Hello from Brussels ! Just to correct that thing about train stations... In Brussels, we have a lot of train stations, that's true. But there are three main stations that are Midi (or south), Central, and North. Every national train that goes through one of these stations will actually stops in each. The only exception as I said is some international trains. Moreover, going from one station to another is really easy : you just hop in ANY train that is going in the right direction and exit in the next (the trip is max 10 minutes) ! Train controllers don't really check tickets when in Brussels, and if you got a ticket anyway, that's fine. The ticket is not for a specific train, but for a trip, so you can jump multiple trains, stop at every station for an hour before taking another train, or even buy your ticket the morning for the afternoon, and as long as you stay along the general direction of your destination, that's fine. So for instance, if you wanna visit Brugge and Gent in the same day, you only need one roundtrip ticket as Gent is on the path of the train to Brugge (though one day for each is probably better)... As for closing hours, tourist traps close early, that's true. But in Brussels, stores are open until 8 pm, and there are A LOT of places that close at 1 am... It's just not places tourists are aware of. So if you want late options, just ask someone local... Almost everybody speaks english, and we're really friendly, so we'll be glad to make you discover our lovely place ! About brussels and comic things, comics is a huge cultural aspect in Belgium. Tintin, the Smurfs and Lucky Luke are born here (and many more too). There's the comic route, of course, but we also have a comic museum. Brussels is also very queer friendly, and it has this vibe where there are a lot of hidden things here and there, like bars you wouldn't expect to be bars from the facade, incredible architectures in random streets, buildings behind buildings needing taking small corridors to access them... Brussels is also one of the capital city of Art Nouveau and Surrealism. And we have a really rich night life... Don't be fooled, and explore, the best things aren't the one you first see here !
Well, the thing is Pierre Marcolini has sophisticated flavors, and if you aren't used to that you aren't going to like it. You expect plain chocolate and there would be mixed with olives, salt, champagne, buckwheat, tea... I do chocolate tours and kids prefer the cheapest chocolate.
@@davidsastre8724 Same for our beers If you are an American you probably prefere a leffe over an Orval for example. Both have the label speciality beer abroad but only Orval is. Leffe is just an avarage to us "not offensive to any taste commercial kind of boring beer" but it has no real personallity it's not bad but nothing special.
I am belgian (flemisch) and i enjoy your video's... our country is small but a lot to see, like to enjoy Thatcher you like our country.... most americans know nothing about to world. Your interest in the low country's is very great to see.... i hope you can came over some Day. I live between eindhoven and antwerp in Belgium.... if you need me for tips....
Hey,proud Antwerpian here! Yes, In Belgium we are known for our beers and chocolate and alltough some of the big brands are good, a lot of smaller local and artisinal brands are very good aswell. The comic book route is something you can do in a few other big cities too like Antwerp and Gent. Gent,being one of my favorite cities apart from my own offcourse, even has a Comic Art Hotel! I was a little sad to see that my home town of Antwerp was not mentioned! We have a beautiful old city centre with lots of old buildings and a magnificent Cathedral! We also have a thriving nightlife with lots of good bars,café's and clubs that are open till the early morning hours! Allways try to ask a local where to find a good restaurant,café or club and don't fall into those tourist traps that try to sell you "authentic" products! Really Hope to welcome you to our beautiful country one day,Charly! Keep up the good work!
Plus, an important point for Americans: you’ll probably not need a car, as Belgium has a dense passenger rail network and urban public transport both with high frequencies, like many European countries. The travel times that the guy indicates are actually train travel times.
Depends... if you only want to visit the major tourist spots during daytime you won't need a car. If you want to visit smaller places in e.g. the Ardennes a car is a must.
He's totally is the new kid. His father wasn't even born when Neuhaus and Leonidas opened. He was playing in short trunks when Galler opened. So yeah his company is pretty young. The only thing is that he won a world title as creator, but that's totally different of what he's selling
Having to buy 8 chocolates is not a money grab. buying only one is for losers. Also go to The Chocolate Line in Brugge or Antwerp to buy. Its our most famous chocolatier.
One more thing to know about belgium : Brussels, Ghent and Brugges aren't the only cities worth visiting. People making those videos always seem to be stuck on those three cities and ignore the southern part of the country. And although Brugge might be the most beautiful town in belgium, Wallonia also has it's share of old towns and castles that deserve a visit. Cities like Dinant, Namur, Mons, are deffinitely worth a look. If you like trappist beer, come to Chimay, you can visit the monastery, drink a few beers, and it's close to the Eau d'Heure dams, the biggest lakes in belgium where you can enjoy all sorts of water sports, fishing, having a drink by the water... Cheers from Wallonia!
Helo, from Belgium. If you love to visit castles, we got you in for a treat. Belgium has the highest density in castles par square km in the world! So Beersel,Vorst => castles Mechelen : Brusselse poort (midevil gate to the city) Mechelen (Beiaardschool) cathedral/basilic/monestary citadel van Dienant etc and the Westhoek => restored and maintained trenches of WW1 Also from other times: fort van Breendonck (ww2 German ocupation), Bastogne (battle of the Bulge), Waterloo (Napoleon) etc
As a Swiss I feel like I have to make a note about chocolate: there is no Charly's Chocolate factory type of place in Europe, neither in Belgium nor anywhere else. Supermarket chocolate here is better than supermarket chocolate in the US. But that is not the good stuff. Big brands are also not that good. Go to small artisan chocolateries/patisseries. Belgium is famous for their dark chocolate, while Switzerland is known for milk chocolate. Go try some "bean to bar" chocolate brands, they are the best quality and child-labour free. Also don't order flavours that you know from the US like peanut butter or peppermint, they are only produced for tourists who ask for them. Try going for flavours that are local/foreign to you or neutral dark chocolate.
@@johnjanssens8998 Yeah so do we, they are not terrible but as far as quality goes, there is much more out there. For Americans our supermarket chocolate is probably already superbe. 😅 I mean Hershey has like 5% cocoa content…
In the early days American chocolate makers had to transport their milk over great distances to get to the chocolate factory and most times it got a little sour. That acidity is basically the same as stomach acid, so their chocolate basically tasted a bit like sick. But the Americans are so used to that taste that now that although they now have the means to transport their milk without spoiling it ( faster, refrigerated ) they actually add a Butyric acid to their chocolate ( it also lengthens the shelf life of the chocolate ). That's why Americans are amazed even by basic european supermarket chocolate, it's just so much sweeter without the american acidic taste.
3:05 yes its bruges and no the building before was not a cathedral, it was a belford. and he complayning of the chocolate... wtf did he try??? why did he not try leonidas, callebout, cote-dor and so much more famous Belgium chocolate, but he did try some fancy style junk. and not even once he mention the beer culture.... damn wat a missed chance. and to be honest, that dude has to chill, he talks like a speedtrain, cool down guy.....
3:30 He fell into the tourist traps. As a local, don't try the stores from the main shopping streets. Instead, ask around until a local can point you to the artisanal little shops in the side streets. That's where you can handpick the delicious chocolcates we are known for. Until you do that, don't judge the chocolates.
not late open supermarket closed at 8 in the evening is late enough and de bars and cafe´s have no closing hour sometimes they are open till 5 in the morning greetings from Belgium Bredene 18 minutes with the train from Bruges and next to Ostende
1) Note that if you're planning to go out in an other city, and you don't have a car, the last trains are around 1 at night. So if you want to party late and don't want to drive drunk (please don't) booking a hotel in different cities is a good idea. 2) Not realy true. Intercity (including the Intercity Express to Amsterdam) trains stop in Nord, Central and Midi. The only exception is some international trains, in particular high speed trains. If you take an ICE to Germany, the train stops in in Midi and Nord, TGVs and Eurostars only stop in Midi, same goes for the Nightjet to Vienna. If you stay in the Benelux, all three stations are fine. 3) Yeah in general you can easily stay in a single European country for 3 weeks and still only have seen a fraction. American tourists tend to rush. -- ?) about things closing: yes shops, museums, general day activity ends early, but pubs (called cafe), parties and concerts or events in general start late and often stay all night long. There most definitely are late night activities. There is a bit of a gap in the early evening you have to pass through though. Also there are nachtwinkels. (Nightshop) Regulation says that shops can only be open for a limited amount of ours in the day (12, I think), but in the big cities, nightshops are there to save you when all the rest is closed.
Medieval or premodern cities often have waterways because heavy goods transport was way cheaper than transport by cart or mule. Many towns are on a east west, overland trade route connecting Belgium to Italy. US visitors tend to overlook places like Tournai, Ieper, Leuven, Namur, Dinant, Liege, ... Beware that most towns have a Flemish and/or French, English or German name. You could end up in the wrong place, fe not specifying which Lille you want to visit. My first meeting an usmerican, a Massachusetts guy, was a bicycle tourist who was lost trying to visit Lille (Fr) but stumbled into Lille near Antwerp 😂 Also Brussels is convenient for trips to certain trips over the border to places like Lille, Aachen, Maastricht, ... In some cases consider taking an overnight bag, go by train, stay midweek In Amsterdam or Paris, leave your main luggage in Brussels or Antwerp. Makes for more bang for your buck and convenient travel. Bicycle tourism is also interesting. Many cities are connected by way of former tow paths or railroad rights of way repurposed as Bicycle ways. Not expensive and you meet wonderful folk along the way. Have fun Battlefield tourism is a thing here, Waterloo, Bastogne, Ieper, ...
As i would say as a flemish guy. A city in Belgium or any other european country is more intresting (Historically, Architectural, Food and drinks, ...) then the whole continent of america north and south combined.
Since Belgium isn't that big you can do a city each day. Brugge is basically a tourist trap, lot of tourists. Ghent is a little less filled with tourists. Both are great if you like historical buildings. And Besides Brussels you still have Antwerp too, big city with lot of shopping places. For after hours, Bruges is indeed death after 6pm but Ghent, Antwerp and Brussels have a lively night life but you have to get informed beforehand were to go, otherwise you will miss out.
The castle in the middle of Ghent is called: "het Gravensteen", if you want to know more about it, it has a long history and its completly rebuild. Have a nice day.
Mary are chocolates for tourists (idem Hot chocolate house in Bruges), Pierre Marcolini is the best (Belgians love dark chocolate, tourists love sugar). for the rest ; Neuhaus, Godiva, Leonidas, are all industrial multinational brands; please try some local and authentic chocolate makers, there is plenty of them (avoid shops and brands on cities centers and touristic places). 2024 best chocolat Award: Yasushi Sasaki, Bruxelles
they sailing these canals but it is the benches in the more unknown depthts of country in the middle of nowhere fields, they can make alot of minds calm and wild
Speaking of comics, Brussels also has an actual comic centre/museum, called Belgisch Stripcentrum / Musee de la BD. (BD is Bande Dessinée or drawn strip). Located in the Zandstraat 20. Definitely worth visiting, but be sure to have a couple of hours to spend.
Neuhaus is not a new chocolate brand, it is one of the oldest brands in Belgium, they are the inventors of ballotins (small boxes) of Pralines. Supplier to the Belgian royal family. if you visit Belgium you will taste very different chocolates, milk, dark, pralines, spiced… it’s like beers, there is something for everyone!
Yes Charlie, I sent you Neuhaus chocolates from Texas. BUT, the Neuhaus here in Dallas IMPORTS chocolates from that store in Brussels, Belgium, those are the ones that I sent you. Not directly from Belgium but from Belgium to Dallas to you in Indiana. They keep all of the imported Neuhaus chocolates in one counter and the chocolates that they make here in Dallas at another counter.
they all say, they want to go to Brugge, but its the main tourist trap, try out Ghent, Antwerp, the crazy coastline and so many other parts, more inland... so much more to see than Brugge... :)
As belgian, I wondered if I knew them too 😂 One thing he said is incorrect about train though. He said you need to go to Bruxelles Midi. That's not correct, Bruxelles midi is south west of Brussels meaning basically if you want to go somewhere in the south (like Paris not in Belgium but we got a fast train and it's not like as a tourist if you want to go to Charleroi )or on the west side (Brugges and the sea), you need to go there. However Bruxelles nord (so north station) is where you need to go if you want to go in the north like Antwerp, Gent (or Amsterdam if you want to go fast to the Netherlands). That being said, the 3 stations are connected so you have trains going from Bruxelles-Midi to Bruxelles-Nord and passing by Bruxelles-Central. So there is no need to run desesperatly by foot to catch your train if you are on the wrong one...
As a belgian i WILDLY disagree with the no late night entertainment...we got cafe's,bars,legal redlight district,clubs and everything other countries got.
6 things to know? The most important thing is not to use Brussels as a base. A hotel there will cost you 25% more. Apart from Brussels, he is not talking about Belgium but about Flanders.
Legit chilli and chocolate are a match made in heaven. Chilli, chocolate and oranges. It may sound like something that doesn't go together... but it really does.
Bruges maybe closes early but in Leuven you can almost party all night long on the 'oude markt' or old market with it's more then 30 cafes. it's always only Bruges Ghent and Brussels with americans. And although they are very beautiful (especially Ghent, not so much Brussels), Belgium has a lot of interesting cities. I mentioned Leuven which is definitely worth a visit. But also Antwerp and Hasselt, Ieper (where the last post for every victim of both wars is still played every evening) etc. And lest not forget our Walloon brothers. Dinant, Namur, Durbuy, Liege, Bouillon, La Roche, Arlon (one big battle of the bulge museum) etc are definitely worth a visit. And their cuisine is excuisit. Belgium is not Flanders alone. And it is strange that I have to write this as a flemisman 😂.
Neuhaus are the original Belgian chocolates and the first Neuhaus shop that was opened in the 19th century, is still open in the same location in Brussels (Royal gallery).
Hi Charlie. Nice to see that you haven't forgotten the other country that you can speak Dutch in! Welcome to Tongeren, the old Roman capital of Belgium, and I'll be happy to show you around.
Correct and that’s way too little known abroad. Belgium is really a paradise for foodies- and not just in terms of sweet treats. Belgian cuisine is delicious, Belgians are gourmets and the country is completely underrated in this regard.
6:38 I was suprised where you could go by car in Belgium. They allow them more then I'm used to, but from time to time the road is unfriendly to your car's suspencion.😂 (due to their 7 parlements and a discussion about splitting Belgium, fixing the road is rather complicated aparently.)
Things closing early: what a joke. A lot of shops close around 6 pm so yes, get your shoes, scarves, T-shirts and toothpaste before that time. Supermarkets close, depending on the chain, around 8 pm. Restaurants, bars etc close much later. Most restaurants will close between 10 and 11 pm but might be open ‘till midnight. It largely depends on their staff AND their liquor license. Hotel bars usually close around 11 pm. But other bars, night clubs etc will often stay open as long as there are enough patrons to justify staying open. When I worked in the hospitality business around 25 years ago, you could call in to have a temporary extension to your opening hours for the night. It’d be more expensive than the regular license, but that way you were legal for that night. The thing you need to remember about most European cities (and consequently Belgium) is that if you go out for the night and that includes dinner, you might start with drinks at a café/cocktail/wine place around 6 pm (done with work at 5, live close to work so that’s plenty of time to freshen up), move to the restaurant and hour later, be finished with dinner & dessert around 9-10 pm (we like to take out time over food) before moving on to clubbing. Some times dinner finishes faster, so you kill an hour or two at a café. Hardly anyone will enter a club before 11 pm, preferably midnight. Who needs shops to be open then? Besides, if it’s cigarettes etc you want, there’ll always be a ‘night shop’ or two open close to the area that holds most of the restaurants, bars and clubs.
I live in Ghent and I can assure you that you'll find bars open 24/7 and that the nightlife here is vibrant, if you know your way around. Always ask the locals. Most of us understand 2, 3, or 4 languages, so that shouldn't be a problem. And please, never buy "local specialties" in tourist traps.
Who is the man speaking and telling about Belgium ? You should check whether he is objective or not. If he talks about the time it takes to go to the cities, I think he speaks about the train ? This story about Belgium is far from correct ! Pse check your sources of the people to be sure his story is true...
Wir waren vor 3 Tagen in Bastogne. Sehr interessant, wenn man sich in Geschichte auskennt oder noch was lernen will. Schaue gerade wieder die Serie "Band of brothers" an und sehe im Film die Orte, an denen wir waren. Auch Luxemburg ist dafür zu empfehlen. Liebe Grüße von einer Deutschen, die im Elsass lebt.
As someone who was born and raised in Belgium, I have never been more confused by a thumbnail in my life. What kind of food or drink or device is that??? From what i can see in the video it's some sort of weird hot chocolate but that's definitely not something that's usually done in the average household lmao
I don't think an American would be interested in Durbuy tho. It's exciting for us Belgian, but if you have Paris just 3 hours away, I wouldn't waste time on Durbuy 💀. Namure and Bouillon not either. Dinant is maybe nice if you have time.
Bonjour, bonjour, j'habite en wallonie, il y a aussi de très beaux endroits comme les Ardennes belges, un des plus vieux hôpitaux du monde "Notre-Dame à la Rose" fondé en 1242 à Lessines, le plus beau parc zoolique d'Europe "Pairi Daiza", les derniers ascenseurs à bateaux au monde qui fonctionnent encore dans le canal du centre, les châteaux de Wallonie, le circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, le parc National de la Semois, etc etc et surtout NOTRE CUISINE INCROYABLE partout sur le territoire. Nous sommes de grands gourmands.
4:55 As a belgian i can say, we do not make our chcolate over the top like that. Also WHAT THE FUCK IS A MANGO JALAPENO FLAVOUR DOING IN FUCKING CHOCOLATE WHY WOULD ANYONE SELL OR EAT THAT???
For the beers (I so feel you on the Artois yuck 😅), I would advise starting with the Delirium Tremens bar to narrow down your taste and get superficial advices then go roam the different breweries. Note that the fruit beers are called "gueuzes" and are usually sweet. Only the beers brewed near Brussel channel can be called Kriek.
the delirium tremens bars are tourist traps tho. A lot of choice of draft beers, but way too expensive. And a lot of pickpockets are active in and outside the cafe. Go to A la morte subite cafe (close to the galleries de la reine at rue Arenberg), le Coq cafe, Archipel or Les brasseurs (all are close to the Bourse). Typical old school Belgian café's in the centre where locals go and the prices are somewhat reasonable.
@@bv2623 that's why I said to narrow down their taste. It's certainly not the end station but our different types of beers can be overwelming and the delirium has a wide menu covering most of them. I had the case of an American saying he didn't like belgian beers because they were bitter and all he tasted was Jupiler and Leffe... the end goal is to find your type of beer (trappist, gueuze, stout, etc.) and to target the specific breweries (For example, if you don't like pills, don't go to "La Mule". It's a good brewery but you won't find any gueuze there)
I'm sad to see so many comments on this video of people trying their best to be as toxic as possible in stating their personal opinions, even going as far as stating *outright lies*. Also, bashing someone who has taken an interest in the history and culture you've inherited is just low. Instead, be appreciative or feel a little bit proud of it, or even charmed. For those planning a visit to Belgium, please ignore these comments and base your decisions on what is actually shown and experiences described by genuine youtube travelers.
It is funny to me as a Dutchman to see how wondering and baffled Americans are about things they do not know about, it almost looks like they see something out of this world for the first time and can't believe their eyes that is does exist.
what ??? everything closes early ??? that guy really didn't visit Belgium in person !!! there are no closing hours in Belgium ... as there are in eg. the Netherlands
All IC trains going to the major Belgian cities call at central. Brussel zuid-midi is for all international trains: ICE to Germany/ Eurostar to Amsterdam-Paris- London-Cologne/ TGV to south of France/ IC int to Amsterdam/ Euosleeper to Berlin and Prague/ Nightjet to Berlin and Vienna…
Hello from Oostende, Belgium 🌊 Charlie, what he was showing with the water and the boat is Bruges, it's one of the places in Bruges where the boat ride on het canals start. What is he babbling about that other big European cities only have 1 major trainstation? In London and Paris they have even more major trainstations than Brussels. It's only this dumb tourist that didn't check his trainticket to see where he was departing from and then bitches about the fact that he was in the wrong trainstation. And complaining that you have to buy a minimum of 8 chocolates at Neuhaus... who will ever only by 1 chocolat? The medieval castle is "'Gravensteen" which is in the middle of Gent's city center. Restaurants close early? Restaurant kitchens stay open till 10-11pm, how much later do you want to go and eat in the evening? And Bruges, Gent, Brussels are anything but dead in the evening, there are plenty of pubs that stay open til long after midnight. For someone who says he travels a lot he acts as a first time traveler and probably only visits the super touristy hot spots in main streets but never goes to look in the side streets to see what else the city has to offer. We have a strong comic book culture in Belgium and France, but it is a totally different kind of comic book than the comics in America.
The main thing I have remarks about (as a Belgian) is that he makes a lot of mistakes in his video. About the train station(s), the chocolate(s), the closing hours, and so on.
did he really say Pierre Marcolini is not good chocolate ? OMG .... and ps , who in heavens name buys 1 piece of chocolate ???? probably all he could affort at Marcolini's hahahaha
Hello, I'm from Bruges, when at 2:44 you say "look at that cathedral on the right hand side..." ; that not a cathedral, it's a tourist atraction called "Historium". At 2:55 you ask is this Ghent or Bruges... it's Bruges. The tower you see in the middle of the scene is the Belltower.
Again, I'm from Belgium, and this relentless infatuation with Bruges, I just don' t get at all. Sure, it looks ancient, but in second world war? NOTHING was left of that city, they rebuild it to the medieval standards, but it 's not genuine. Ghent, Antwerp and Brussels ARE. Though they are lesser tourist attractions, but have a lot more to offer then fake medieval towns; how about real medieval cities that had real influence on the world , then Bruges? I mean. There should have been a movie about it, but to be honest it is frustrating. Yeah Bruges, if you like a fake, if you wanna real, try Ghent, Brussels and Antwerp none of them ever got destroyed to the soil itself :p and euh ... read yer history, guys, please?
it is a small country but if you were in puerto rico or even a similar area in the US you wouldn't be able to travel the area as fast, Belgium just has a lot of rail infrastructure and a dense population making hourly trains economical for most places (there is a difference between flanders and wallonia here though, speaking from experience the trains and trainstations based in wallonia will force you to be wary to put it kindly.
I think he was talking about Brugge, there's no nightlife in Brugge, it's considered an open museum...If you want to experience nightlife go to Gent, you have the same medieval architecture and a bubbling nightlife scene.
Half way in and as someone who lives in Belgium i feel the need to tell this. Mass immigration ( both legal AND illegal ) made EVERY mid to big city dangerous. Do not let the billboard advertisement of how great our little shithole, i mean country, is fool you. If you or whoever reads this comment plan on visiting Belgium for its tourism, i would HIGHLY recommend being prepared for the biggest issue we have in our country. Criminal immigrant gangs that are specialist in stealing and intimidation will get your ass. Also keep your misses close to you. Here is what i would recommend for tourists: 1: Stay away from the big cities, not only are they unsafe, they are expensive as hell. Visit smaller towns and villages, defo if you want to enjoy the trademark foods and drinks of our country without it costing you an arm and a leg. In a city like Ghent for example, fries and a beer could cost you up to 10 euro, go to a nearby village, lets say Evergem ( 15 min outside of Ghent ) the same beer and the same fries will cost you somewhere around 5 euro. 2: Visit REAL things, them big cities really aren't displaying what our country has to offer. Locations such as Durbuy, Rochfort and Malmedy (for its beers AND for the old castles and ruins you can find everywhere around it ) in Walonia or just anywhere in the province of Limburg (Tongres for example still has ALOT of signs of why it is the oldest city in Belgium, dating back all the way to the Roman Empire etc ), the Flemish Coast or if you want to learn a lot more about WW2, there is the Yser Tower in Diksmuide for example. All these places actually show what Belgium has to offer. 3: Avoid public transport, the NMBS ( the Belgian train system ) is a joke, hardly ever on time, over priced and defo not comfortable. Just rent a car and use Waze to get around. Gas isn't cheap BUT it beats the uncomfortable way of traveling by train. 4: NEVER!!!!! say French fries in Belgium, we take ALOT of pride in fries being OUR invention, not the bloody French! If you plan on eating some fries, DO NOT buy them in a big touristic city, just go to a small village nearby and order them in a " Frituur ", you'll thank me later for that tip ;) 5: You can defo plan in the big cities but i wouldn't make them your main plan of action. Depending on how long you want to stay in Belgium, i would highly recommend visiting the main 3 cities in 1 or 2 days and spend the rest in the less commercial tourism spots.
If you are visiting Belgium by car, it is important to hit the brakes as soon as you cross the border. Otherwise you would drive through it without noticing it because it is so small 😁
He is not a chocolatier but a pâtissier. he was named the best pâtissier, for in the world. For chocolatier check Dominique Persoone and The Chocolate Line in Brugge or Antwerp
Deduytschaever in Ghent. I'd rather eat one of his chocolates than a whole box somewhere else. Opened during corona and in 2022 was called best chocolatier in Flanders by Gault&Millau. 😉🤫
Belgium visit #1 Bruges, #2 Ghent, #3 Dinant #4 Durbuy #5Namur #6 Spa, some say Antwerp (Drugs and full of Moroccans same as Brussels (80% are not from Belgium 43% from them is from outside EU Full of drugs and Homeless. That think that UK will be so much better, and dangerous when it's dark ) Shame it's beautiful though, Greetings from Belgium. Belgica is here from Caesar times mid 1 BC. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belgae
in Belgie zijn 7 procent moslims,21 procent Nederlanders,eigenlijk 172 verschillende nationaliteiten niet van Belgische afkomst ,waarom er dan 1groep uithalen ????
Hello from Brussels !
Just to correct that thing about train stations... In Brussels, we have a lot of train stations, that's true. But there are three main stations that are Midi (or south), Central, and North. Every national train that goes through one of these stations will actually stops in each. The only exception as I said is some international trains. Moreover, going from one station to another is really easy : you just hop in ANY train that is going in the right direction and exit in the next (the trip is max 10 minutes) ! Train controllers don't really check tickets when in Brussels, and if you got a ticket anyway, that's fine. The ticket is not for a specific train, but for a trip, so you can jump multiple trains, stop at every station for an hour before taking another train, or even buy your ticket the morning for the afternoon, and as long as you stay along the general direction of your destination, that's fine. So for instance, if you wanna visit Brugge and Gent in the same day, you only need one roundtrip ticket as Gent is on the path of the train to Brugge (though one day for each is probably better)...
As for closing hours, tourist traps close early, that's true. But in Brussels, stores are open until 8 pm, and there are A LOT of places that close at 1 am... It's just not places tourists are aware of. So if you want late options, just ask someone local... Almost everybody speaks english, and we're really friendly, so we'll be glad to make you discover our lovely place !
About brussels and comic things, comics is a huge cultural aspect in Belgium. Tintin, the Smurfs and Lucky Luke are born here (and many more too). There's the comic route, of course, but we also have a comic museum. Brussels is also very queer friendly, and it has this vibe where there are a lot of hidden things here and there, like bars you wouldn't expect to be bars from the facade, incredible architectures in random streets, buildings behind buildings needing taking small corridors to access them... Brussels is also one of the capital city of Art Nouveau and Surrealism. And we have a really rich night life... Don't be fooled, and explore, the best things aren't the one you first see here !
Yank complaining about Belgian chocolate, the irony 😂
😂😂love this reaction, ik vond die zooi (in de U.S) niet te vreten. Love our southern neigtbours. Greatings from Rotterdam Netherlands.
yeah what kind of fancy junk did he try
Well, the thing is Pierre Marcolini has sophisticated flavors, and if you aren't used to that you aren't going to like it. You expect plain chocolate and there would be mixed with olives, salt, champagne, buckwheat, tea... I do chocolate tours and kids prefer the cheapest chocolate.
@@davidsastre8724 Same for our beers If you are an American you probably prefere a leffe over an Orval for example. Both have the label speciality beer abroad but only Orval is. Leffe is just an avarage to us "not offensive to any taste commercial kind of boring beer" but it has no real personallity it's not bad but nothing special.
I am belgian (flemisch) and i enjoy your video's... our country is small but a lot to see, like to enjoy Thatcher you like our country.... most americans know nothing about to world. Your interest in the low country's is very great to see.... i hope you can came over some Day. I live between eindhoven and antwerp in Belgium.... if you need me for tips....
@@bambilambi9330 Belgium in the building 🇧🇪🇧🇪💪✌️
Belgium 🇧🇪🇧🇪 🇧🇪🇧🇪 ! !
@@hidesan7794 🇧🇪💪🇧🇪💪
Belgium here 2
@@heidivanbrabant830 🇧🇪💪. Yuppa
Hey,proud Antwerpian here! Yes, In Belgium we are known for our beers and chocolate and alltough some of the big brands are good, a lot of smaller local and artisinal brands are very good aswell. The comic book route is something you can do in a few other big cities too like Antwerp and Gent. Gent,being one of my favorite cities apart from my own offcourse, even has a Comic Art Hotel! I was a little sad to see that my home town of Antwerp was not mentioned! We have a beautiful old city centre with lots of old buildings and a magnificent Cathedral! We also have a thriving nightlife with lots of good bars,café's and clubs that are open till the early morning hours! Allways try to ask a local where to find a good restaurant,café or club and don't fall into those tourist traps that try to sell you "authentic" products! Really Hope to welcome you to our beautiful country one day,Charly! Keep up the good work!
Yo antwaarpe 👍💪
Volledig mee eens! (I agree!)
Yes, it's a shame he didn't mentioned Antwerp !!
Plus, an important point for Americans: you’ll probably not need a car, as Belgium has a dense passenger rail network and urban public transport both with high frequencies, like many European countries. The travel times that the guy indicates are actually train travel times.
Depends... if you only want to visit the major tourist spots during daytime you won't need a car. If you want to visit smaller places in e.g. the Ardennes a car is a must.
Most visiting Belgium go to Brussels whilst there are so nice other cities as well , then we have the Ardennes , the North Sea ,Limburg ....
Saying Marcolini is the new kid on the block is insane! 😂😂
yeah, Marcolini has been around since 1995.
Does he really think that no other chocolatier has started in the last 30 years?
Also... NOT GOOD? TO AVOID? DAFUCK? Those chocolate pearl with salted caramel inside are to die for.
He's totally is the new kid. His father wasn't even born when Neuhaus and Leonidas opened. He was playing in short trunks when Galler opened. So yeah his company is pretty young. The only thing is that he won a world title as creator, but that's totally different of what he's selling
Check citadel @ Dinant Belgium.. If you love the old Belgium buildings . The citadel @ Dinant is massive... Big love from Belgium
And Namur!
@@larosebleue9343 yup all nice places
ruclips.net/video/RJSoGDj14oI/видео.htmlsi=BEEUqZrvNLdonE_q
Dinant is trully beautiful, something out of a fairy tail!
@@Bic4Colours yup 👌👍
Having to buy 8 chocolates is not a money grab. buying only one is for losers. Also go to The Chocolate Line in Brugge or Antwerp to buy. Its our most famous chocolatier.
It's an alien concept for me, just buy a box of 250g or 500g.
One more thing to know about belgium : Brussels, Ghent and Brugges aren't the only cities worth visiting. People making those videos always seem to be stuck on those three cities and ignore the southern part of the country. And although Brugge might be the most beautiful town in belgium, Wallonia also has it's share of old towns and castles that deserve a visit. Cities like Dinant, Namur, Mons, are deffinitely worth a look. If you like trappist beer, come to Chimay, you can visit the monastery, drink a few beers, and it's close to the Eau d'Heure dams, the biggest lakes in belgium where you can enjoy all sorts of water sports, fishing, having a drink by the water...
Cheers from Wallonia!
Helo, from Belgium.
If you love to visit castles, we got you in for a treat.
Belgium has the highest density in castles par square km in the world!
So Beersel,Vorst => castles Mechelen : Brusselse poort (midevil gate to the city)
Mechelen (Beiaardschool) cathedral/basilic/monestary
citadel van Dienant etc and the Westhoek => restored and maintained trenches of WW1
Also from other times: fort van Breendonck (ww2 German ocupation), Bastogne (battle of the Bulge), Waterloo (Napoleon) etc
As a Swiss I feel like I have to make a note about chocolate: there is no Charly's Chocolate factory type of place in Europe, neither in Belgium nor anywhere else. Supermarket chocolate here is better than supermarket chocolate in the US. But that is not the good stuff. Big brands are also not that good. Go to small artisan chocolateries/patisseries. Belgium is famous for their dark chocolate, while Switzerland is known for milk chocolate. Go try some "bean to bar" chocolate brands, they are the best quality and child-labour free. Also don't order flavours that you know from the US like peanut butter or peppermint, they are only produced for tourists who ask for them. Try going for flavours that are local/foreign to you or neutral dark chocolate.
Warm greetings to our fierce chocolate competitors!☺
I don't know...we do have some very good supermarket chocolate. Chocolatiers do have more varieties in filling and stuff
@@yagi3925 🇨🇭 🤝 🇧🇪 ❤️
@@johnjanssens8998 Yeah so do we, they are not terrible but as far as quality goes, there is much more out there.
For Americans our supermarket chocolate is probably already superbe. 😅
I mean Hershey has like 5% cocoa content…
In the early days American chocolate makers had to transport their milk over great distances to get to the chocolate factory and most times it got a little sour. That acidity is basically the same as stomach acid, so their chocolate basically tasted a bit like sick. But the Americans are so used to that taste that now that although they now have the means to transport their milk without spoiling it ( faster, refrigerated ) they actually add a Butyric acid to their chocolate ( it also lengthens the shelf life of the chocolate ). That's why Americans are amazed even by basic european supermarket chocolate, it's just so much sweeter without the american acidic taste.
3:05 yes its bruges and no the building before was not a cathedral, it was a belford.
and he complayning of the chocolate... wtf did he try??? why did he not try leonidas, callebout, cote-dor and so much more famous Belgium chocolate, but he did try some fancy style junk.
and not even once he mention the beer culture.... damn wat a missed chance.
and to be honest, that dude has to chill, he talks like a speedtrain, cool down guy.....
3:30 He fell into the tourist traps. As a local, don't try the stores from the main shopping streets. Instead, ask around until a local can point you to the artisanal little shops in the side streets. That's where you can handpick the delicious chocolcates we are known for. Until you do that, don't judge the chocolates.
not late open supermarket closed at 8 in the evening is late enough and de bars and cafe´s have no closing hour sometimes they are open till 5 in the morning greetings from Belgium Bredene 18 minutes with the train from Bruges and next to Ostende
Yes, why is he saying bars close early??
The best abbey to spend a week or more is Orval. Nothing around ,only forest. A must to do...btw, Orval is brewed there...lol
1) Note that if you're planning to go out in an other city, and you don't have a car, the last trains are around 1 at night. So if you want to party late and don't want to drive drunk (please don't) booking a hotel in different cities is a good idea.
2) Not realy true. Intercity (including the Intercity Express to Amsterdam) trains stop in Nord, Central and Midi. The only exception is some international trains, in particular high speed trains. If you take an ICE to Germany, the train stops in in Midi and Nord, TGVs and Eurostars only stop in Midi, same goes for the Nightjet to Vienna. If you stay in the Benelux, all three stations are fine.
3) Yeah in general you can easily stay in a single European country for 3 weeks and still only have seen a fraction. American tourists tend to rush.
--
?) about things closing: yes shops, museums, general day activity ends early, but pubs (called cafe), parties and concerts or events in general start late and often stay all night long. There most definitely are late night activities. There is a bit of a gap in the early evening you have to pass through though. Also there are nachtwinkels. (Nightshop) Regulation says that shops can only be open for a limited amount of ours in the day (12, I think), but in the big cities, nightshops are there to save you when all the rest is closed.
my man knows whats important: trappist beers!
2:39 Some of the trappist monasteries are in very remote places... You probably don't want to go to Achel or Westvletteren by public transport.
Medieval or premodern cities often have waterways because heavy goods transport was way cheaper than transport by cart or mule. Many towns are on a east west, overland trade route connecting Belgium to Italy.
US visitors tend to overlook places like Tournai, Ieper, Leuven, Namur, Dinant, Liege, ...
Beware that most towns have a Flemish and/or French, English or German name. You could end up in the wrong place, fe not specifying which Lille you want to visit. My first meeting an usmerican, a Massachusetts guy, was a bicycle tourist who was lost trying to visit Lille (Fr) but stumbled into Lille near Antwerp 😂
Also Brussels is convenient for trips to certain trips over the border to places like Lille, Aachen, Maastricht, ... In some cases consider taking an overnight bag, go by train, stay midweek In Amsterdam or Paris, leave your main luggage in Brussels or Antwerp. Makes for more bang for your buck and convenient travel.
Bicycle tourism is also interesting. Many cities are connected by way of former tow paths or railroad rights of way repurposed as Bicycle ways. Not expensive and you meet wonderful folk along the way.
Have fun
Battlefield tourism is a thing here, Waterloo, Bastogne, Ieper, ...
As i would say as a flemish guy. A city in Belgium or any other european country is more intresting (Historically, Architectural, Food and drinks, ...) then the whole continent of america north and south combined.
Since Belgium isn't that big you can do a city each day. Brugge is basically a tourist trap, lot of tourists. Ghent is a little less filled with tourists. Both are great if you like historical buildings. And Besides Brussels you still have Antwerp too, big city with lot of shopping places.
For after hours, Bruges is indeed death after 6pm but Ghent, Antwerp and Brussels have a lively night life but you have to get informed beforehand were to go, otherwise you will miss out.
Hi from Tournai, don't forget our old city
The castle in the middle of Ghent is called: "het Gravensteen", if you want to know more about it, it has a long history and its completly rebuild. Have a nice day.
Mary are chocolates for tourists (idem Hot chocolate house in Bruges), Pierre Marcolini is the best (Belgians love dark chocolate, tourists love sugar). for the rest ; Neuhaus, Godiva, Leonidas, are all industrial multinational brands; please try some local and authentic chocolate makers, there is plenty of them (avoid shops and brands on cities centers and touristic places). 2024 best chocolat Award: Yasushi Sasaki, Bruxelles
Sorry but pierre marcolini is not the best and become more industrial! Laurent Gerbaud, Benoît Nihant, Xocolate are better.
That castle was in Gent .... called "Gravensteen"
they sailing these canals but it is the benches in the more unknown depthts of country in the middle of nowhere fields, they can make alot of minds calm and wild
Speaking of comics, Brussels also has an actual comic centre/museum, called Belgisch Stripcentrum / Musee de la BD. (BD is Bande Dessinée or drawn strip). Located in the Zandstraat 20. Definitely worth visiting, but be sure to have a couple of hours to spend.
Neuhaus is not a new chocolate brand, it is one of the oldest brands in Belgium, they are the inventors of ballotins (small boxes) of Pralines. Supplier to the Belgian royal family. if you visit Belgium you will taste very different chocolates, milk, dark, pralines, spiced… it’s like beers, there is something for everyone!
2:59 is Bruges my good sir. I live there and I still discover new pittoresque corners here and there. Amazingly beautiful city to live in 😊
Yes Charlie, I sent you Neuhaus chocolates from Texas. BUT, the Neuhaus here in Dallas IMPORTS chocolates from that store in Brussels, Belgium, those are the ones that I sent you. Not directly from Belgium but from Belgium to Dallas to you in Indiana. They keep all of the imported Neuhaus chocolates in one counter and the chocolates that they make here in Dallas at another counter.
they all say, they want to go to Brugge, but its the main tourist trap, try out Ghent, Antwerp, the crazy coastline and so many other parts, more inland... so much more to see than Brugge... :)
The coast is the ultimate tourist trap 😂 do expensive for what it is.
As belgian, I wondered if I knew them too 😂 One thing he said is incorrect about train though. He said you need to go to Bruxelles Midi. That's not correct, Bruxelles midi is south west of Brussels meaning basically if you want to go somewhere in the south (like Paris not in Belgium but we got a fast train and it's not like as a tourist if you want to go to Charleroi )or on the west side (Brugges and the sea), you need to go there. However Bruxelles nord (so north station) is where you need to go if you want to go in the north like Antwerp, Gent (or Amsterdam if you want to go fast to the Netherlands). That being said, the 3 stations are connected so you have trains going from Bruxelles-Midi to Bruxelles-Nord and passing by Bruxelles-Central. So there is no need to run desesperatly by foot to catch your train if you are on the wrong one...
East Flanders Aalst is a small town between Brussels and Ghent and is also worth a visit.
As a belgian i WILDLY disagree with the no late night entertainment...we got cafe's,bars,legal redlight district,clubs and everything other countries got.
6 things to know? The most important thing is not to use Brussels as a base. A hotel there will cost you 25% more. Apart from Brussels, he is not talking about Belgium but about Flanders.
True
Legit chilli and chocolate are a match made in heaven.
Chilli, chocolate and oranges. It may sound like something that doesn't go together... but it really does.
Bruges maybe closes early but in Leuven you can almost party all night long on the 'oude markt' or old market with it's more then 30 cafes. it's always only Bruges Ghent and Brussels with americans. And although they are very beautiful (especially Ghent, not so much Brussels), Belgium has a lot of interesting cities. I mentioned Leuven which is definitely worth a visit. But also Antwerp and Hasselt, Ieper (where the last post for every victim of both wars is still played every evening) etc. And lest not forget our Walloon brothers. Dinant, Namur, Durbuy, Liege, Bouillon, La Roche, Arlon (one big battle of the bulge museum) etc are definitely worth a visit. And their cuisine is excuisit. Belgium is not Flanders alone. And it is strange that I have to write this as a flemisman 😂.
Neuhaus are the original Belgian chocolates and the first Neuhaus shop that was opened in the 19th century, is still open in the same location in Brussels (Royal gallery).
Hi Charlie. Nice to see that you haven't forgotten the other country that you can speak Dutch in! Welcome to Tongeren, the old Roman capital of Belgium, and I'll be happy to show you around.
Yes, Tongeren and Tournai are the two most ancient cities in Belgium, both dating back to Roman times - and both badly overlooked.
food there is amazing .
Correct and that’s way too little known abroad. Belgium is really a paradise for foodies- and not just in terms of sweet treats. Belgian cuisine is delicious, Belgians are gourmets and the country is completely underrated in this regard.
6:38 I was suprised where you could go by car in Belgium. They allow them more then I'm used to, but from time to time the road is unfriendly to your car's suspencion.😂
(due to their 7 parlements and a discussion about splitting Belgium, fixing the road is rather complicated aparently.)
Things closing early: what a joke. A lot of shops close around 6 pm so yes, get your shoes, scarves, T-shirts and toothpaste before that time. Supermarkets close, depending on the chain, around 8 pm. Restaurants, bars etc close much later. Most restaurants will close between 10 and 11 pm but might be open ‘till midnight. It largely depends on their staff AND their liquor license. Hotel bars usually close around 11 pm. But other bars, night clubs etc will often stay open as long as there are enough patrons to justify staying open. When I worked in the hospitality business around 25 years ago, you could call in to have a temporary extension to your opening hours for the night. It’d be more expensive than the regular license, but that way you were legal for that night.
The thing you need to remember about most European cities (and consequently Belgium) is that if you go out for the night and that includes dinner, you might start with drinks at a café/cocktail/wine place around 6 pm (done with work at 5, live close to work so that’s plenty of time to freshen up), move to the restaurant and hour later, be finished with dinner & dessert around 9-10 pm (we like to take out time over food) before moving on to clubbing. Some times dinner finishes faster, so you kill an hour or two at a café. Hardly anyone will enter a club before 11 pm, preferably midnight.
Who needs shops to be open then? Besides, if it’s cigarettes etc you want, there’ll always be a ‘night shop’ or two open close to the area that holds most of the restaurants, bars and clubs.
I live in Ghent and I can assure you that you'll find bars open 24/7 and that the nightlife here is vibrant, if you know your way around. Always ask the locals. Most of us understand 2, 3, or 4 languages, so that shouldn't be a problem. And please, never buy "local specialties" in tourist traps.
Who is the man speaking and telling about Belgium ? You should check whether he is objective or not. If he talks about the time it takes to go to the cities, I think he speaks about the train ? This story about Belgium is far from correct ! Pse check your sources of the people to be sure his story is true...
Pierre Marcolini is top notch designer chocolate, don’t buy that if you don’t want to experience some very interesting combinations
@3.06 min thats Brugge ,30 km from my city Veurne
Wir waren vor 3 Tagen in Bastogne. Sehr interessant, wenn man sich in Geschichte auskennt oder noch was lernen will. Schaue gerade wieder die Serie "Band of brothers" an und sehe im Film die Orte, an denen wir waren. Auch Luxemburg ist dafür zu empfehlen. Liebe Grüße von einer Deutschen, die im Elsass lebt.
As someone who was born and raised in Belgium, I have never been more confused by a thumbnail in my life. What kind of food or drink or device is that??? From what i can see in the video it's some sort of weird hot chocolate but that's definitely not something that's usually done in the average household lmao
And don't forget Wallonia... Namur, Dinant, Bouillon and the smallest town in the world : Durbuy ;-)
I don't think an American would be interested in Durbuy tho. It's exciting for us Belgian, but if you have Paris just 3 hours away, I wouldn't waste time on Durbuy 💀. Namure and Bouillon not either. Dinant is maybe nice if you have time.
I live in Liege and in this city , restaurants and bars are open till late, some of them do not even close.
03:02 that is Bruges !
Bonjour, bonjour, j'habite en wallonie, il y a aussi de très beaux endroits comme les Ardennes belges, un des plus vieux hôpitaux du monde "Notre-Dame à la Rose" fondé en 1242 à Lessines, le plus beau parc zoolique d'Europe "Pairi Daiza", les derniers ascenseurs à bateaux au monde qui fonctionnent encore dans le canal du centre, les châteaux de Wallonie, le circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, le parc National de la Semois, etc etc et surtout NOTRE CUISINE INCROYABLE partout sur le territoire. Nous sommes de grands gourmands.
4:55 As a belgian i can say, we do not make our chcolate over the top like that. Also WHAT THE FUCK IS A MANGO JALAPENO FLAVOUR DOING IN FUCKING CHOCOLATE WHY WOULD ANYONE SELL OR EAT THAT???
i could tell you a lot about medieval castles :) too bad most of them are in ruins or completely gone
I subscribe if you do more about belgium haha Because people always do the Nederland
👍👍👍
2:45 that's the city hall, not a cathedral
When you are in BELGIUM, go to OSTEND city and visit the ' Twilight ' bar, would love to meet you there
or next door the manuscript 😎
Hallo from bruxelles 😉 , originally from Flanders louvain, also a beautiful city to visit 👍
For the beers (I so feel you on the Artois yuck 😅), I would advise starting with the Delirium Tremens bar to narrow down your taste and get superficial advices then go roam the different breweries. Note that the fruit beers are called "gueuzes" and are usually sweet. Only the beers brewed near Brussel channel can be called Kriek.
Well, Stella's still better than Jupiler and way better than Heineken
@@johnjanssens8998 ho definitly !
the delirium tremens bars are tourist traps tho. A lot of choice of draft beers, but way too expensive. And a lot of pickpockets are active in and outside the cafe. Go to A la morte subite cafe (close to the galleries de la reine at rue Arenberg), le Coq cafe, Archipel or Les brasseurs (all are close to the Bourse). Typical old school Belgian café's in the centre where locals go and the prices are somewhat reasonable.
@@bv2623 that's why I said to narrow down their taste. It's certainly not the end station but our different types of beers can be overwelming and the delirium has a wide menu covering most of them. I had the case of an American saying he didn't like belgian beers because they were bitter and all he tasted was Jupiler and Leffe... the end goal is to find your type of beer (trappist, gueuze, stout, etc.) and to target the specific breweries (For example, if you don't like pills, don't go to "La Mule". It's a good brewery but you won't find any gueuze there)
About beers. Go to “café botteltje” in Oostende. A lot of beers on tap and bottle beers. Almost impossible to choose…
il n'y a pas que Bruxelles et Bruges , énormément d'autres choses à voir , à boire , à manger
I'm sad to see so many comments on this video of people trying their best to be as toxic as possible in stating their personal opinions, even going as far as stating *outright lies*. Also, bashing someone who has taken an interest in the history and culture you've inherited is just low.
Instead, be appreciative or feel a little bit proud of it, or even charmed.
For those planning a visit to Belgium, please ignore these comments and base your decisions on what is actually shown and experiences described by genuine youtube travelers.
It is funny to me as a Dutchman to see how wondering and baffled Americans are about things they do not know about, it almost looks like they see something out of this world for the first time and can't believe their eyes that is does exist.
what ??? everything closes early ??? that guy really didn't visit Belgium in person !!! there are no closing hours in Belgium ... as there are in eg. the Netherlands
Do you know the bautifull "The heart of Belgium" videos? This would surely interest you
A guy in Indiana happy to learn that to go to Ghent you have to take the train at the Midi station and not at the Central station.
All IC trains going to the major Belgian cities call at central. Brussel zuid-midi is for all international trains: ICE to Germany/ Eurostar to Amsterdam-Paris- London-Cologne/ TGV to south of France/ IC int to Amsterdam/ Euosleeper to Berlin and Prague/ Nightjet to Berlin and Vienna…
Most national trains stop north-central- midi.
come to westmalle,there you get ur trappists,be prepaired,you wil get drunk very fast 🤣😂
Hello from Oostende, Belgium 🌊
Charlie, what he was showing with the water and the boat is Bruges, it's one of the places in Bruges where the boat ride on het canals start.
What is he babbling about that other big European cities only have 1 major trainstation? In London and Paris they have even more major trainstations than Brussels. It's only this dumb tourist that didn't check his trainticket to see where he was departing from and then bitches about the fact that he was in the wrong trainstation.
And complaining that you have to buy a minimum of 8 chocolates at Neuhaus... who will ever only by 1 chocolat?
The medieval castle is "'Gravensteen" which is in the middle of Gent's city center.
Restaurants close early? Restaurant kitchens stay open till 10-11pm, how much later do you want to go and eat in the evening? And Bruges, Gent, Brussels are anything but dead in the evening, there are plenty of pubs that stay open til long after midnight. For someone who says he travels a lot he acts as a first time traveler and probably only visits the super touristy hot spots in main streets but never goes to look in the side streets to see what else the city has to offer.
We have a strong comic book culture in Belgium and France, but it is a totally different kind of comic book than the comics in America.
HI from belgium my usa friend :)
Don't forget to mention the beers of Belgium..1600 different flavors, hmm .
If you like beer, définitely visit Belgium. Otherwise you're indeed better off to go to bigger cities in the neighbouring countries. NOT for beer.
Its brugge not bruges. Thats french, brugge is flemish.
The main thing I have remarks about (as a Belgian) is that he makes a lot of mistakes in his video. About the train station(s), the chocolate(s), the closing hours, and so on.
You want to try some trappist beer go too westmalle
Should you go, visit with the beardbarian as a guide!
Honestly as a Belgian (live in Bruges) I avoid Brussels like the plague
If you're from New York you're gonna feel at home in Brussels. Their subways and bridges smell just like at home. Urine. 😌
did he really say Pierre Marcolini is not good chocolate ? OMG .... and ps , who in heavens name buys 1 piece of chocolate ???? probably all he could affort at Marcolini's hahahaha
Hello, I'm from Bruges, when at 2:44 you say "look at that cathedral on the right hand side..." ; that not a cathedral, it's a tourist atraction called "Historium". At 2:55 you ask is this Ghent or Bruges... it's Bruges. The tower you see in the middle of the scene is the Belltower.
Chocolate not that good? that was the biggest bullshit I heard in my life
Again, I'm from Belgium, and this relentless infatuation with Bruges, I just don' t get at all. Sure, it looks ancient, but in second world war? NOTHING was left of that city, they rebuild it to the medieval standards, but it 's not genuine. Ghent, Antwerp and Brussels ARE. Though they are lesser tourist attractions, but have a lot more to offer then fake medieval towns; how about real medieval cities that had real influence on the world , then Bruges? I mean. There should have been a movie about it, but to be honest it is frustrating. Yeah Bruges, if you like a fake, if you wanna real, try Ghent, Brussels and Antwerp none of them ever got destroyed to the soil itself :p and euh ... read yer history, guys, please?
Restaurants close early...?....errr...nope....
Dat was Gent wat hij toonde
spent 3 days in bxl and think he's an expert....
Only 7 things omg, if i had time i give you 1000ends
it is a small country but if you were in puerto rico or even a similar area in the US you wouldn't be able to travel the area as fast, Belgium just has a lot of rail infrastructure and a dense population making hourly trains economical for most places (there is a difference between flanders and wallonia here though, speaking from experience the trains and trainstations based in wallonia will force you to be wary to put it kindly.
No nightlife in Belgium? I beg to differ.
I think he was talking about Brugge, there's no nightlife in Brugge, it's considered an open museum...If you want to experience nightlife go to Gent, you have the same medieval architecture and a bubbling nightlife scene.
@@Pepe-rf1zg yeah or go to an university city like Leuven, Mons, Liège :D
Pierre Marcolini is just amazing! It is NOT a new kid! This guy is wrong!!!!
why only talk about the flemish part . There is a waloonian part with Liege and the Ardennes, and Dinant
Je vie en Belgique je vous conseille les bières Belges.et les villages en Ardennes n'allez pas dans la partie flamandes ils sont pas très sympa.
Belgium is not a large country, but it's still much more than two cities...
Half way in and as someone who lives in Belgium i feel the need to tell this. Mass immigration ( both legal AND illegal ) made EVERY mid to big city dangerous. Do not let the billboard advertisement of how great our little shithole, i mean country, is fool you. If you or whoever reads this comment plan on visiting Belgium for its tourism, i would HIGHLY recommend being prepared for the biggest issue we have in our country. Criminal immigrant gangs that are specialist in stealing and intimidation will get your ass. Also keep your misses close to you.
Here is what i would recommend for tourists:
1: Stay away from the big cities, not only are they unsafe, they are expensive as hell. Visit smaller towns and villages, defo if you want to enjoy the trademark foods and drinks of our country without it costing you an arm and a leg. In a city like Ghent for example, fries and a beer could cost you up to 10 euro, go to a nearby village, lets say Evergem ( 15 min outside of Ghent ) the same beer and the same fries will cost you somewhere around 5 euro.
2: Visit REAL things, them big cities really aren't displaying what our country has to offer. Locations such as Durbuy, Rochfort and Malmedy (for its beers AND for the old castles and ruins you can find everywhere around it ) in Walonia or just anywhere in the province of Limburg (Tongres for example still has ALOT of signs of why it is the oldest city in Belgium, dating back all the way to the Roman Empire etc ), the Flemish Coast or if you want to learn a lot more about WW2, there is the Yser Tower in Diksmuide for example. All these places actually show what Belgium has to offer.
3: Avoid public transport, the NMBS ( the Belgian train system ) is a joke, hardly ever on time, over priced and defo not comfortable. Just rent a car and use Waze to get around. Gas isn't cheap BUT it beats the uncomfortable way of traveling by train.
4: NEVER!!!!! say French fries in Belgium, we take ALOT of pride in fries being OUR invention, not the bloody French! If you plan on eating some fries, DO NOT buy them in a big touristic city, just go to a small village nearby and order them in a " Frituur ", you'll thank me later for that tip ;)
5: You can defo plan in the big cities but i wouldn't make them your main plan of action. Depending on how long you want to stay in Belgium, i would highly recommend visiting the main 3 cities in 1 or 2 days and spend the rest in the less commercial tourism spots.
If you are visiting Belgium by car, it is important to hit the brakes as soon as you cross the border. Otherwise you would drive through it without noticing it because it is so small 😁
Pierre Marconi has been named best chocolatier in the world twice! Clearly his chocolate is top notch!
He is not a chocolatier but a pâtissier. he was named the best pâtissier, for in the world. For chocolatier check Dominique Persoone and The Chocolate Line in Brugge or Antwerp
@@Ghostking1800 So true. The Chocolate line is amazing
Deduytschaever in Ghent. I'd rather eat one of his chocolates than a whole box somewhere else. Opened during corona and in 2022 was called best chocolatier in Flanders by Gault&Millau. 😉🤫
@@karenmariavandecasteele6921 And Dominique was called best chocolatier in Flanders by Gault&Millau in 2023
@@Ghostking1800 so when in Antwerp or Bruges Dominique Persoone, and when in Ghent Deduytschaever 😉 👍
Belgium visit #1 Bruges, #2 Ghent, #3 Dinant #4 Durbuy #5Namur #6 Spa, some say Antwerp (Drugs and full of Moroccans same as Brussels (80% are not from Belgium 43% from them is from outside EU Full of drugs and Homeless. That think that UK will be so much better, and dangerous when it's dark ) Shame it's beautiful though, Greetings from Belgium.
Belgica is here from Caesar times mid 1 BC. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Belgae
in Belgie zijn 7 procent moslims,21 procent Nederlanders,eigenlijk 172 verschillende nationaliteiten niet van Belgische afkomst ,waarom er dan 1groep uithalen ????