4-Day Bruges Itinerary
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Four days is the 3-day core (city, Ghent) plus a fourth day at Ypres and Flanders Fields, WWI ground that deserves its own unhurried day rather than a rushed half-day add-on. With less time, drop back to the 3-day plan ; with more, the 5-day itinerary adds the Belgian coast.
Day 1: The Markt and the Belfry
Morning
Climb the Belfry (around €14) on the Markt, then the Burg square for the Basilica of the Holy Blood and the Stadhuis.
Afternoon
The Church of Our Lady (around €8) for Michelangelo’s “Madonna and Child,” then a canal boat tour (around €13).
Evening
Dinner near the Markt, then a quiet evening canal walk.
Day 2: Canals and the Begijnhof
Morning
The Begijnhof and Minnewater, both free, followed by the Groeningemuseum (around €12).
Afternoon
De Halve Maan brewery tour (around €14), including its 3km underground beer pipeline.
Evening
An early dinner and early night ahead of tomorrow’s day trip.
Day 3: Day trip to Ghent
Morning
Train to Ghent (around €9-14 one-way, roughly 25-30 minutes) for St Bavo’s Cathedral and the Ghent Altarpiece.
Afternoon
Gravensteen castle and the Graslei harbour front, then the train back.
Evening
Back in Bruges by early evening for a relaxed dinner.
Day 4: Ypres and Flanders Fields
Morning
Train or bus to Ypres, often via a change at Kortrijk, roughly 1-1.5 hours each way. Visit the In Flanders Fields Museum (around €11) inside the rebuilt Cloth Hall.
Afternoon
Tyne Cot, the largest Commonwealth war cemetery in the world, and time at the Menin Gate, inscribed with roughly 54,000 names of the missing.
Evening
If your return connection allows it, stay for the Last Post ceremony at the Menin Gate, held every evening at 20:00 since 1928 and free to attend. One concrete tip: confirm your last train back to Bruges before the ceremony starts, since Ypres’ evening service thins out fast.
Read more: our 5-day Bruges itinerary adds a full day on the Belgian coast to this same plan, and the full Bruges guide covers the WWI sites in more depth.