Self-guided Sightseeing Tour #2 in Ghent, Belgium

Legend

Churches & Art
Nature
Water & Wind
Historical
Heritage & Space
Tourism
Paid Tours & Activities

Tour Facts

Number of sights 21 sights
Distance 5.1 km
Ascend 82 m
Descend 80 m

Experience Ghent in Belgium in a whole new way with our free self-guided sightseeing tour. This site not only offers you practical information and insider tips, but also a rich variety of activities and sights you shouldn't miss. Whether you love art and culture, want to explore historical sites or simply want to experience the vibrant atmosphere of a lively city - you'll find everything you need for your personal adventure here.

Activities in GhentIndividual Sights in Ghent

Sight 1: St Bavo’s Abbey

Show sight on map
St Bavo’s Abbey

Saint Bavo's Abbey is a former abbey in the currently Belgian city of Ghent. It was founded in the 7th century by Saint Amand, who also founded Saint Peter's Abbey, Ghent, near the confluence of the Leie and Scheldt rivers. Originally, the abbey was also called Ganda, a name of Celtic origin, meaning "river mouth", referring to the Leie river debouching into the Scheldt river.

Wikipedia: Saint Bavo's Abbey (EN), Website, Heritage Website

186 meters / 2 minutes

Sight 2: Sint-Machariuskerk

Show sight on map

The St. Macharius Church is a church building in the Belgian city of Ghent. The church is located near St Bavo's Abbey and is dedicated to Macharius.

Wikipedia: Sint-Machariuskerk (Gent) (NL), Heritage Website

343 meters / 4 minutes

Sight 3: Zwembad Van Eyck

Show sight on map
Zwembad Van Eyck

The Van Eyck swimming pool is the oldest swimming pool in Belgium and is located at the Portus Ganda in Ghent. It is known for its Art Deco décor and is often referred to as "the most beautiful swimming pool in Belgium". It was built in 1886 and includes a 25-meter pool, tub baths, changing rooms, a cafeteria, and the administration of the nearby marina. In 2001 it was thoroughly renovated.

Wikipedia: Zwembad Van Eyck (NL), Heritage Website

281 meters / 3 minutes

Sight 4: Sint-Lievenscollege

Show sight on map

The Sint-Lievenscollege is a Catholic group of schools in Ghent, Belgium, composed of a number of elementary and primary schools, a secondary general school ('humaniora') and a secondary vocational trade school.

Wikipedia: Sint-Lievenscollege (EN), Website, Heritage Website

396 meters / 5 minutes

Sight 5: Saint James' Church

Show sight on map

The Sint-Jacobskerk is a church in the Belgian city of Ghent. The church is dedicated to the apostle Jacobus the superior.

Wikipedia: Sint-Jacobskerk (Gent) (NL), Heritage Website

238 meters / 3 minutes

Sight 6: Koninklijke Academie voor Nederlandse Taal- en Letterkunde

Show sight on map

The Royal Flemish Academy for Dutch Language and Literature is an institution focused on the study and promotion of the Dutch language in Flanders. It is the Dutch-speaking counterpart of the Académie royale de langue et de littérature françaises de Belgique and one of Belgium's numerous academies.

Wikipedia: Royal Academy of Dutch Language and Literature (EN), Heritage Website

181 meters / 2 minutes

Sight 7: Hogeschool Gent: Koninklijk Conservatorium

Show sight on map

HOGENT is one of the 17 Flemish university colleges. It was created in 1995 during the reform of higher education in Flanders from a merger of thirteen educational institutions. The branches of the university college are spread in Ghent, Aalst, Melle, Lokeren and Bottelare:Campus Aalst Campus Bijloke Campus Grote Sikkel Campus Ledeganck Campus Lokeren Campus Melle Campus Mercator Campus Schoonmeersen Campus Vesalius Proefhoeve Bottelare Site Geraard de Duivelstraat Site Buchtenstraat (FTI-Lab) Sports hall

Wikipedia: Hogeschool Gent (NL)

197 meters / 2 minutes

Sight 8: Belfort

Show sight on mapJoin Free Tour*

The Belfry of Ghent is one of three medieval towers that overlook the old city centre of Ghent, Belgium; the other two belonging to Saint Bavo Cathedral and Saint Nicholas' Church. Its height of 91 metres (299 ft) makes it the tallest belfry in Belgium. The belfry of Ghent, together with its attached buildings, belongs to the set of Belfries of Belgium and France, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Wikipedia: Belfry of Ghent (EN), Heritage Website

23 meters / 0 minutes

Sight 9: Mammelokker

Show sight on mapJoin Free Tour*
Mammelokker

The Mammelokker is a sculpture on the tympanum of a Ghent building from around 1741 by master builder David 't Kindt. The name is also used for the building itself, a former jailer's house that leans against the cloth hall at the Belfry of Ghent. The relief is a depiction of the Roman story of Cimon and Pero. In this legend, Pero saves her father from starvation by suckling him into prison. This is where the statue owes its name Mammelokker. It has been a protected monument since December 28, 1936 and has been a Unesco World Heritage Site since 1999 as part of the Belfry.

Wikipedia: Mammelokker (NL), Heritage Website

52 meters / 1 minutes

Sight 10: Koninklijke Nederlandse Schouwburg

Show sight on map

The Royal Dutch Theatre Dutch: Koninklijke Nederlandse Schouwburg, or KNS, is a theater building in the Belgian city of Ghent.

Wikipedia: Royal Dutch Theatre (Ghent) (EN), Website, Heritage Website

171 meters / 2 minutes

Sight 11: Saint Bavo Cathedral

Show sight on mapGet Ticket*

Saint Bavo's Cathedral, also known as Sint-Baafs Cathedral, is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Ghent, Belgium. The 89-metre-tall (292 ft) Gothic building is the seat of the Diocese of Ghent and is named for Saint Bavo of Ghent. It contains the well-known Ghent Altarpiece, also called the Adoration of the Mystic Lamb.

Wikipedia: Saint Bavo's Cathedral, Ghent (EN), Heritage Website

107 meters / 1 minutes

Sight 12: Bisschoppelijk Paleis

Show sight on map
Bisschoppelijk Paleis

The Episcopal Palace of Ghent is the administrative seat of the diocese of Ghent and the residence of the bishop. The current building is located on the Bisdomplein in the East Flemish capital of Ghent. It is protected as a monument.

Wikipedia: Bisschoppelijk Paleis van Gent (NL), Heritage Website

244 meters / 3 minutes

Sight 13: Sint-Bavohumaniora

Show sight on map
Sint-Bavohumaniora

The Sint-Bavohumaniora is a Catholic secondary school in the Belgian city of Ghent.

Wikipedia: Sint-Bavohumaniora (NL), Heritage Website

226 meters / 3 minutes

Sight 14: Geeraard de Duivelsteen

Show sight on mapGet Ticket*

The Geeraard de Duivelsteen is a 13th-century gothic architecture building in Ghent, Belgium. It served as defense of the Portus Ganda, the city's port.

Wikipedia: Geeraard de Duivelsteen (EN), Heritage Website

361 meters / 4 minutes

Sight 15: Wolweverskapel

Show sight on map

The Wool Weavers' Chapel is a former chapel that was part of a complex with a place of worship that was founded by the guild of wool weavers. It is located in the Belgian city of Ghent on the Kortedagsteeg. The chapel and an outbuilding against the west façade are all that remain of this complex.

Wikipedia: Wolweverskapel (NL)

303 meters / 4 minutes

Sight 16: Opera Vlaanderen

Show sight on map
Opera Vlaanderen Donar Reiskoffer / CC BY 3.0

The Royal Opera of Ghent was the more than 100-year-old independent Ghent city opera until its merger in 1981 with the Royal Flemish Opera in Antwerp. Both city operas were merged into the Opera voor Vlaanderen organisation, which was renamed Opera Ballet Vlaanderen in 2014.

Wikipedia: Koninklijke Opera (Gent) (NL), Website, Heritage Website

248 meters / 3 minutes

Sight 17: Arnold Vander Haeghen

Show sight on map
Arnold Vander Haeghen Mertens, Joeri / CC BY 4.0

The Arnold Vander Haeghen Museum in the mansion Hotel Clemmen is a museum in the Veldstraat in the Flemish city of Ghent. Highlights of the collection include a reconstruction of the study and library of the Belgian Nobel Prize winner Maurice Maeterlinck, the cabinets of Charles Doudelet and Victor Stuyvaert and a Chinese salon. The museum managed by Historische Huizen Gent is located in the building of the former Hotel Clemmen, a patrician house that was built in 1746 to a design by David 't Kindt.

Wikipedia: Museum Arnold Vander Haeghen (NL), Heritage Website

17 meters / 0 minutes

Sight 18: Hotel d'Hane-Steenhuyse

Show sight on map

The Hotel d'Hane-Steenhuyse is an 18th-century hôtel particulier in the Belgian city of Ghent. It is located in the Veldstraat and was formerly owned by the D'Hane de Steenhuyse family.

Wikipedia: Hotel d'Hane-Steenhuyse (EN), Heritage Website

182 meters / 2 minutes

Sight 19: Aula UGent

Show sight on map

The Aula Academica of Ghent University is a university auditorium built in 1826 on Voldersstraat in the Belgian city of Ghent. The building has played an important role in the history of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, Belgium and the Flemish Movement.

Wikipedia: Aula Academica (NL), Heritage Website

365 meters / 4 minutes

Sight 20: Het Pand

Show sight on map
Het Pand Donar Reiskoffer / CC BY 3.0

Het Pand is a former Dominican monastery in the Belgian city of Ghent. Since 1963, Het Pand has been owned by Ghent University, which has housed a cultural centre and several scientific museums in the building. The entire building is recognized as a monument.

Wikipedia: Het Pand (NL), Heritage Website

993 meters / 12 minutes

Sight 21: Rommelaere Instituut

Show sight on map

The Rommelaere Institute is a neo-Gothic building of the University of Ghent and housed the Institute of Hygiene, Bacteriology and Forensic Medicine of the Faculty of Medicine. The Medical Biotechnology Center of the Flemish Institute for Biotechnology VIB had also moved to the site, until it moved to Zwijnaarde.

Wikipedia: Rommelaere Instituut (NL), Heritage Website

Share

Spread the word! Share this page with your friends and family.

How likely are you to recommend us?


Disclaimer Please be aware of your surroundings and do not enter private property. We are not liable for any damages that occur during the tours.

GPX-Download For navigation apps and GPS devices you can download the tour as a GPX file.