Worth getting out of bed for
Highlights the best Antwerp has to offer, from museums packed with Old Masters to cutting-edge fashion; we've even found the most inspiring place to enjoy the views from.
- Viewpoint
- For a visual feast of guildhouses, gold statuary and ornate facades head to the Grote Markt in the heart of the Old Town; the beautiful Flemish Renaissance architecture of the Stadhuis (city hall) is a monument to 16th-century civic pride. The Brabo Fountain and the surrounding cafés are popular meeting places.
- Arts and culture
- Antwerp was Rubens’ hometown, and his masterpieces fill the city; many of his works are displayed at the Royal Museum of Fine Arts (Koninklijk Museum voor Schone Kunsten) at Leopold de Waelplaats (www.kmska.be), along with those of other Old Masters, including van Dyck, van Eyck and Memling. Rubens’ works can also be seen in several of the city’s churches, including four huge altarpieces in Antwerp’s Gothic cathedral on Handschoenmarkt. The Rubenshuis, where the painter lived, is also a major attraction (www.rubenshuis.be). Modern Antwerp’s status as a style and design centre is reinforced by
- Something for nothing
- A short distance from the Grote Markt and the cathedral, Vlaaikensgang is a maze of 16th-century alleyways in the heart of the city centre. Hidden behind a small entrance at Oude Koornmarkt 16, this tucked-away oasis of calm is a great place to listen to carillon concerts drifting over from the cathedral bell tower. Concerts take place 20h–20h45 between May and September.
- Shopping
- While the Meir is the main drag for high-street brands, dedicated followers of fashion should make for the vintage and designer boutiques on Nationalestraat, Sint-Antoniusstraat and Kammenstraat. Check out the flagships of home-grown fashion heroes Dries Van Noten and Véronique Branquinho. Verso, a glistening Harvey Nicks-style shopping emporium on Lange Gasthuisstraat, is as chic as the fashion it sells. Pi-Nuts boutique on Nationalestraat specialises in catwalk cast-offs, while Episode on Steenhouwersvest, Jutka & Riska on Nationalestraat, and Baby Beluga on Volkstraat stock vintage and accessories. For luxurious interiors goodies, try Flamant Dining on Lange Gasthuisstraat. Vrijdagmarkt, the Friday flea market off Hoogstraat, has been going strong for more than 500 years; its stalls are perfect for antiques lovers and bargain hunters. At the weekend, visit Theaterplein, where there’s an excellent food market on Saturdays and a more general market on Sundays, as well as irresistible chips and waffles.
- Daytripper
- Ghent is about 45 minutes away by train and its historic centre matches the beautiful architecture of Antwerp. Lacing through the warren of narrow mediaeval streets and merchants’ houses is a network of canals. Another 30 minutes west and attracting even more superlatives is the city of Bruges.
- Activities
- Shopping and eating should take up a great deal of any visit to Antwerp but you can burn off a few calories with a bike ride (the flat landscape makes cycling a great way to get around); hire some inexpensive wheels from De Windroos on Steenplein (+32 (0)3 213 2251). In the summer, head over to Sint-Anneke (St Anna) on the left bank of the river for some beach volleyball; a temporary beach bar is created at Strantwerpen (www.strantwerpen.be). Antwerp Zoo (www.zooantwerpen.be) is one of the most remarkable zoos in the world, not just for its extensive collection of wildlife but also for its exotic 19th-century architecture: the giraffes are currently housed in a fake Egyptian temple and the hippos in a candy-pink villa.
- And...
- Just outside the city, the Middelheim Sculpture Park is a restful revelation: Rodin's hulk-of-a-bronze Balzac and Henry Moore's regally organic King and Queen are among a fine collection of pieces imaginatively dotted around a tranquil 300-acre park (www.middelheimmuseum.be).
Diary
- Late Jan 2007 saw the launch of Benelux fashion week, held in Antwerp (www.afashionweek.be). May Beginning on Whit Sunday, Sinksefoor is a huge funfair that runs for several weeks in southern Antwerp; the rides are fun, but the doughnuts are better. June The fashion graduate shows at the prestigious Royal Academy of Fine Art highlight the city’s considerable creative talents (www.antwerp-fashion.be). June Bieirpassie (Beer passion) Weekend (www.beerpassion.com) is held in the Groenplaats and showcases more than 100 beers. December Christmas fair in the Grote Markt, with stalls selling glühwein and traditional toys; there’s also an open-air ice rink.
