Antwerp travel guide
Rubens altarpieces, a railway cathedral and dockside museums on the Scheldt
A Flemish port city with a compact old town, major art museums and an easy rail link to Brussels, Ghent and the Netherlands. May to September is the warmest stretch; two or three days covers the centre, Eilandje and Het Zuid. Prices are high, and Belgium applies Schengen rules.
Belgium's biggest municipality sits on the Scheldt, about 40 km north of Brussels and close enough to the Dutch border that Rotterdam is an easy train ride away. People come for Rubens, for a port city that once bankrolled half of Europe, and for a Flemish old town that still faces the river rather than turning its back on it.
Arrival sets the tone. Antwerpen-Centraal, a stone railway palace finished in 1905, opens onto De Keyserlei and the Meir, the long shopping street that walks you west to the Grote Markt. There the Renaissance city hall faces the Brabo Fountain, a few minutes from the Cathedral of Our Lady, whose spire you will use as a compass all weekend.
Wealth here was built on trade. In the 16th century Antwerp was a financial capital, home to the first purpose-built commodity exchange, and the printing house of Christophe Plantin now forms the Plantin-Moretus Museum, a UNESCO site. The diamond district beside the station still handles a large share of the world's rough stones.
North of the centre, the old docks of the Eilandje carry the MAS museum tower and the Red Star Line Museum, which tells the story of emigrants who sailed for America. South lies Het Zuid with the reopened KMSKA fine arts museum, and further east the Art Nouveau facades of Zurenborg.
Evenings are long. Locals claim more pubs per head than anywhere, nobody calls last orders by law, and the house beer is a De Koninck in a round glass called a bolleke. Every July the dance music crowd heads 16 km south to Boom for Tomorrowland, and Antwerp is the obvious base.
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Rubens and the old masters, a port history told in museums, and plenty of Belgian beer and frites between them.
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Best time to visit Antwerp
Month by month, so you can pick the weather and the crowds you want.
Highs from 19C in May to 24C in July and August, the best weather for the Left Bank riverside and terrace dinners on the Grote Markt.
Highs of about 15C with fewer tour groups; museums and churches make showers easy to ride out.
Highs of 7-11C and the wettest month is December (about 91 mm), but the Grote Markt gets its Christmas lights and tree.
Tomorrowland runs over the final two weekends of July at De Schorre in Boom, 16 km south; Antwerp hotels near Centraal fill early for those dates, so book months ahead or come the week after.
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Getting there
Brussels Airport trains and Centraal station
Brussels Airport is the usual gateway: direct trains from the station under the terminal reach Antwerpen-Centraal in about 25 minutes on weekdays, closer to 45 at weekends, and a coach runs to Franklin Rooseveltplaats. Antwerp's own small airport in Deurne has seasonal flights south. EuroCity Direct trains reach Schiphol in about 1 hour 15 minutes.
- Train from Brussels Airport
- Centraal in about 25 minutes on weekdays, about 45 at weekends
- Antwerp Airport (ANR)
- Small airport in Deurne, bus or taxi to the centre
- EuroCity Direct
- Schiphol Airport in about 1 hour 15 minutes
- Airport coach
- Brussels Airport to Franklin Rooseveltplaats
- Check whether your weekend train from Brussels Airport is direct; the slower weekend service adds about 20 minutes.
- Centraal has three levels of platforms; Dutch-bound trains usually use the lowest level, so allow a few minutes to find yours.
- Domestic trains from Brussels, Ghent and Mechelen stop at Centraal and Berchem.
Where to stay
Old town, Het Zuid or the station quarter
The centre is small, so pick by mood. Staying between the cathedral and the river puts the sights on your doorstep; Het Zuid and Eilandje feel more residential and modern; the streets around Centraal are the most practical for train days and Tomorrowland shuttles but less pleasant after dark around De Coninckplein.
- Historic centre
- Grote Markt and cathedral within a few minutes, lively terraces, some noise late at night
- Het Zuid
- KMSKA, wide 19th-century streets and restaurants, quieter evenings, tram to the centre
- Eilandje
- Converted docks near the MAS, newer hotels and water views, a walk from the old town
- Centraal and De Keyserlei
- Best for rail connections and budget chains; avoid the De Coninckplein side at night
- Hotels behind Centraal on Lange Kievitstraat are handy for early trains to Boom or Brussels.
Getting around
De Lijn trams, the premetro and Velo bikes
Walking covers most of Antwerp: Centraal to the Grote Markt along the Meir takes about 25 minutes. De Lijn runs buses, trams and the underground premetro; buy tickets in the app or pay contactless on board, never cash. Velo shared bikes reach Zurenborg and Het Zuid, and the free Sint-Annatunnel leads to the Left Bank.
- Premetro
- Underground tram tunnels under the centre and the river
- Payment
- De Lijn app or contactless on board, no cash
- Velo bike share
- Docking stations all over the city
- Sint-Annatunnel
- Free pedestrian tunnel to the Left Bank
- Lock any bike carefully to something fixed; bike theft is common throughout the city.
- Taxis wait at ranks and rarely stop when hailed.
Know before you go
What makes Antwerp worth the trip, and what catches visitors out.
Why travelers love it
- Rubens in the cathedral, where his Elevation of the Cross and Descent from the Cross hang a short walk apart.
- The Plantin-Moretus Museum, with the world's oldest surviving printing presses still in the rooms where they were used.
- The free rooftop of the MAS, which looks over the docks, the river and the old town spires.
- Walking under the Scheldt through the Sint-Annatunnel, ideally descending on the original wooden escalators.
- A bolleke of De Koninck in a brown café near the Grote Markt.
Good to know
- De Coninckplein and the Schipperskwartier are best visited by day; they get rough late at night.
- Many museums close on Mondays, so plan the Plantin-Moretus and KMSKA for another day.
- No swimming at Sint-Annastrand; currents and shipping on the Scheldt make the river dangerous.
Trip fit
BookingMentor editorial ratings out of 5, based on a first-time visitor's experience.
Weather in Antwerp, month by month
Antwerp is mild and damp: July highs reach about 24°C, December is wettest at roughly 91 mm, and April driest at about 43 mm.
Climate figures are approximate long-term averages for Antwerp (Royal Meteorological Institute, via Wikipedia).
From Centraal's clock hall to the Eilandje docks in two days
Day one, morning. Start under the dome of Antwerpen-Centraal, then walk the Meir west. Pass the Rubenshuis on Wapper on the way to the Grote Markt, where the city hall and the Brabo Fountain face the guild houses. Step into the Cathedral of Our Lady to see the two great Rubens triptychs.
Afternoon. Spend two hours in the Plantin-Moretus Museum on Vrijdagmarkt, then wander down to Het Steen on the riverbank. Walk through the Sint-Annatunnel to the Left Bank for the classic view back across the Scheldt.
Evening. Return for dinner in the old town lanes and a bolleke in a café.
Day two, morning. Head north to the Eilandje. Climb the MAS for the rooftop panorama, then visit the Red Star Line Museum in the old shipping company sheds.
Afternoon. Take the tram south to Het Zuid and the KMSKA, where Flemish primitives hang alongside Ensor and Magritte. Finish with a walk along Cogels-Osylei in Zurenborg, a street of eclectic and Art Nouveau houses near Berchem station.
Stoofvlees, frites and a bolleke at Antwerp tables
Antwerp eats like the rest of Flanders, only with a port city's appetite. Stoofvlees, beef slowly braised in dark beer, comes with frites and mayonnaise, and mosselen-friet appears on menus around the Grote Markt from late summer. For frites on the go, look for a frietkot, the small chip shops found all over town.
At lunch the local order is a smos, a baguette stacked with cheese or ham plus salad, egg and sauce, sold in sandwich chains and corner shops. The name refers to the mess it makes.
Sweet tooth? Antwerpse handjes are biscuits or chocolates shaped like a hand, a nod to the legend of the giant whose hand was thrown into the river. They were created in 1934 by the pastry chef Jos Hakker and are sold in bakeries and chocolate shops across the centre.
De Keyserlei, the avenue running from Centraal, and its side streets to the north have the widest spread of international restaurants, from Lebanese to Vietnamese. To drink, ask for a bolleke of De Koninck, the city's amber ale, and finish with a small glass of Elixir d'Anvers, a herbal liqueur made in the city.
Antwerp's mild, damp weather and the seasons on the river
The climate is mild and damp all year. Averages climb from highs of 7C in January to 15C in April and 24C in July and August, while nights in winter hover just above freezing. Rain is spread evenly, from about 43 mm in April, the driest month, to about 91 mm in December.
Summer is when the river banks and terraces come alive. The big event for many visitors is Tomorrowland, the electronic music festival held over the last two weekends of July in the De Schorre recreation park at Boom, about 16 km south. Antwerp's hotels and trains carry much of the festival crowd, so prices and availability tighten on those dates.
Autumn brings shorter days but good museum weather, and October highs of around 15C keep walking pleasant. In winter the Grote Markt gets its Christmas lights and tree, and the cathedral, KMSKA and MAS make wet afternoons easy to fill.
For a quieter summer trip, aim for June or early September: the weather is close to its best and the festival crowds have yet to arrive or already left.
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How we research our Antwerp travel guide
Antwerp's airport trains, De Lijn fares and festival dates were checked with the city, Visit Flanders and Visit Brussels.
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Quick answers to the questions travelers ask most before visiting Antwerp.
Getting there
About 25 minutes on direct weekday trains, which run roughly hourly. At weekends and on public holidays trains take closer to 45 minutes.
Yes. The EuroCity Direct links Antwerpen-Centraal with Schiphol Airport in about 1 hour 15 minutes, and it continues to Amsterdam.
Brussels Airport is the usual gateway: direct trains from the station under the terminal reach Antwerpen-Centraal in about 25 minutes on weekdays, closer to 45 at weekends, and a coach runs to Franklin Rooseveltplaats. Antwerp's own small airport in Deurne has seasonal flights south. EuroCity Direct trains reach Schiphol in about 1 hour 15 minutes.
General
Yes. Boom is about 16 km south of Antwerp and the festival runs over the last two weekends of July, so many visitors stay in the city. Book rooms well ahead for those weekends.
The Cathedral of Our Lady holds his Elevation of the Cross and Descent from the Cross. The KMSKA in Het Zuid and Sint-Jacobskerk, where he is buried, have further works.
Yes, the panorama on top of the MAS museum on the Eilandje is free to reach via its escalators, with views over the docks, river and old town.
Use the Sint-Annatunnel from Sint-Jansvliet. The walk under the river takes about 9 minutes, and the original wooden escalators still run at the entrance.
Local advice is to keep to busier streets after dark around De Coninckplein, the Schipperskwartier, Seefhoek and parts of Borgerhout. All are fine to explore in daytime.
It is the round, stemmed glass used for De Koninck, Antwerp's own amber ale, and locals simply order the beer by that name.
Walking covers most of Antwerp: Centraal to the Grote Markt along the Meir takes about 25 minutes. De Lijn runs buses, trams and the underground premetro; buy tickets in the app or pay contactless on board, never cash. Velo shared bikes reach Zurenborg and Het Zuid, and the free Sint-Annatunnel leads to the Left Bank.
Prices & payment
No. On board you can only pay contactless by bank card or phone, or use a ticket bought in the De Lijn app or at a sales point. One fare is valid for an hour.
Timing & weather
Monday. Most city museums shut that day, so save it for churches, the Sint-Annatunnel or a day trip.
The best time to visit Antwerp is May to Sep. Highs of 19-24C and long evenings on café terraces; late July fills up with Tomorrowland visitors.
- Warm months: May - September (Highs from 19C in May to 24C in July and August, the best weather for the Left Bank riverside and terrace dinners on the Grote Markt)
- Shoulder: April, October (Highs of about 15C with fewer tour groups; museums and churches make showers easy to ride out)
- Winter: November - February (Highs of 7-11C and the wettest month is December (about 91 mm), but the Grote Markt gets its Christmas lights and tree)
Visa & documents
Belgium follows the Schengen area's entry rules. Citizens of the EU and of many other countries, including the US, UK, Canada and Australia, can visit visa-free for up to 90 days in any 180-day period; other nationalities need a Schengen visa. The EU's Entry/Exit System (EES) records non-EU travelers' fingerprints and a photo at the border.
Health & safety
Serious crime against visitors to Belgium is rare. Pickpocketing is common at the Brussels stations of Midi, Nord and Central and on the metro. Avoid quiet areas around stations late at night.
