48 Hours In Bruges with Kids

We finally made it to mainland Europe after living in England for 15 months. Don't get me wrong, I have loved every second of exploring the UK the past year or so - seeing castles, the sea, and all of the wonderful historic places within a train ride of London. But it was time we ventured out, and I don't think we could've picked a more perfect first adventure.

I have been to Belgium before, but I was in Brussels and it was many years ago, before kids. I wanted a walkable, not overwhelming, easy to navigate location that was steeped in a mix of things I found interesting but also catered to kids. Thankfully, our school had two inset days at the beginning of September, so we were able to sneak away right before school started and avoid a lot of crowds and extra cost.

Honestly, Bruges delivered.

We took the Eurostar from St. Pancras International Train Station in London. This took us to Brussels and then we made a quick, easy change to an Intercity train to Bruges. I may only travel by train from now on because it was so easy. Although, quick side note - if you do not hold an EU or UK passport, there was additional security lines you had to go through, but for the most part that was painless.

Once in Bruges, we walked all the way to our hotel (about a 30 minute walk, but we took the scenic route). The kids were a little bit cranky by the time we got there because 1 - we had to get up at 5:00 that morning and 2 - their idea of vacation is not walking a mile before we even get to the good stuff. At least the walk was through the heart of the city.

Our hotel was just a 5 minute walk from the city center. Highly recommend Hotel Lucca. We stayed in their family suite. It had its own entrance, a small kitchen, double bunk beds, and a nice patio.

So, what did we do? Well, Bruges itself is a Unesco World Heritage Site which was enough for me. The architecture is absolutely gorgeous, and all of the streets are cobblestone. The city is filled with canals, and once you get off the beaten path you can meander down quiet streets that feel like you are in a fairytale.

Here are some highlights of things the kids enjoyed:

• Canal Boat Ride: We did this on the first day to get an overview of the city and relax after our walk to the hotel. The kids always list this as one of their highlights. Your hotel should be able to tell you where the starting points are for a ride, but there are locations all along the main part of the canal. Various companies, but they all have to follow the same route.

• Horse Drawn Carriage Ride: This was at the top of C's list, and it did not disappoint. She was waving at everyone like she was royalty. Our guide was less than enthused, but you win some you lose some. Again, it was a great way to see the city without tiring out the little ones, and since we did this on our second day, we made notes of places we wanted to go back to see as we passed them.

• ChocoStory : A museum dedicated to the history of Belgian chocolate. It gets mixed reviews on the internet, but my kids loved it. They had audio guides specifically for kids that were short and sweet, and my kids were constantly running up to me to tell me something they learned. Plus, there was a tasting room with a live demonstration of how they make pralines followed by a sample. Add in a silly photo booth at the end, and you have yourselves a winner.

• The Windmills: On the outskirts of the city center, there are 5 old windmills that were once part of a whole slew of them surrounding the city, but now there is only one that is still a functioning grain mill. It was about a 15 minute walk from the city center, but you weaved through all of these quaint streets where we were generally the only people walking which was a nice break from the somewhat crowded center. The windmills look like they are out of a storybook, surrounded by green space.
  • Let me pause and tell you our experience with the windmills: We decided to spend the €10 and climb to the top of the working one. Good idea in theory, bad idea if you are 1 - scared of heights or 2 - have small children. First let me say, it was a windy day. You had to climb a ladder that was akin to a bunk bed ladder but 30-40 feet tall while it swayed in the wind. Once inside, R was already losing it because he hates heights, and it was noisy because it was actively grinding grain to make flour. There was another 10 foot ladder to climb to get into the heart of the windmill where all the gears were located. We all did it, but R immediately started losing it, so I had to calm him down so we could get back down safely while also soothing myself because I was way outside my comfort zone, while also answering G's questions about the inner workings of an operational grain mill because he was completely unaffected by the anxiety oozing out of everyone around him. Meanwhile, I'm trying to kindly thank the gentlemen who were trying to tell us about the windmill while our kids were melting down. I finally got R (and myself) back down to the solid ground where I tried to get him to celebrate that he just accomplished something the was afraid of while also trying to get him to actually physically shake or run off the massive amounts of adrenaline and emotions that were probably coursing through his body. Anyway, that being said, I thought it was a highlight of the trip because how often do you get to climb into a windmill from the 1800s and watch it grind wheat into flour. Pretty cool.

• Cathedrals: There are a number of beautiful cathedrals in Bruges, but we only went into two of them because it's not really high on the list of kid-approved activities, but I also want them to experience bits of things like that too.
  • Basilica of the Holy Blood: Built in the 12th century, and most notable for housing a vial that is said to contain a cloth with Jesus Christ's blood on it.
  • Church of Our Lady: Contains the only Michelangelo statue said to have left Italy. We did not actually see this because it was a paid entrance area of the church, but there were also some relics from Mary and the apostles which was amazing to see.
• Koningin Astridpark: Used to be the grounds of a monastery, now a public park with a big playground. Great place to give the kids a break and have a snack.
• Food: You can't go to Bruges without having chocolate, waffles, and fries. All of which we accomplished multiple times. I really wanted to try Flemish stew, but when you're traveling with kids you have to sometimes go with what the crowd wants, which was not Flemish stew. Here are some places in particular we enjoyed:
  • House of Waffles - you can sit down and eat or order waffles from the window outside. Just a note: the chocolate and whipped cream waffles look fun, but not an ideal to-go food. Opt for the plain waffle, it is plenty sweet and way less messy.
  • Green fry stands in the city center: Great fries, and they fry them in tallow, the old-fashioned way if you try to avoid seed oils like I do.
  • The Olive Street Food: Maybe the best fries of the trip. I'll post a picture below.
• The Chocolate Line: Fun flavors. Recommend getting a variety box of 8 and have your own little tasting session. One of the best chocolatiers in Bruges as they make all of their own chocolates. There are a LOT of chocolate shops, and honestly most of them look like they sell all of the same generic items. I recommend looking into ones that actually make their own.
• Chocolatier Dumon: One of the oldest chocolatiers in Bruges, and they also make their own daily. They were lovely there, giving the kids samples.
• Tasty: This place was hands down our favorite. It's a fairly simple sandwich shop, but we went there for breakfast two days in a row because it was so great. They had wonderful homemade juices, delicious sandwiches, and a wide variety of pastries.

Well, that about wraps up our trip. Honestly, just walking the streets would've been enough for me, but the things we chose to do were wonderful. I think we actually did a little bit too much as we were all exhausted when we came home. C was actually beyond exhausted judging by how many knock-knock jokes she told the nice Belgian woman sitting next to us on the train. I will definitely be paying Bruges another visit, especially since it was only 2.5 hours from London. I've heard it's lovely at Christmas time.