Top 10: the best hotels on Bruges' canals
An insider's guide to the best hotels on Bruges' canals, including the top places to stay for rooms with views, canalside terraces, restaurants and bars, in historic buildings, near to the Markt, Burg, Belfry and the main shopping streets of Noordzandstraat and Steenstraat, as well as bridges including Bonifacius.
B&B Huis Koning
Bruges, Belgium
8Telegraph expert rating
A pampered and memorable place to stay in this very special city. Huis Koning sits on Oude Zak, a quiet street in a quiet corner of Bruges, to the north-west of – and an agreeable 10-minute walk from – the historic centre. But it is the way that it backs onto a pretty, tree-shaded stretch of canal, the Augustijnenerei, that really sets it apart. Swans and ducks paddle past as you breakfast on the parasol-shaded terrace. Huis Koning retains its historic air, with atmospheric antique charm. But the décor is also alluringly modern, with a fashionable taupe paint scheme (soft greys and browns), offset by antique and retro furniture and artistic details. Read expert review From ￡104per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
Die Swaene
Bruges, Belgium
7Telegraph expert rating
'The Swan' offers plush, pampered opulence overlooking — indeed spanning — a beautiful stretch of canal in central Bruges. Steenhouwersdijk and the adjacent Groenerei form a picture-perfect, tree-shaded stretch of canal close to the heart of central, historic Bruges. Die Swaene's rooms are actually on two sites. The main, historic part (with 16 rooms) is on the southern bank of the canal, but there are eight more rooms under its Pergola Restaurant on the opposite bank, reached by crossing the Peerdenbrug, a medieval stone bridge (the hotel will lend you an umbrella if you need it). The restaurant was awarded “Bib gourmand” status by Michelin, and specialises in local, seasonal produce, seafood and fusion dishes. Read expert review From ￡103per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
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Hotel Van Cleef
Bruges, Belgium
9Telegraph expert rating
There is no other place to stay in Bruges quite like this: a small luxury boutique hotel in a neoclassical mansion with large terrace overlooking a pretty stretch of canal. It's family-owned and managed, and designed with exquisite attention to detail; at once gloriously palatial yet intimate. The ample public rooms are decorated in elegant and comfortable country-house style, enlivened by striking contemporary art and fabrics. Hotel Van Cleef is on the edge of the Sint-Anna district, the charming, quieter eastern quarter of Bruges; yet the Markt, Burg and all the key sights of the historic city centre are a mere five or so minutes’ walk away. Read expert review From ￡155per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
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Canal Deluxe Bed and Breakfast
Bruges, Belgium
9Telegraph expert rating
Bruges has a handful of truly exceptional b&bs, and this is one of them. It's close to the centre, yet quietly located on a tranquil canal, and oozes charm, individuality, pampering luxury, antiquity and style. If a romantic place to stay in this city of romance is what you are seeking, look no further. Canal Deluxe occupies a pair of historic houses set some distance away from Moerstraat. Two of the rooms (in fact duplex suites) are accessed from 24 Moerstraat, and the remaining three from a tiny cobbled alleyway called Vette Vispoort (Fatty Fish Gate; a reference to herring), opposite an almshouse. Read expert review From ￡145per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
Hotel De Orangerie
Bruges, Belgium
8Telegraph expert rating
Romantic, sumptuous and historic. There is a theatrical opulence to the entrance, with a lobby swathed in fabric, but this soon melts into the old-world grandeur of the wood-panelled breakfast/tea room and adjacent lounge. Elsewhere the style could be called English Country Manor: light, floral and agreeably rambling (the building started life as a 15th-century convent). While tucked away in a quiet street, the hotel could hardly be more central – just a short walk from main historic squares and key attractions. Its large terrace at the back overlooks a famously picturesque stretch of canal called Den Dijver, and is the envy of the many tourists who pass in tour boats, and who throng the opposite bank. Read expert review From ￡114per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
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Guesthouse Bonifacius
Bruges, Belgium
9Telegraph expert rating
This is a fabulous place to stay: a medieval and 16th-century house, overlooking a canal, exquisitely decorated and equipped to the standard of a top luxury hotel. The b&b takes its name from the Bonifacius Bridge close by, a famous Bruges beauty spot in the little Arentshof park. There are just three rooms, each different, each beautifully decorated in modern-antique style, with Ralph Lauren and Toile de Jouy fabrics and wallpaper, elegant pastel paint schemes for the wood panelling, and a sprinkling of genuine antiques and interesting objets d’art. Breakfast is served at tables in the 'Gothic Room' overlooking the canal, warmed by an open log-effect fire in winter. Read expert review From ￡174per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
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C?té Canal and Huyze Hertsberge
Bruges, Belgium
8Telegraph expert rating
This luxury b&b feels a bit like a rambling country house – except it is in a prime and privileged location in central Bruges. The tree-shaded, mature garden at the back has tables and chairs with views onto the Groenerei canal, between two famous old bridges. There are four bedrooms; all are spacious, with high ceilings, and individually decorated in pastel colours and elegant fabrics, offset by pieces of antique furniture. Guests can help themselves to aperitifs and a variety of Belgian beers from an honesty bar. Read expert review From ￡134per night
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Guesthouse Nuit Blanche
Bruges, Belgium
8Telegraph expert rating
Nuit Blanche stands next to the St Bonifacius Bridge, a stone footbridge (also called ‘the lovers’ bridge’) linking Bruges’ top art museum, the Groeningemuseum, to the Church of Our Lady (with its Michelangelo) and the Saint John’s Hospital museum (with its collection of paintings by Hans Memling). With flagstone floors, big open fireplaces, antique wood panelling, exposed beams, leaded windows with stained glass, the house feels like a little late-medieval mansion. There are numerous excellent restaurants close by, including Michelin-starred Den Gouden Harynck in the same street, and Den Heerd, a short walk away. Read expert review From ￡160per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
Relais Bourgondisch Cruyce
Bruges, Belgium
8Telegraph expert rating
Behind the medieval fa?ades of this luxury boutique hotel in the heart of historic Bruges are sumptuous but modern rooms. It could barely be more central: just south of the main historic squares, the Markt and the Burg, and within easy walking distance from all the key sights. What’s more, it overlooks one of the most famous scenic viewpoints of Bruges, on a bend in the principal canal. There is a canal-side breakfast room, which doubles up as a tearoom (open to non-residents) later in the day, with an outside terrace. Read expert review From ￡160per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com
Monsieur Ernest
Bruges, Belgium
8Telegraph expert rating
Monsieur Ernest is in the western sector of the historic city centre, close to the main shopping streets of Noordzandstraat and Steenstraat, and five to 10 minutes’ walk from the Markt and Belfry, Bruges’ centrepiece; all the sights and even the railway station are within walking distance. One side of the hotel overlooks a pretty stretch of canal called the Speelmansrei, where it passes under the old stone Sleutelbrug (Key Bridge). This was the former site of a brewery, the Brouwerij De Sleutels, and a striking feature of the entrance lobby is an elaborate, 19th-century wrought-iron staircase. The lounge bar, which is also open to the public and has an outdoor terrace on the canal, serves cocktails and makes a special feature of its range of local beers. Read expert review From ￡52per night Check availability Rates provided by Booking.com