Historical Walking Tour: Discover the Past and Legends of Bruges with a Local Guide
4.9
1,659 Ratings
Brugge
Embark on a historical walking tour of Bruges with a local guide and uncover the fascinating past and legends of this enchanting city. Discover the stories of love, glory, fortune, intrigue, war, and conflict that shaped Bruges. Get insider tips on the best places to eat and drink. Book now!
Duration:
2 hours, 15 minutes
Cancellation:
1 day
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Highlights
- The Markt - We start here with an introduction about the history of Bruges and the role the city played as a trading hub in medieval times. We also go deeper into the troublesome relationship between the city of Bruges and the French king.
- Belfort - We visit the halls behind the bellfry and explain you the important role the tower has played during the Middle Ages.
- Gruuthusemuseum - This newly renovated city palace belonged to a wealthy family in Bruges, who held a monopoly on a specific part of the beer trade. Our guide will tell you all about it.
- Sint-Janshospitaal - We make a stop at the magnificent hospital of St John, one of the oldest still exisitng hospitals in the world and one of the cornerstones of medieval society.
- The Princely Beguinage Ten Wijngaarde - We’ll take you for a walk into the picturesque beguinage, the biggest of its kind in the world, where a community of ladies have lived together for over 800 years.
- De Halve Maan Brewery - We stop in front of the brewery to tell you the story of how the people of Bruges got the nickname ‘Fools of Bruges’ and to show you a piece of the beer pipeline that flows beneath our city.
- Minnewater Lake - By the Lake of Love we tell you the story of why we have swans on the canals of Bruges and how the city got into a conflict with Emperor Maximilian of Austria.
- Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekerk - We’ll tell you the story of this iconic church, which is the 2nd tallest brick tower in the world and houses a statue by Michelangelo as well as the tombs of the last Dukes of Burgundy.
- Groeningemuseum - We venture into the garden of the Groeninge Museum, where some of the works of the biggest Flemish masters are on display.
- Huidenvettersplein - We take you to the old Tanner’s square, where the smelly business took place of greasing skins and turning them into leather.
- Burg Square - After passing by the old Fishmarket, we end the tour on the Burg square, the political heart and birthplace of the city of Bruges.
What's Included
- All applicable fees and taxes included
What's Not Included
- Gratuities
Additional Information
Stroll through Bruges alongside a resident guide, delve into the city’s historical heart, and journey back to Bruges’ halcyon days. Our guide will share fascinating truths and tales of romance, triumph, and prosperity, yet also of conspiracy, warfare, and strife. Additionally, they can suggest places to dine and unwind during your visit. Upon wrapping up the tour, you’ll be more knowledgeable than a local inhabitant!
ESSENTIAL NOTICE: Our guides are volunteers who conduct tours in exchange for gratuities. The charge solely encompasses the expense of reserving via this platform.
Location
Markt 8000
Markt
We meet at the main square (Grote Markt) of Bruges, in front of the STATUE!
Look for the RED UMBRELLA!
IMPORTANT: Guides are volunteers giving tours for tips. Fee covers platform booking costs only.
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.9
(1659 Ratings)
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Cynthia_g
Apr 23, 2024
Excellent tour! Louis is... - Excellent tour! Louis is a very knowledgeable guide. Even though I've been to Bruges several times, I learned a lot
Review provided by Viator
Hennieb
Apr 22, 2024
One of the best! - Landers has a great sense of humor and we really enjoyed it. It was a great start to our day in Brugge . Also his knowledge is excellent.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Janet_s
Apr 22, 2024
Best day in Bruges! - Peter was amazing! The history, the architecture, the funny stories…. Def a day to remember! Can’t thank him enough!
Review provided by Viator
Lee
Apr 22, 2024
Excellent Walking Tour and Guide - An excellent tour delivered by the charismatic Nico, an extremely knowledgeable guide who delivered a whole host of interesting facts with a great deal of wit and engaged constantly with the whole group.
Highly recommend this tour, especially with Nico at the helm.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Josephinehy5334oc
Apr 22, 2024
Nico is the best - Our tour guide was Nicholas.
We originally booked it for 2pm but was free in the morning and the tour operator / Nico very kindly allowed us to join the 11.30am tour instead.
Nico was humorous, enthusiastic, and very informative throughout the whole tour. He was able to answer any question we threw at him and overall was a great delight. My only regret was not changing more money to tip him more. Thanks Nico!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Karen
Apr 21, 2024
Great Tour! - Lander was a fantastic guide and we learned a lot about Brugge. My husband had fun with the final story. He also gave us good information about Belgian chocolate!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Holly_82
Apr 21, 2024
Fantastic walking tour - We booked this tour on Viator and despite it being rainy and cold, Martin was a brilliant guide. We saw bits of Brugge we would never have seen if we hadn't taken the tour and really appreciated all the information about the history of Brugge.
Loved seeing the swans, the gods houses, all the boats on the water and loads of amazing architecture. As we had only just got to Brugge, it set us up for an awesome weekend and the knowledge he imparted really helped us with navigating everywhere and knowing where the tourist traps are and where to go instead.
Absolutely brilliant - make sure to bring cash to give him a big tip at the end :-)
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Linda
Apr 21, 2024
You MUST DO this tour if visiting Bruges for the first time. Wonderful! - This was a superb walking tour and our guide Lavigna was brilliant. She was knowledgeable, funny and told us so much about Bruges. It is a must do tour for anyone visiting Bruges for the first time.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Chnnhuj
Apr 20, 2024
Great experience! - Martin led us on an informative and interesting tour. And gave us great restaurant and shopping recommendations! While he is not a native to Bruges, he clearly knows and loves the town.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Sraf
Apr 24, 2024
Too many on the tour - It was a little rushed at time. As the tour went on more people joined and there were over 30 of us which made it really hard to get near the guide to hear him, especially as his accent was very strong and he spoke very fast. So about half way we lost our enthusiasm. Please think about limiting the numbers and speaking slower.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
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