The Lonely Planet travel guide labelled Ghent as "Belgium's best-kept secret" 12 years ago, but founder Tony Wheeler has now visited the city for himself for "the first, but certainly not last time," he said in a lyrical account.
In April 2011, Lonely Planet called Ghent "the new Bruges." Wheeler has now confirmed that his first visit was extremely satisfying and wrote about it in a glowing travel report published on the Visit.Gent website.
"Whenever I read about Belgium as a tourist destination, Bruges is always prominently mentioned. Unjustly so, I discovered, because Ghent has just as much culture, heritage and atmosphere to offer and also benefits from its calmer underdog position," he said. "Report of my first, but definitely not my last, visit to the city."
Wheeler was impressed by the city's atmospheric lighting when walking back to his hotel in the evening. "I very quickly forgot about the directions on my smartphone. I mainly looked around, found my way back by myself and was pleasantly surprised along the way. The city has a romantic atmosphere at night, thanks to the proximity of the water and the beautiful night lighting."
Nightlife, art, bikes and Bruges
Ghent is a city with great nightlife as well as beautiful cultural heritage, Wheeler added. He was "rendered speechless" by the Ghent Altarpiece of the Van Eyck brothers in the St Bavo's Cathedral. "It is quite a unique masterpiece. Just the fact that it still exists! Pieces of it have been stolen, shipped all over the world, sold, hidden in a salt mine, you name it."
While he only saw the Castle of the Counts (also known as Het Gravensteen) from the outside, he said it was nonetheless very impressive. "Intruders were definitely deterred from attacking the city! I have many reasons to come back, that much is clear."
Wheeler came across tourists in Ghent, but never felt as if there were too many, he said. "You cannot compare it to cities such as Barcelona, Venice or Amsterdam, where tourist numbers are on a different level."
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Ghent also gives Dutch cities a run for their money in terms of cycling, Wheeler discovered. "I have never seen this many cyclists in the same place. That seems to be typical of Ghent. Small warning? Ghent bicycles may look traditional, but they go fast."
Thanks to Bruges, Ghent still is Belgium's "best kept secret," he concluded. "More than worth visiting, as I have now experienced for myself. Spires, centuries-old houses, idyllic water views: this is such an atmospheric city. And it might not be a bad thing for the city itself to not be at the top of the 'must visit' list."
