19 Photos To Make You Fall In Love With Bruges' Winter Charm

Bruges is known as a medieval city brimming with extraordinary charm, but what happens when the snow starts to fall and the ‘Venice of the North’ unboxes its Christmas lights? We take a look at what comes about when Bruges dons its winter jacket.
Pictured below is the Grote Markt, the main square that bathes in warm lights as soon as the sky grows darker.

It’s also the location of Bruges’ charming Christmas stalls, along with the Simon Stevinplein and the Minnewater, for five glorious weeks.

And the holiday cheer doesn’t stop there. Bruges and its inhabitants get a special kick out of embracing the Yuletide joy with as many decorations as they can conjure up.

After the holidays, winter walks in Bruges are still guaranteed to provide stunning scenery. Even with barren trees, the Minnewater park, lake, and bridge – one of the city’s picturesque nature sites – still look like this.

And the béguinage (or ‘begijnhof’ in Dutch) delivers an almost eerie sense of peace and quiet.

Visitors can brave the cold underneath a blanket as they explore the postcard-perfect town the old-fashioned way, in a horse-drawn carriage.

Or they can take refuge in quaint living room-style pubs like ‘t Brugs Beertje (the little Bruges Bear) and the oldest bar in town, Café Vlissinghe.

Since you are here, we would like to share our vision for the future of travel - and the direction Culture Trip is moving in.

Culture Trip launched in 2011 with a simple yet passionate mission: to inspire people to go beyond their boundaries and experience what makes a place, its people and its culture special and meaningful — and this is still in our DNA today. We are proud that, for more than a decade, millions like you have trusted our award-winning recommendations by people who deeply understand what makes certain places and communities so special.

Increasingly we believe the world needs more meaningful, real-life connections between curious travellers keen to explore the world in a more responsible way. That is why we have intensively curated a collection of premium small-group trips as an invitation to meet and connect with new, like-minded people for once-in-a-lifetime experiences in three categories: Culture Trips, Rail Trips and Private Trips. Our Trips are suitable for both solo travelers, couples and friends who want to explore the world together.

Culture Trips are deeply immersive 5 to 16 days itineraries, that combine authentic local experiences, exciting activities and 4-5* accommodation to look forward to at the end of each day. Our Rail Trips are our most planet-friendly itineraries that invite you to take the scenic route, relax whilst getting under the skin of a destination. Our Private Trips are fully tailored itineraries, curated by our Travel Experts specifically for you, your friends or your family.

We know that many of you worry about the environmental impact of travel and are looking for ways of expanding horizons in ways that do minimal harm - and may even bring benefits. We are committed to go as far as possible in curating our trips with care for the planet. That is why all of our trips are flightless in destination, fully carbon offset - and we have ambitious plans to be net zero in the very near future.