Ghent day trip from Brussels: the 35-minute train, the Ghent Altarpiece at €12.50 or €16, the Gravensteen at €15 and a station that is not in the centre

💡 The Short Version: Ghent is about 35 to 40 minutes from Brussels by train to Gent-Sint-Pieters, which is not in the centre: tram 1 or 3 runs every 10 minutes, or walk about 20 minutes. The Ghent Altarpiece is €12.50 for 25 minutes or €16 with an augmented-reality tour (60 minutes), and you buy on the cathedral’s own site. The Gravensteen is €15, open daily, and you book ahead. Both together are €27.50. A tour from €47 saves the train and the tram and adds a guide. Or book now: the Ghent day trip with an Atomium stop and boat optionad is from €47 for 9 hours, and the Bruges and Ghent day tourad from €34 for 10.5 hours (GetYourGuide).

Getting there

About 35 to 40 minutes · several direct trains an hour · Gent-Sint-Pieters

• The station: get off at Gent-Sint-Pieters. Gent-Dampoort, in the north, is Ghent’s other station. Both have luggage lockers.
• Into the centre: tram 1 or 3 leaves Gent-Sint-Pieters for the centre every 10 minutes. On foot the Arts Quarter is about 10 minutes away and the centre about 20, following the green signposts.
• The ticket: SNCB sells single tickets only, priced by distance from €2.60, with no return tickets. Buy in the SNCB app or at a machine. Adults aged 26 to 64 pay 30% less at weekends and on public holidays, and children under 12 travel free with an adult. SNCB’s journey planner gives the fare for your day.
• The Discovery Ticket: the Gravensteen sells SNCB’s Discovery Ticket. Buy the castle ticket, enter its code on belgiantrain.be up to a month ahead, and the same-day return train is 40% cheaper. It is not refundable, and local trams and buses are extra.
• Strikes: rail strikes in Belgium can be announced at short notice, so check the day before.

Tours

Prices are GetYourGuide’s lowest “from” price per adult. All cancel free.

The tour listings do not say which entries are included, so check before you book. On your own the altarpiece and the Gravensteen come to €27.50, or €31 with the augmented-reality tour, plus the train.

What to see

Start at the cathedral for the 10:15 viewing, go on to the Gravensteen, and take a boat in the afternoon. The altarpiece takes 25 minutes or an hour, the Gravensteen comes with an audio guide, and the boat is 50 minutes. Skip the augmented-reality tour if you want only the painting. On a Sunday the cathedral opens at 13:00, so start with the castle.

The Ghent Altarpiece, St Bavo’s Cathedral

€12.50 for 25 minutes · €16 with the augmented-reality tour, 60 minutes · cathedral free to enter

The altarpiece (the Adoration of the Mystic Lamb) hangs in St Bavo’s Cathedral, at Sint-Baafsplein. There are two tickets. The 25-minute visit costs €12.50, and the cathedral’s page lists two times for it, 10:15 when the panels are opened and 17:15 when they are closed. The €16 augmented-reality tour takes 60 minutes: the first half is in the crypt with augmented-reality glasses, the second in the upper church without. It is for ages 6 and over, children aged 6 to 11 pay €8, and the last entry is 16:00. The cathedral is open Monday to Saturday 08:30 to 17:30, and Sunday 13:00 to 17:30, but entry to the altarpiece closes at 17:00. The Mystic Lamb Visitors’ Centre is open Monday to Saturday 10:00 to 17:00 and Sunday 13:00 to 17:00. It is closed to the public only on 1 January. Buy on the cathedral’s own site.

St Bavo’s Cathedral, with the Van Eyck brothers monument in front. Photo: Anton Raath, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

The Gravensteen

€15 · daily 10:00 to 18:00 · last admission 16:40 · book ahead

The Castle of the Counts, a medieval fortress in the middle of the city. The Gravensteen’s price page lists €15 for an adult, €7.50 for ages 19 to 25, €3 for ages 13 to 18, free for children up to 12, and free with the Ghent CityCard. An audio guide is included, and the price is the same online and at the desk. The castle advises booking ahead for guaranteed entry. It has no luggage storage and no lockers, and food and drink are not allowed inside. It is closed on 24, 25 and 31 December and 1 January.

The Gravensteen seen across its moat. Photo: Trougnouf, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0.

A boat through the centre

€11 from GetYourGuide · 50 minutes

The guided boat tripad runs through the medieval centre, past the birthplace of Charles V, historic churches and a castle. GetYourGuide’s listing is a bestseller at 4.5 stars from 7,145 reviews.

Boats moored along the Graslei. Photo: Lichtinval.be, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

The Ghent CityCard

Visit Gent offers a CityCard for 2 or 3 days with free public transport, and the Gravensteen is free with it. Its price is on Visit Gent’s site.

What a day costs

Add the SNCB fare for your day.

Before you go

• The thing that ruins a visit: the altarpiece entry closes at 17:00, an hour before the cathedral does, and the Gravensteen’s last admission is 16:40.
• Christmas: the Gravensteen is closed on 24, 25 and 31 December and 1 January; the cathedral is closed only on 1 January.
• Which to take: on your own for the altarpiece and the castle; the 9-hour Ghent tour if you want the train handled; the Bruges and Ghent day tour for both cities.

Day trips from Brussels compares every trip. Bruges has direct trains from Ghent, and the Bruges city guide has Ghent as a day trip from Bruges, and Antwerp pairs with Ghent on one coach tour. Public transport in Brussels covers the way to the station, and hotels near Brussels-Midi put you beside the trains. What to book before you go to Brussels lists the closed days in the capital.