How to Get to Bruges from Brussels

During your trip to Brussels, you will probably consider strolling through the cobbled streets and canals of charming Bruges.

Thanks to the fact that the two cities are only 100 km apart by road, you can make the trip in the same day. How? Take note.

If you plan to spend a day in Bruges, the most convenient way is to join an excursion to Bruges from Brussels. It takes just over an hour to get there and the journey is by private bus, which makes it very quick and avoids unnecessary waiting at the train or bus station.

The meeting and departure point is usually a central location in the city of Brussels, so you will most likely be within walking distance of your hotel or accommodation.

In addition, the departure times are very convenient, ranging from 8:30 to 10:00 in the morning. An hour later you will have arrived at your destination.

If you wish, there are also tours that add a stop in Ghent(on the way back from Bruges). This will not add too many kilometres to your journey and will allow you to see the best of both cities in one day.

Another option for getting between Brussels and Bruges quickly and comfortably is the train. As with almost every capital city in Europe, Brussels is very well connected by train, which arrives and departs from its central station in the city centre.

The frequency of trains to Bruges is relatively high, with about 3 trains every hour during the day.

The only thing to watch out for is the timetable: the last return train leaves Bruges at around midnight and there is no return train until around 6am.

Keep this in mind if you don't want to spend a night out waiting for the first train back to the city! As for the price, you can get a return ticket for less than 30 euros and the journey time is one hour. You can find more details on prices in my article on Bruges tour prices.

If you prefer, you can visit Ghent during your day trip to Bruges. This is best done in the afternoon and of course you can also get there by train (it is less than an hour from Bruges and less than an hour from Brussels).

The public bus is another option for getting to Bruges. It is slightly cheaper than the train and the journey takes a little longer (up to an hour and a half).

This is probably the most complicated option if you are planning to visit Ghent on the same day. In that case I recommend you take the train to avoid wasting too much time travelling between cities.

If you want to head for the charming city of Bruges as soon as you land in Brussels, you can do so directly from the airport: no need to go through the city.

There are direct trains between Brussels Airport and Bruges for €22 and departing every 15 minutes, so it's a relatively cheap and easy journey for those who don't want to waste a second to start enjoying the beauty of the city of canals.

You may have rented a car at the airport and may want to leave from there. In that case, the journey time is just under an hour and a half if there is no traffic. The roads are in perfect condition and the directions from Brussels Airport to Bruges are very easy.

If, on the other hand, you are already in Brussels and want to get to Bruges by car, the journey time is about an hour and a half, but this can vary depending on traffic (especially if you are leaving from a relatively close area). Again, the roads are perfect and very well signposted.