Bruges is a city of interest in Belgium. Bruges: the very center Climate and best time to visit

For those who are planning to visit the glorious city of Bruges, this post will be very useful. I’ll take a little break from personal diaries and do some socially useful work. Joke! But there is so much truth in it... In general, let's decide where and what attractions there are in Bruges, which route is best to take a walk, what you must see in Bruges, and what you can skip. And here many will find the answer to the question: “How many days to spend in Bruges?” I think the answer to another question like “Is it worth going to Bruges” has long been answered :)

As soon as we arrived in Bruges, a guidebook in Russian was purchased at the nearest souvenir shop - a necessary and vital thing for those who prefer to explore the sights on their own while traveling. We will not retell the text of the guidebook here, we must respect the work of the creators, I will say one thing - it is written quite interestingly, many colorful photos, full useful information. Author Simon Sauer, cost approximately 7 euros.

For this post, I borrowed two hiking maps from the guidebook. excursion routes on the sights of Bruges, I think the authors won’t mind too much, given my reviews :)

So, two different routes. The first can be considered a “mandatory tourist program”, the second is optional. We were in Bruges for three days, we had enough time to explore both routes and still have time to visit the museums.

The first route “Famous Bruges” starts from the Markt and ends there.

However, if you came to Bruges for just one day, and even by train (central station, point 26 on the map), then start exploring the Cathedral of Sint Salvador (27) and beyond. The route will end right at the station. However, everything is clearly visible on the map (the picture can be enlarged):

Second route “Little-known Bruges”:

We also walked along the second route, which, perhaps, evokes less enthusiastic feelings, but nevertheless is also interesting and leaves a lot of impressions.

Well, now you know what to see in Bruges and which routes are worth walking along. How long to spend in Bruges? From one day to the rest of your life :) I would personally recommend coming for at least a couple of days.

Update! Continued: Walk along the canals and the Belfort watchtower

, Belgium: description, photo, where it is on the map, how to get there

Bruges historic city center- a unique example of a medieval settlement, the most important part of the city’s identity. Bruges is not just one of the most beautiful historical cities in Belgium, but also a city that was once a trading and cultural capital Europe. It is included in 1000 popular places in the world according to our website.

This charming city with medieval buildings attracts tourists like a magnet.

Geographically, it is located approximately 100 km from Brussels. Trains depart from the capital's airport every 30 minutes to Bruges. Travel time is about 1.5 hours.

The architectural monuments of Bruges mean a lot both for Belgium and for the whole of Europe. Sometimes this city is called the “Second Venice”. It does not have the notorious skyscrapers, modern highways or shopping centers. Filled with fairy-tale houses reminiscent of Flemish lace, it seems frozen in the 15th century. Numerous canals and narrow streets run along its perimeter.

Outwardly, it seems that the whole city is sleeping peacefully, except for the center. In the very heart of the city, life is in full swing. There are interested tourists, medieval horse-drawn carriages, lively fairs on the Grote Markt, and annual festivals. Geographically, the historical center of Bruges is divided into two parts: Markt and Burg. If one of them contains shopping arcades, then in the other - objects of national importance.

One of the most interesting sights of the city is the Belfort watchtower (XIII century), to observation deck which leads up to 366 steps. Another popular attraction is the ancient Church of Our Lady, which seamlessly combines ancient elements with modern technology. It is noteworthy that the development of Flemish painting is closely connected with Bruges.

Photo attraction: Bruges historical center

Bruges historic city center

Belfort Bell Tower

The historical center of Bruges on the map:

Bruges on the map of Belgium

City of Bruges, look where it is Bruges, West Flanders, Belgium on a map of Belgium. Use the search to look at another city on the world map.

I think that in half a day I walked around Bruges very carefully, which I told you about in the previous three stories. All that remains is to walk through the two main squares of the city with short, sonorous names: Burg and Markt.

Bruges sightseeing map. This time I didn’t draw a route for a walk around Bruges, because... There is a ridiculous distance between Markt and Burg.

Having descended back from the observation deck to the ground, we found ourselves in the Belfort courtyard. It is somehow very interesting and almost older than the tower itself. But there was no time to study it, because...

Because for the second time in this story I crossed the St. Bridge. John of Nepomuk and rushed to the Groning Museum. There was nothing left until the cash register closed. But not this time, formally I made it before five, and there were still ten minutes left, but the cash register was already tightly closed. How glad my friend was that I did not torment him with contemplation of Bosch! But it’s okay, I later got my revenge in Brussels.

Even to me, an extremely conservative person, Bruges seemed too correct, sterile, old-fashioned and boring. But in some places it seemed that not everything was so hopeless.

Who's there at the windows?

Laugh, laugh, but at that moment I walked through bridge of St. John of Nepomuk for the third time already. You're counting, right?

I don’t quite understand how this Czech saint ended up in Bruges, but it seems that he is considered the patron saint of bridges, so his installation at this place is quite understandable. By the way, it is always very easy to recognize this saint, only he is given five stars in the place of the halo.

5 stars - golden or shining, five-pointed, are usually located in the place of the halo. Only the Virgin Mary (12) and St. have stars. John of Nepomuk. They appeared at the place where the body of John of Nepomuk drowned. They also mean the word tacui - I was silent(the saint did not reveal the secret of confession), also resemble the 5 wounds of Christ.

Since we didn’t have time to get to the museum, we had to finish exploring the city. We have the last attraction of Bruges left - Burg Square(Burg). Burg is the most main square city (and not Rynochnaya), it was from here that the city originated, here stood the first castle of the local count.

The most noticeable and beautiful building of Burg Square is the Gothic Bruges Town Hall. Unlike similar buildings on Markt Square, everything here is for real, the Middle Ages and all. Well, perhaps the restorers worked hard, because... The town hall was damaged during the French Revolution.

The small and graceful building to the left of the Town Hall with gilding on the facade is an old Court office. If the Town Hall is Gothic, then the Chancellery of the early 16th century is already a transition to the Renaissance.

The facade of the Town Hall is richly decorated; the statues in the niches alone are worth it. Probably every statue represents some real character from the history of Bruges?

Against the backdrop of the Town Hall in the corner of Burg Square, the most important building in the history of Bruges - the Basilica of the Holy Blood - gets a little lost. According to legend, Count Diederik of Alsace, returning from the Crusades to Flanders, received on Christmas Day a few drops of the Holy Blood of Jesus Christ, which he donated to the city upon his return. In honor of this relic, a procession of the Holy Blood of Christ is held every year in Bruges.

The second floor, where the relic of the Holy Blood is kept, was already closed, but people were still allowed on the first floor. By the way, the scenes with the relic in the film “Lie Down in Bruges” were filmed not in the basilica itself, but in the Jerusalem Church.

The first floor of the basilica is Romanesque, austere and modest; in place of the altar there is a statue of a pelican. Ancient legend says that this bird deliberately wounded itself in order to feed its chicks with its blood. This legend symbolized Jesus Christ, who shed His blood for the salvation of mankind.

Much revered in Bruges is the statue of Jesus on the Cold Stone or Ecce Homo "behold, Man".

Here, a local purely Flemish sweet accidentally appeared in the photo Cuberdon, it is also called simply because of its characteristic shape nose. The sweets are poorly stored due to the liquid filling, so it is believed that they should only be eaten in Belgium.

What Cuberdons taste like - if you've eaten Korovka candies, you know that they are hard on the outside and soft (or liquid) on the inside. Here it’s the same thing, only the taste is not milky, but rich, bright raspberry. And the soft filling is more likely not liquid, but jelly-like.

But I’m indifferent to sweets, so I bought myself a waffle. Exactly, a waffle, and not a waffle, such are the costs of Bruges’ tourist popularity. The closer to the city center (and Burg is its very center) - the fewer waffles.

On the opposite side of the Town Hall on Burg Square there is a small park. Just two hundred years ago there stood a beautiful Cathedral Bruges, but it was destroyed during the French Revolution.

This concludes our walk around Bruges. But we decided to wander around the Market Square before dark and drink beer on the way there, and then have dinner at, where in terms of food it seemed cheaper and more interesting to me. Let me not write anything about Belfort? Everything is clear with him.

Opposite Belfort in 2015, such an interesting thing was installed. Firstly, it is mirrored, the area is displayed on its edges, secondly, it repeats the outlines of the tower itself, and thirdly, inside it... there is a privacy room, where, judging by the sign, anyone can hide from the crowds of tourists. I tried the door, but it was locked, obviously someone had already hidden there and did not want to come out back into the light.

But you can fuck up the onion and take a photo!

I already wrote about this side of the Market Square in one of my stories.

We need to draw some conclusions based on our impressions. Moreover, this is such a strange case that I started for peace, and ended for health. No, in fact, while I was selecting photographs for my stories, I read again about the history of the city, its attractions, and somehow became more imbued with the magic of Bruges than when I was walking around it.

I think the main problem with my perception of Bruges is that it is not represented in any way in popular culture. The only exception is the film “Lie Down in Bruges,” which, out of despair, travel bloggers quote in every report on Bruges. I confess, I couldn’t resist either. But there's simply nothing more. I also skimmed through the once terribly popular novel" Dead Bruges", But to modern man this decadent blackness is of little interest, although in places it is beautifully written. That's all. Compare with the number of books, films, yes, just good guides according to other popular tourist places. I’m not talking about or, but take at least the same one, which, to me, seems objectively less beautiful than Bruges, but due to its promotion in mass culture, is perceived completely differently.

What else didn't you like? Traditionally, the Flanders route includes Brussels, Antwerp, Ghent and Bruges. And compared to the rest of the cities of this four, Bruges, excuse me, is the worst. Outside of a couple of tourist squares there are practically no people, this creates a slightly deathly impression. Where all the locals hang out is also not obvious. I suspect that after 10 o’clock there won’t even be anywhere to drink beer here; this is not cheerful and party-oriented Brussels or with its trendy cafes.

But it’s beautiful, I admit. I tried to demonstrate this throughout all four of my stories about a walk in Bruges. I hope it worked.

In the capital of West Flanders, Bruges, there are plenty of canals, and therefore obtaining the status of “Venice of the North” was predetermined. However, most often for tourists Bruges is the chocolate capital of Europe.

In 852, an ordinary event happened - the Flemish Count Baldwin Eisenarm founded a settlement near the North Sea. Over time, the contours of the coastline have changed greatly. Three canals remain from the old days - Ostend, Sluis and Ghent. In the eleventh century, the city's port became international, helped in no small part by a strong demand for high-quality Flemish wool.

The development of commercial shipping was hampered by a natural process - a change in the relief led to the shallowing of the canal connecting the city with the sea. In full maritime status was restored in 1134 naturally, helped by a severe flood.

From the thirteenth to the fourteenth centuries, Bruges rose to prominence as a European trading and financial center. The price for popularity was the stratification of society, which periodically provoked various uprisings. In addition to internal strife, the Flemish and French kings shared power throughout much of the fourteenth century. By the beginning of the fifteenth century there were signs of some revival, but not for long; the separation of Belgium from the Netherlands provoked a new decline that lasted almost four hundred years.

Oddly enough, the British contributed greatly to the revival of the city. Making periodic trips to Waterloo, they constantly passed through a city leading a semi-miserable existence. Realizing that they could turn around here, the British moved to Belgium.

Although the rate of increase tourist flow and was slow, but by the beginning of the twentieth century it still became too big. A new port was needed, the construction of which was started by the Belgian king Leopold II of Saxony-Coburg. At the same time, a canal was laid to the new harbor of Zeebrugge.

Today's Bruges is perceived as a fairy tale. This is facilitated by his appearance– narrow streets, stone pavements and colorful stone facades. One of the main attractions is the Grote Markt market square with the former Belgian long-term construction project - the Belfort Tower.

Its construction began in the thirteenth century and was completed two centuries later. The bells located on the upper platform ring every hour, and each time a different melody is played. Here is also the Basilica of the Holy Blood, built to store one of the Catholic relics. The building looks like a transitional form from Romanesque to Renaissance.

The most visited attractions in Bruges are directly related to Catholicism. These include the Cathedral of the Holy Mother of God - the brightest example gothic architecture, as well as St. John's Hospital, founded in the twelfth century.

However, it would be wrong to perceive Bruges as one large architectural monument. First of all, the name of the city is associated with beer, chocolate and lace.

There are about fifty shops in Bruges whose assortment consists of lace products. Before World War II, there were about a hundred schools for training lacemakers in the city; at present, only one operates.

As for chocolate, this product is a fact of life for Bruges. To see this, just go to one of the chocolate restaurants, or visit the Chocolate Museum.

Beer in Belgium is perceived in much the same way as in the Czech Republic. This is a national drink, the consumption of which has long been a natural process. If you try a new variety every day, you will need to settle in Bruges for about a year and a half.

Here is a map of Bruges with streets → province of West Flanders, Belgium. We study detailed map Bruges with houses and streets. Search in real time, weather today, coordinates

More details about the streets of Bruges on the map

A detailed map of the city of Bruges with street names and villages can show all the routes and roads of the province of West Flanders, where the street is located. Hoogstraat, which country, surroundings of the nearest settlement. Located near.

To view the territory of the entire region in detail, it is enough to change the scale of the online diagram +/-. On the page there is an interactive map of the city of Bruges (Belgium) with addresses and routes of the region, with directions and bypass roads. Move its center to find Wollestraat street now.

The ability to plot a route across the country and calculate the distance using the “Ruler” tool, find out the length of the city and the path to the center, addresses of attractions in the region, transport stops and hospitals (type of “Hybrid” scheme), see train stations and the borders of the province of West Flanders.

You will find everything you need detailed information o location of urban infrastructure - stations and shops, squares and banks, highways and highways.

What to see:

Gothic Church of Our Lady

Accurate satellite map Bruges (Bruges) in Russian with Google search is in its own section, panoramas as well. Use Yandex search to show the desired house on a city map in Belgium/the world, in real time.