Ask Away: When in Bruges

Bruges, Belgium. Photo / Getty Images

Eleanor Barker answers your travel questions

Hi Eleanor,
My husband and I are travelling to France at the end of May 2020 and we have nine days in Paris. We will be spending one week in Provence and one week on the Cote d'Azur, then back to Paris for the Fete de la Musique. We had thought about taking a train up to Bruges for a night or two. Do you have any other suggestions? Thanks, Diane

Hi Diane,

Sounds fab! Some general advice for France in May: take your time - May has five different French bank holidays - six if you count Mother's Day, plus a school break. For a week in Provence and the Cote d'Azur you should rent a house in the countryside or in a nice village and do day trips from there. On a similar note, don't try to do too much. You'll be hot and stuck in traffic, all to see crowded beaches, crowded cafes, crowded everything. Always check Google Maps for live traffic.

Lots of day trips are possible from Paris (either "do-it-yourself" or with a tour company), Normandy, Mont-Saint-Michel, Loire Valley, Champagne, Chartres, Rouen, Senlis (medieval postcard-pretty and the best lunch at "Le Scaramouche"), Fontainebleau (beautiful, charming) and Versailles (must-do, take a full day so that you get to see the Petit and Grand Trianons and the Hameau also).

I have read comments that a weekend is too long to spend in Bruges but that's a very simplistic view. Yes, it is small but there is so much to see.

The mills on the city walls are a great place to picnic. Leeloo is the shop to visit. For beer: go to 't Poatersgat. It has a large range of different beers and it's located in a medieval cellar, rather hard to find.

Groeninge Museum has a huge collection of art, most of them made by "Early Netherlandish" painters. If you're not interested in medieval paintings, you shouldn't go.

The Belfry is worth it. Climb the 600-year-old stairs and be rewarded with a magnificent view on a clear day. The city hall is as spectacular on the inside as it looks on the outside. Paying for a guide adds a lot to the experience.

Regarding the Fries Museum, it's a museum about fries, which is not that interesting. Regarding chocolate museum, see fries museum. The Picasso Museum does not have Picasso paintings, only sketches. As for the diamond museum, you can guess . . .

On the other hand, Brewery De Halve Maan is a very interesting and entertaining museum. If you're interested in the history of the production of beer you should go, but it's worth it even if you aren't. If you take the guided tour, you might get access to the rooftop, which offers a nice view.