Brussels: Bruges, Ghent, & Antwerp [Paperback]

Various (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2000

The guide that shows you what other travel books only tell you!

Not only the capital of Belgium, but the capital for the European Union, Brussels is a popular destination for many travelers. DK' Eyewitness Travel Guide: Brussels, Bruges, Ghent & Antwerp will take you to all points of interest in this wonderful city and the historic cities that surround it. Containing over 600 full-color photographs and unique 3-D aerial views, this guide will highlight the best accommodations, cuisine and entertainment while in Belgium. Stop by the Grand Palace and the Hotel de Ville in Lower Town, visit the Quartier Royal and both Musees Royaux des Beaux-Arts in Upper Town, and walk around the Domaine de Laeken in Greater Brussels. In Beyond Brussels, the guide highlights attractions in the cities of Antwerp, Lier, Halle, Ghent, Bruges, Waterloo, and many others. A Survival Guide explains how to use local currency and public transportation. What more can one say about the best travel reference on the market!

Editorial Reviews

Review

...considered to be the world's best travel resource to over 30 destinations around the world, make it easier to plan a splendid vacation. -- North American Press Syndication

Both novice and experienced travelers will be captivated. -- U.S. News & World Report

Each book is a visual as well as informational feast about a particular place. -- The New York Times

Encyclopedic in scope, it's meant to be used before, during, and after your stay. -- Travel & Leisure

The best travel guides ever. -- Sky Magazine

The most graphically exciting and visually pleasing series on the market. -- Chicago Tribune

This is a guidebook series that always seems to inspire smiles...You feel, looking at them, as if you could close the book and step into the street. -- Contra Costa Times

With titles covering Paris, Prague, and London, these pocket-sized guides are like a Michelangelo fresco: deliriously rich in detail. -- People Magazine

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: DK Travel (September 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0789455234
• ISBN-13: 978-0789455239
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 4.9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,879,124 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #82 in Books > Travel > Europe > Belgium > Brussels

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It covers far more than the tittle tells you, December 12, 2000

By 

Ed Nevares (Recife, Brazil) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Brussels: Bruges, Ghent, & Antwerp (Paperback)

If there's something really wrong with this brand new eyewitness travel guide it's the subtittle: the book covers almost all important, interesting and delightfull pieces of land of this wonderfull "pocket" country and I'd rather nominate it: "Belgium: the essencial". This time, DK (editors) brought us a correctly concised, essencial, plum weight good-to-take-away guide, free from futile information. It has only 192 pages but it's far better than the 224 pages of Stockholm guide, for instance, that describes "atractions" to expent the time of a whole life and tells nothing about the exciting city of Upsalla, just 35 miles from the capital. The Guide describes the "you should go" cities of Leuven, Namur,Mechelen,Liége,Mons and others sites besides the "You must go" ones of Brussells, Brugge, Ghent and Antwerp. It's plenty of perfect tridimensional pictures, maps, texts, photos and special boxes with further detailed information, all of them pieces of art that give you a sistemic understanding about WHAT your mind and the 5 senses should "catch". One more comment: They clearly put in de limelight the flemish-speaking regions of the country. The French ones could receive more attention (perhaps more graphic details). The French-speaking comunity worldwide may not appreciate this uneven treatment. Anyway, the book's tittle and its price doesn't sell a mousetrap as a good camembert, so .... in this edition, The Dorling Kindersley Series almost meet again the perfect and final formula of a travel guide, as they did in the New York, London and Istanbul's editions.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very good resource for planning and en route, July 12, 2002

By 

"brucer51" (mill valley, ca USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Brussels: Bruges, Ghent, & Antwerp (Paperback)

I have had great experiences with the DK Guides. I use it extensively in my trip planning and this is the guide I take on the trip.

This guide provides execllent information about local sites throughout Beligium. It gives very clear guidance concerning what you can find and access information. It also helps you to locate the sites with indexed maps and diagrams.

I have found that this and the other DK Guides are bit weak in providing guidance about what to see. That is, it offers little qualitative information--everything sounds equally wonderful. And we all know this is not necessarily the case.

So I always find another guide that has more opinions and recomended tours to determine what to see. I espiecially look for guided the provide suggested walking tours. This has worked out well for the most part. I use other guides to plan the trip and the DK Guide in the country.

It has very usable maps although sometimes too limited in scope and you may require a local map to get around beyond the central city. Also, because the book is a bit heavy and too large to fit in a jacket pocket after the first day or so I leave it in the hotel and rely on the local map when walking about.

The one topic I find most reliable is DK's restaurant recommendations. The two places I tried in Brussels were fantastic and offered everything that the guide described. I have had equal success with DK's restaurant recommendations in other cities/countries.

I think this is an indispensible travel guide as long as you know what you are using it for--planning or background info, etc.

3 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Has a few merits, February 13, 2002

By 

ALEX R. THOMAS - See all my reviews

This review is from: Brussels: Bruges, Ghent, & Antwerp (Paperback)

Although this book is compact it is too heavy to carry if one is on a walking tour. I can read a newspaper without glasses, but with glasses I had trouble with the type. It is not in an orderly format nor is there is a good section on hotels.