Belgium for the weekend, baby!

lastminute.com.au has staff all over the world and today the lovely Saskia Moon gives us a little insight into her world in Europe and a weekend away in Bruges, Belgium.

What is your role and where are you based?

I’m Group Product Director for Europe and the Americas for lastminute.com.au I’m a Dutch Aussie (or an Australian Dutchie) and after nearly seven years in Brisbane I moved back to Holland for a while to enjoy the best Europe has to offer (until I get too cold and move back again).
I am based in Haarlem, the Netherlands, a beautiful old city near the beach, about 15 minutes from Amsterdam. My job is to find great hotels and apartments for our fabulous customers to book on our site, in the places you want to go to, at prices you want to pay. I love to travel myself and make sure I fit in at least one mini-break every month!
The thing I love about being in Europe is that you can fly for an hour in any direction and speak a different language, eat different foods and spend your day in a completely different way.
Where did this trip take you and why?
After celebrating Australia Day in a crazy Australian bar on the Rembrandtplein in Amsterdam, I took the Friday off so my husband and I could enjoy a long weekend in Bruges. We left by car on Friday morning and were in the heart of Bruges 2.5 hours later. The purpose of our trip was to eat chocolate and drink beer, and I cannot think of a better city to do this in!
What are the best things about Bruges? Why should travellers go there?
Bruges is very popular with tourists from all over the world, year round. It is often referred to as the ‘Venice of the North’ because of its many gorgeous canals, and the fact that it’s mostly car-free within the old city walls – so very pleasant to walk around.

Where did you stay in Bruges?
We stayed at the Grand Hotel Casselbergh, a lovely ’old world’ style hotel in the centre. We were initially looking at budget options, but decided it was worth spending a little bit extra to be in the centre of town, and comfortable. The hotel is super easy to find and there is a cheap public car park nearby (the hotel offers parking, but this needs to be booked in advance).

The breakfast buffet was fabulous, as good as any five star hotel I’ve stayed in. Freshly boiled eggs, smoked salmon, four different types of cheese, fresh fruit and beautiful croissants. The room was very comfortable and I loved the l’Occitane products in the bathroom (Is it wrong that I get so excited by nice amenities?) The bed was wonderfully cosy and I slept like a baby.
Any insider tips on this destination?

For me, Bruges is all about eating and drinking, surrounded by beautiful buildings in quaint little streets full of friendly Belgians. Mind you, the first people we bumped into were a group of Aussies!
This was at 2Be Beer Café, the only place we found that has a year-round outdoor terrace. So even though it was about 3 degrees Celsius, we sat under the heater poles and drank the famous ‘Brugse Zot’ beer, and Belgian sparkling wine (verdict: not bad, not bad at all).
The beer tasted so good that we were inspired to visit the brewery where Brugse Zot is made, the ‘Halve Maan’ brewery in the heart of the city. This is the only place where the beer is served unfiltered which does make it taste a little different.

My other tips:

• To enjoy the ambiance of a real Belgian beer bar try ‘t Brugs Beertje’ on the Kemelstraat, this friendly little bar serves 300 different types of beer.

• My new favourite restaurant is Park Restaurant on the Minderbroedersstraat, just a short walk away from the hotel. It is number one on several review websites and, as it turns out, deservedly so. The seafood dishes were divine. I recommend the shrimp cocktail with homemade mayonnaise and the sole in butter sauce. Not a budget dinner but worth every Euro.

• Now as for the chocolate….you really don’t need my advice there. You will find it. It’s everywhere! In every flavour imaginable, and every shape. The ones shaped like boobies (“Brugse borsten”) are quite popular….

• If you’re after a souvenir, the fish market (Vismarkt) turns into an art market on the weekends, we bought a great original painting for 20 Euros. And the next day, we bumped into the artist working on a new painting by one of the canals.

What is your best travel tip for visiting Bruges?
Bruges really is a great place to visit any time of year. In summer the weekends tend to fill up fast because it’s so easy to get to the city – from London by car it takes only 2.5 hours so the Brits have certainly found their way here!
In winter the hotel rooms are much cheaper (as in, half the price) and the little cobbled streets are just as nice, and the beer tastes just as good. The only thing that would be nicer in warm weather is the canal tour in open topped boats – they do run all year but the people in the boats looked so cold!

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