15 Things to Do in Antwerp

Antwerp packs a lot into a compact, walkable centre. Here are fifteen things worth your time, from the free rooftop views to the fashion museum, with 2026 prices and the two closures to plan around.

  1. Stand on the Grote Markt. The central square is free to wander, ringed by 16th and 17th-century guild houses and the Renaissance Stadhuis (1564), with the 1887 Brabo Fountain at its centre telling the city’s founding legend.

  2. See Rubens in the Cathedral of Our Lady (EUR 12). Several of his altarpieces, including The Descent from the Cross, still hang in the building they were painted for. The spire is 123m, the tallest church tower in the Benelux.

  3. Go up the MAS rooftop, free. The Museum aan de Stroom’s spiralling tower gives a 360-degree panorama over port, river, and old town at no cost, even without a museum ticket. The best free view in the city.

  4. Tour the UNESCO Plantin-Moretus (EUR 12), the only museum inscribed on UNESCO’s list in its own right, holding the world’s oldest surviving printing presses.

  5. Walk the Diamond District and DIVA. The working trade quarter near Centraal handles roughly 84% of the world’s rough-diamond trade; the DIVA museum (EUR 12) tells the story properly.

  6. See the Antwerp Six at MoMu (EUR 12), the fashion museum, open through 2026 with a 40th-anniversary show running to 17 January 2027.

  7. Climb (or just admire) Het Steen. The oldest building in the city; its courtyard and rooftop platform are free, and “The Antwerp Story” inside runs EUR 7.

  8. Visit KMSKA in Het Zuid (EUR 12), the reopened fine-arts museum with strong Rubens and old-masters holdings. Book its timed online entry ahead.

  9. Photograph Centraal Station, the 1905 “spoorwegkathedraal,” a genuine sight in its own right.

  10. Wander Cogels-Osylei in Zurenborg, a free-to-walk Art Nouveau street with 170 protected facades.

  11. Order “een bolleke.” You get De Koninck, the amber beer brewed here since 1833, about EUR 2.50 to 3.50 a glass.

  12. Try Antwerpse Handjes, hand-shaped butter-and-almond biscuits tied to the Brabo legend, and a small glass of jenever at a proeflokaal.

  13. Stroll the Meir shopping street between the centre and Centraal.

  14. Explore Eilandje and the Red Star Line Museum, which tells the story of the emigration port Antwerp once was.

  15. Cross to Linkeroever on the free Sint-Anna ferry for the left-bank view back at the skyline. Note: the premetro tunnel under the Scheldt is closed until roughly March 2027, so the ferry or free pedestrian tunnel is how you cross.

One 2026 note: the Rubenshuis is closed for renovation until around 2030, so item 2 is your Rubens stop.

Read more: plan the days with our Antwerp travel guide , or dig into where to eat in our Antwerp food guide .