Not only is it lovely — think picturesque canals, old brick buildings and historic museums and churches, to name a few — it’s also quite affordable!

Luckily for Cheapos, Bruges is filled with small, family-run hotels that do not fall short on character and service.

More reading on Belgium:
• The perfect budget weekend in Bruges
• 5 super cheap hotels in Brussels
• Antwerp: Visiting this Belgian gem on the cheap

Our top budget hotels in Bruges

Here are five of our favorite budget hotels throughout the city with friendly owners, a unique atmosphere, and convenient locations.

Asiris

Neighborhood: St. Gilles
Doubles from $102

The Asiris is a no-frills spot focused on what’s important: clean, comfortable rooms and top-notch service. The hotel has 13 rooms and faces St. Gillis Church to the south, plus it includes a charming garden area guests can enjoy.

Rooms are simply designed, instead placing the focus all on the views surrounding the hotel. A few of the rooms face the church, while most face the garden. If you’re willing to climb some stairs, you can be rewarded with excellent views from the two rooms on the top floor.

Read the full review

We love the rooms with wood beams at Martin’s Brugge.

Martin’s Brugge

Neighborhood: Markt and Burg
Doubles from $130

The popular Martin’s Brugge sits behind the belfry tower at Markt Square and is a popular spot for convention attendees and tour groups. Booking ahead, and outside of any convention dates, is your best bet for scoring a great deal here.

The hotel offers accommodations akin to large boutique hotels: neutral, comfortable rooms, modern amenities and kind, professional service. Guests can also enjoy the hotel’s chic lobby, lovely outdoor terrace and excellent cocktail bar.

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The entrance to Groeninghe Hotel.

Groeninghe

Neighborhood: Markt and Burg
Doubles from $113

The family-run Groeninghe is a stylish spot in a calm part of the city. Despite the quiet street its on, this hotel still boasts an excellent location near Markt Square. To get around the city, you can also rent bikes here, making it even more of a convenient place to stay.

The rooms — some adorned in earth-tones, others in deep reds and purples — offer lovely views through large windows. We loved the room tucked into the former attic, which offers cozy accommodation and skylight views.

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The lobby at Fevery Hotel.

Fevery

Neighborhood: St. Gilles
Doubles from $118

If you’re looking for a home away from home, the Fevery is just that. The owner is kind and caring, and the hotel sits in a quiet, residential neighborhood. Rooms are simple and clean, and the hotel is labeled as European Eco for its efforts toward sustainability.

Rooms come complete with televisions, phones, safes and alarm clocks, plus free Wi-Fi. All 10 rooms include private bathrooms, most of which include bathtubs.

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Enjoy the classic view from Botaniek Hotel.

Botaniek

Neighborhood: Minnewater & Astrid Park
Doubles from $151

Each spacious room at the Botaniek is charming with antique touches and plenty of natural light. An 18th-century mansion houses the hotel, and it sits just a stone’s throw from the city’s canals, which are lovely.

Charming furniture and decor outfit the rooms, and second-floor rooms feature high ceilings. Rooms on the top floor come highly recommended, as they offer the best views. No matter your room, you’ll find private bathrooms, free Wi-Fi, flat-screen TVs and kettles.

Read the full review

More hotels in Bruges

For even more choices, check out our guide to cheap hotels in Bruges with more than 20 hotels.

The post Belgium: Top-notch budget hotels in Bruges appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

Bruges’ Underground Church

Back around 900 AD, the city built a fort to protect itself from pesky Vikings who were raiding the city. Not long after, the very large and central St. Donatian’s Church was built on top of the fort and remained a place of worship until Napoleon ripped it down in 1799. Soon after, parts of the church were auctioned off.

Jump ahead to 1982, when the city’s Crowne Plaza Hotel was built on the site of St. Donatian’s. During the construction and excavation process, parts of the ancient fort’s foundations were discovered. Structures from the church were also uncovered, including the choir gallery, which was excavated in 1988.

The hotel has converted the basement into conference and reception rooms, lined by the ancient walls, and lit with a touch of drama. They’ve also put on display various relics unearthed in the area, many of which belonged to the church. Paintings show St. Donatian’s in all its glory.

Touring St. Donatian’s

As long as there isn’t a conference in session, visitors can tour the ruins simply by asking at the Crowne Plaza’s front desk.

When we visited recently, a nice porter led us downstairs and turned on the lights. We checked out the ancient walls, drawings, and other relics. Granted, the fresh carpeting, new ceiling, and conference tables can detract from the history on display, but just turn your attention to those walls!

Also see: Our recommended budget hotels in Bruges.

The post Bruges: Underground church visit for free appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

First impressions of Bruges

As I had never been to Bruges, my expectations were limited. I anticipated a picturesque, small town, heavily touristed, high hotel prices, and hotel owners who might not have time for me. (In some cities, after all, hotel proprietors give you the impression that they have better things to do than, say, show you all of their rooms.) I was only partially correct.

Bruges is a gorgeous place, crisscrossed but also hard to figure out what to take photos of, as it’s all just so darn pretty. Stone bridge over canal. Pretty ivy-covered houses along canal. Antique market along canal. Fish market. Main market. Canal. Bell tower. As I was also in charge of taking photos for EuroCheapo, I gravitated toward taking pictures of tourists: reading their guidebooks in the market square, lining up for French fries, posing in front of the canal…

The tourist scene

There were flocks of tourists, but not as many as I had feared. (“Feared” from a hotel inspection perspective. After all, it’s much more difficult to inspect hotels when all of their rooms are occupied.) Bruges, it turns out, is a place to go during the week. Tourists hit the city over the weekends—including throngs from neighboring Holland and France. During the week, however, there are fewer tourists, especially during the low season (autumn through Easter). Also, so many people visit Bruges as a day trip that the city seems to clear out at night, which is both refreshing and kind of spooky. However, during the high season, especially in the summer months, the city is packed and most of the hotels fill up.

Hotel and meal prices

I was surprised to find so many affordable hotels in the city center. Many hotels that I visited were in the €55-85 price range, making Bruges among the more affordable cities for lodging on the site. (As opposed to, say, Rome or Venice, with their €125 “cheapies”!) Best of all, most of the hotels were small, family-run affairs, most with fewer than 20 rooms.

Meal prices, however, were not so welcoming. I spent about an hour each night strolling the streets in search of a restaurant value. Of course, the main market square is lined with touristy restaurants offering semi-cheap set-price menus (some under €20). However, many of these serve sub-par food and charge you like mad for all incidentals (€8 water, €35 wine, etc.).

A welcoming city

Finally, the hotel owners turned out to be an especially friendly lot. Being a small town, most of them know each other (or are related to each other). Bruges has over 125 family-run bed and breakfasts, most of which rent out just two or three rooms in their homes. I spent many pleasant hours in these, chatting with the owners, looking at their art collections, their unusual doll installations (you’ll be reading about that later!), and getting a better feeling for the city.

On Sunday afternoon, the proprietor of the hotel I was staying in sent me off for my last meal in town. “You haven’t yet had Belgian ‘pannenkoek‘? You need to try Rosemary’s pancakes before you leave!” She sent me to Cafe La Plaza, just north of the market. There, in a stylish Belgian restaurant (turn-tapas-bar at night), Rosemary, a friendly grandmother (and the mother-in-law of the hotel proprietor) cooks up a storm of local dishes.

It was probably one of my favorite meals of the year: Waterzooi, a chicken stew, served over puff pastry with mashed potatoes (think “Chicken a la King”‘s Belgian cousin), two Jupiler beers, and Rosemary’s pancakes for dessert. Indeed, the pancakes were amazing, fluffy, buttery, folded, and stacked atop each other. I inhaled it all.

I told the waitress that I had been sent from the hotel to sample Rosemary’s wares. This was relayed to the pancake chef, who emerged from the kitchen, arms open, and embraced me. She then poured us both glasses of champagne.

It was probably the most memorable city exit I’ve ever made. Thank you, Bruges. And thank you, Rosemary!

The post “In Bruges” recap and the best pancakes in town appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.