallonia are not exactly hugely attractive (Charleroi/Namur for example) but then there is the Ardennes region - as in Bastogne. In my more prejudiced moments, I would say that the Belgians are bloody awful drivers (that reflects getting hopelessly lost trying to get from Liège to Luxembourg) but then the same might be said of any Western European country. And, sensibly, you would rather not drive. But, hey, go for it!

That’s an interesting suggestion.
Thanks to all others for their input

[richardfinegold]

Hmm. You don't mention Brussels. Belgium is not a very large country - with very good and reliable rail services. So, my advice would be to base yourselves in Brussels (it has all the amenities you would expect of a capital city) and then do 1 day/2 day trips from there using SNCB, i.e. belgian railways. It's not far from Waterloo, for instance, and is an easy train trip to/from Bruges or Antwerp or, indeed, Rotterdam. Or Aachen. One becomes aware very quickly that modern (i.e. post-1815) Belgium is a marriage of convenience between French-speaking Wallonia and Dutch-speaking Flanders. The former resent the fact that the latter rather look down on them. Large towns/cities in Wallonia are not exactly hugely attractive (Charleroi/Namur for example) but then there is the Ardennes region - as in Bastogne. In my more prejudiced moments, I would say that the Belgians are bloody awful drivers (that reflects getting hopelessly lost trying to get from Liège to Luxembourg) but then the same might be said of any Western European country. And, sensibly, you would rather not drive. But, hey, go for it!

So Brussels to Bastogne is 2 hours with only 3 trains/day. Brussels to Bruges is 57 minutes with 74 trains/d. What would be a reasonable amount of time for Bastogne and the Ardennes? I am thinking two 2 days max. And what would be a reasonable place to base oneself for that part of a visit?

[HighlandDougie]

Richard

I assume that it’s the Battle of the Bulge which would be the reason for Bastogne? I’ll PM you, rather than clog up the forum.

[pastoralguy]

The concert halls in Bruges are superb. We heard a young quartet play Steve Reich’s ‘Different Trains’ which we didn’t know at all and has since become a real favourite of ours. The concert started with Dvorak’s ‘ American Quartet’ after which the interval saw more than half the audience leave before the Reich.

Bruge is wonderful and we’d love to return.

[HighlandDougie]

The concert halls in Bruges are superb. We heard a young quartet play Steve Reich’s ‘Different Trains’ which we didn’t know at all and has since become a real favourite of ours. The concert started with Dvorak’s ‘ American Quartet’ after which the interval saw more than half the audience leave before the Reich.

Bruge is wonderful and we’d love to return.

Strongly second that! Proof of the excellence of the acoustics on the numerous Anima Eterna discs. I suspect that the performance of the Reich which I heard in the Brussels Conservatory in, err, about 2015 would have been by the same SQ. "Clapping Music", as an encore. The Australian friend who was with us had never heard "Different Trains" before and was also really impressed with it.

[richardfinegold]

I heard Different Trains soon after its premiere and it was a memorable experience. Regarding Bastogne, I gather there isn’t much more reason to go there than WW II.