Art along the way
The treasures of Flanders
The four cities we pass through hold some of the most valuable art in Europe, and most of it is a short walk from where we will already be standing. This is what is worth the detour, city by city: the works themselves, the museums that keep them, and what each visit costs in euros and in hours.
You are here — 13–14 June
Ghent
Where the journey starts. Ghent keeps one of the most important paintings in the history of art, along with Baroque treasures and a considerable municipal collection.
The works
Start here
Jan and Hubert van Eyck · 1432
The Adoration of the Mystic Lamb (Ghent Altarpiece)
The founding work of oil painting, and the most frequently stolen painting in history. Newly restored, and shown with a visitor centre of its own.
Where to see it
St Bavo's Cathedral (Sint-Baafskathedraal)
Peter Paul Rubens · 1623–24
The Conversion of St Bavo
A large-format high altarpiece: a dissolute nobleman renouncing his wealth. Flemish Baroque at its peak.
St Bavo's Cathedral
Justus van Gent · 15th century
Calvary Triptych
One of the great examples of Ghent's Flemish Primitives, still in the cathedral it was painted for.
St Bavo's Cathedral
Hieronymus Bosch · c. 1510–15
Christ Carrying the Cross
Grotesque faces closing in on Christ: one of Bosch's bleakest and most modern visions.
Museum voor Schone Kunsten (MSK Gent)
Théodore Géricault · c. 1822
Portrait of a Kleptomaniac
From the celebrated psychiatric series of French Romanticism: a feverish gaze, humanity without ornament.
MSK Gent
Museums and galleries
Prices, opening hours and how long to set aside. Nothing here books itself — the busiest three want a time slot reserved online.
St Bavo's Cathedral + Ghent Altarpiece
Sint-Baafsplein
- Price
- Cathedral free · Altarpiece ≈ €12.50 (reduced ≈ €7–9)
- Opening hours
- Cathedral Mon–Sat 8:30–17:30, Sun 13:00–17:30 · Altarpiece from 10:00, last entry 16:30
- Allow
- ≈ 1 h 15
Book a time slot online for the altarpiece.
MSK — Museum voor Schone Kunsten
Fernand Scribedreef 1
- Price
- ≈ €15 (temporary shows up to €25) · under 18 free
- Opening hours
- Tue–Sun 10:00–18:00 · closed Mondays
- Allow
- ≈ 2 h
This is where the Bosch and the Géricault are.
S.M.A.K. (contemporary art)
Jan Hoetplein 1
- Price
- ≈ €17 (19–25: €8.50 · under 18 free)
- Opening hours
- Tue–Sun 9:30–17:30 (weekends and holidays 10:00–18:00) · closed Mondays
- Allow
- ≈ 1 h 30
Across from the MSK; for anyone who loves modern art.
Gravensteen (Castle of the Counts)
Sint-Veerleplein 11
- Price
- €13 (audio guide included)
- Opening hours
- daily 10:00–18:00 (last entry 16:40)
- Allow
- ≈ 1 h 15
A medieval fortress in the middle of town; views and armour.
Design Museum Gent
Jan Breydelstraat 5
- Price
- ≈ €12 (under 18 free) · confirm
- Opening hours
- reopened in 2026 after refurbishment · confirm opening times
- Allow
- ≈ 1 h 15
Decorative arts and design, from art nouveau to now.
STAM — City Museum
Godshuizenlaan 2
- Price
- ≈ €12.50 (19–26: €2 · under 19 free) · confirm
- Opening hours
- approx. 10:00–17:00 · confirm closing day
- Allow
- ≈ 1 h 30
The history of Ghent laid out on a walkable aerial photograph.
Huis van Alijn (everyday life)
Kraanlei 65
- Price
- ≈ €12.50 (19–26: €2 · under 19 free) · confirm
- Opening hours
- Mon, Tue, Thu, Fri 9:00–17:00 · closed Wednesdays · check weekends
- Allow
- ≈ 1 h
A nostalgic museum of daily life, in a former almshouse.
You are here — 14–15 June
Bruges
The museum-city itself. Bruges holds Van Eyck and Memling in their own historic home, and keeps the only Michelangelo that left Italy in the artist's lifetime.
The works
Start here
Michelangelo · 1503–05
Madonna of Bruges
The only Michelangelo sculpture to leave Italy while the master was alive. Carrara marble, serene and revolutionary.
Where to see it
Church of Our Lady (Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekerk)
Jan van Eyck · 1436
The Virgin with Canon van der Paele
A summit of Flemish detail: fabrics, reflections and textures rendered with near-impossible precision.
Groeningemuseum
Hans Memling · 1489
St Ursula Shrine
A reliquary chest painted as a Gothic cathedral in miniature. Memling's absolute masterpiece.
Sint-Janshospitaal (Memling Museum)
Gerard David · 1498
The Judgement of Cambyses
A shocking diptych about justice — it includes a flaying — painted for the Bruges town hall.
Groeningemuseum
Hieronymus Bosch · c. 1486
The Last Judgement
A visionary, infernal triptych, populated by the impossible creatures that made Bosch famous.
Groeningemuseum
Museums and galleries
Prices, opening hours and how long to set aside. Nothing here books itself — the busiest three want a time slot reserved online.
Groeningemuseum
Dijver 12
- Price
- €12 (under 26: €10 · under 16 free)
- Opening hours
- Tue–Sun; summer (1 Apr–2 Nov) 10:00–17:00, winter from 9:30 · closed Mondays
- Allow
- ≈ 1 h 30
Van Eyck, Bosch and Gerard David.
Sint-Janshospitaal (Memling Museum)
Mariastraat 38
- Price
- €15 (18–25: €13 · 13–17: €7 · under 13 free)
- Opening hours
- Tue–Sun 9:30–17:00 · closed Mondays
- Allow
- ≈ 1 h
Memling's St Ursula Shrine.
Church of Our Lady (museum)
Mariastraat / Guido Gezelleplein
- Price
- ≈ €7–8 (reduced for ages 6–25 · under 6 free)
- Opening hours
- approx. Mon–Sat 9:30–17:00, Sun 13:30–17:00 · confirm
- Allow
- ≈ 40 min
Michelangelo's Madonna.
Gruuthusemuseum
Dijver 17
- Price
- €15 (under 13 free)
- Opening hours
- Tue–Sun 9:30–17:00 · confirm closing day
- Allow
- ≈ 1 h 30
A 15th-century town palace: applied arts and tapestries.
Belfort (Belfry)
Markt 7
- Price
- €15 (7–17: €13 · under 6 free)
- Opening hours
- daily 9:30–18:00 (last climb 17:00)
- Allow
- ≈ 1 h
366 steps to the top for the best view over Bruges.
Historium Brugge
Markt 1
- Price
- from €14 (children €7.50 · with VR +€5)
- Opening hours
- daily 10:00–18:00 (last entry 17:00)
- Allow
- ≈ 1 h 30
An immersive experience of medieval Bruges; very popular.
You are here — 15–17 June
Knokke-Heist
Behind the elegance of the coast, Knokke is a quiet capital of modern art: more than ninety galleries spread through the centre — from Niki de Saint Phalle to Appel and Mapplethorpe — and, above all, a casino that holds monumental works by the great Surrealists.
The works
Start here
René Magritte · 1953
The Enchanted Domain (Le Domaine enchanté)
A circular 360° mural in eight panels: a dreamlike compendium of Magritte's Surrealist universe. Counted as one of Knokke's two world-class works.
Where to see it
Grand Casino Knokke (Kursaal)
Paul Delvaux · 1974
Le Voyage Légendaire (fragment)
A fresco 4.4 by 13 metres: stations, trains, forests and figures suspended in a dream. Moved to the casino from Chaudfontaine.
Grand Casino Knokke
Keith Haring · 1987
Casino Knokke mural
Painted on site during the New York artist's solo show at the casino, at the height of his pop language.
Grand Casino Knokke
Niki de Saint Phalle · 1973
Le Dragon
A monumental sculpture-house you can walk into, and a playful icon of the artist. A habitable dragon, out on the street.
Avenue des Salines (private residence; visible from outside)
Museums and galleries
Prices, opening hours and how long to set aside. Nothing here books itself — the busiest three want a time slot reserved online.
Grand Casino Knokke (Kursaal)
Zeedijk-Albertstrand 509
- Price
- Art visit with audio guide — check rate and availability
- Opening hours
- depends on the programme; book ahead
- Allow
- ≈ 1 h
Home to Magritte's 360° mural and the Delvaux fresco.
Zwin Nature Park
Graaf Léon Lippensdreef 8
- Price
- €14 (€11 with a pass)
- Opening hours
- closed Mondays · winter 10:00–17:00, summer 10:00–18:00
- Allow
- ≈ 2–3 h
The international airport of birds: nature, salt marsh and land art.
Sincfala — Museum van de Zwinstreek
Pannenstraat 140
- Price
- €3.50 (ages 6–26: €1 · family €7.50)
- Opening hours
- daily 10:00–12:00 and 14:00–17:30
- Allow
- ≈ 1 h
Two thousand years of the Zwin coast, in a former fishermen's school.
You are here — 17–18 June
Antwerp
Rubens' city. His monumental canvases still hang in the cathedral they were painted for, and the KMSKA completes an exceptional walk through Flemish painting.
The works
Start here
Peter Paul Rubens · 1612–14
The Descent from the Cross
A monumental Baroque triptych, 4.2 metres tall, painted for this very altar, where it can still be seen. There is nothing else like it.
Where to see it
Cathedral of Our Lady
Peter Paul Rubens · 1610–11
The Elevation of the Cross
Its dramatic counterpart: diagonal, tension and muscle. Also in situ in the cathedral.
Cathedral of Our Lady
Pieter Bruegel the Elder · c. 1563
Dulle Griet (Mad Meg)
A hallucinatory allegory of madness and war; one of the most sought-after works Bruegel painted.
Museum Mayer van den Bergh
Jan van Eyck · 1439
Madonna at the Fountain
An exquisite little panel, barely larger than a postcard: the last work Van Eyck signed and dated.
KMSKA
Peter Paul Rubens · 1624
The Adoration of the Magi
One of his first great High Baroque canvases: movement, light and colour spilling over.
KMSKA (Rubens Room)
Museums and galleries
Prices, opening hours and how long to set aside. Nothing here books itself — the busiest three want a time slot reserved online.
KMSKA — Royal Museum of Fine Arts
Leopold de Waelplaats 1
- Price
- €20 (19–26: €10 · under 18 free)
- Opening hours
- 10:00–17:00 (weekends to 18:00 · Thursdays to 22:00 except July and August) · confirm weekly closing
- Allow
- ≈ 2 h 30
Vast; book a time slot. Van Eyck and the Rubens Room.
Cathedral of Our Lady
Handschoenmarkt
- Price
- €12 (reduced €10 · under 18 free)
- Opening hours
- Mon–Fri 10:00–17:00, Sat 10:00–15:00, Sun 13:00–17:00
- Allow
- ≈ 1 h
Four Rubens in situ, including the Descent.
Dulle Griet at the Maagdenhuis
Lange Gasthuisstraat 33
- Price
- €14 (valid two days)
- Opening hours
- Tue–Sun 10:00–17:00 (last entry 16:45) · closed Mondays
- Allow
- ≈ 1 h
The Museum Mayer van den Bergh is closed until 2030; its Dulle Griet is shown here, in the exhibition “Beloved”.
MAS — Museum aan de Stroom
Hanzestedenplaats 1
- Price
- €12 (panoramic roof free · under 18 free)
- Opening hours
- Tue–Sun 10:00–17:00 · closed Mondays
- Allow
- ≈ 2 h
The city and its port across ten floors; a roof terrace with 360° views.
Plantin-Moretus Museum
Vrijdagmarkt 22
- Price
- €12 (reduced €8 · under 18 free)
- Opening hours
- Tue–Sun 10:00–17:00 · closed Mondays
- Allow
- ≈ 1 h 30
A 16th-century printing house and World Heritage Site: the oldest presses in the world.
Red Star Line Museum
Montevideostraat 3
- Price
- €10 (under 18 free)
- Opening hours
- Tue–Sun 10:00–17:00 · closed Mondays
- Allow
- ≈ 1 h 30
The great European emigration to America, from the port of Antwerp.
Middelheimmuseum (open-air sculpture)
Middelheimlaan 61
- Price
- Free
- Opening hours
- closed Mondays · May–Aug 10:00–20:00 · April and Sep to 19:00 · Oct–Mar to 17:00
- Allow
- ≈ 1 h 45
A 24-hectare park with Rodin, Moore and contemporary art.
MoMu — Fashion Museum
Nationalestraat 28
- Price
- ≈ €12 (check) · under 18 free
- Opening hours
- Tue–Sun 10:00–18:00 · closed Mondays
- Allow
- ≈ 1 h
A world reference for fashion; in 2026 it marks forty years of the Antwerp Six.
Rubenshuis (Rubens' house museum)
Wapper 9–11
- Price
- Under restoration
- Opening hours
- reopening expected in 2027 (garden and Rubens Experience open) · confirm
The master's house and workshop; check its status before counting on it.
Free, outdoors, no ticket
Art at street level
Flanders does not keep its art only indoors. These five stand in the open, cost nothing, and are on the way to somewhere else — which is how most people miss them.
Ghent
Graffitistraatje (Werregarenstraat)
Legal street art · repainted continuously
An alley where painting is legal: its walls are repainted almost every week, so you will never see it twice the same. The heart of Ghent street art.
Werregarenstraat, between Hoogpoort and Onderstraat
Bruges
Monument to Jan Breydel and Pieter de Coninck
Paul De Vigne · 1887
The Flemish heroes of the Battle of the Golden Spurs preside over the main square in bronze; a meeting point and a symbol of Bruges.
Markt (main square)
Knokke-Heist
The Bunny
Barry Flanagan · bronze
A bronze hare caught mid-leap on the sea wall, the Welsh sculptor's surreal wink at the North Sea. One of Knokke's open-air icons.
Zeedijk (seafront promenade)
Knokke-Heist
Heads to the Sky
Thomas Lerooy · bronze
A tower of stacked faces looking upward: melancholy and monumental, by the contemporary Belgian artist.
Knokke (seafront promenade)
Antwerp
Nello and Patrasche
Batist Vermeulen · 2016
The boy and his dog from “A Dog of Flanders”, curled up under a blanket of cobblestones at the foot of the cathedral. It sits at ground level: easy to walk straight past.
Handschoenmarkt, in front of the Cathedral of Our Lady
It sits at ground level: easy to walk straight past, and easy to fall for.
Before you count on any of it
What may have changed by June
Prices and opening hours here were checked in August 2026, a year before we travel, and museums move both. Two are worth knowing about now: the Rubenshuis is still under restoration, with reopening expected in 2027 — the garden and the Rubens Experience are open in the meantime — and the Museum Mayer van den Bergh stays closed until 2030, so its Dulle Griet hangs at the Maagdenhuis instead. Design Museum Gent has only just reopened. Check anything you plan a day around.
Old master reproductions via Wikimedia Commons; most are public domain. Three are used under a Creative Commons licence: Madonna of Bruges (Jean-Pol Grandmont, CC BY 3.0), the St Ursula Shrine (CC BY-SA 4.0), and the Breydel and De Coninck monument (CEphoto / Uwe Aranas, CC BY-SA 3.0). The Knokke works and the street pieces are courtesy of the host.