The first phase of a large hotelpoject in Seabruges (Zeebrugge, harbour of Bruges) has been started: the construction of a new All Seasons hotel. The hotel will have 58 rooms and will open in the Summer of 2012. The All Seasons hotel in Seabruges will focus on business people, meetings and off course tourists.

During the next 3 phases, the Harbour Garden Resort will be constructed. This resort will have 274 suites, a congresscentre for 300 people and also many welness facilities.

When all phases will be finished, this complex will be the biggest leisurecomplex on the Flemish coast and will put Seabruges on the map again.

Source picture: http://www.apzi.be

The popular traveler’s website Tripadvisor awarded a prize to Bruges in 3 categories:

• 9th place for Bruges in the category ‘Top 10 Romance Destinations Europe‘
• 13th place for Bruges in the category ‘Top 25 European Destinations‘
• 23rd place for Bruges in the category ‘Top 25 Destinations in the world‘

In May 2010, Low-budget hotelgroup Etap, part of the Accor group, opens the first low-budget hotel in Bruges. The hotel, located next to the Bruges railway station, will have 184 rooms (5 rooms for handicapped people, 118 double rooms and 61 tripple rooms). Etap hotel Bruges will be the biggest hotel of Bruges. The hotel will be part of a huge development-project containing stores like Saturn (electronics, opening 2nd of December),  Carrefour, KBC and Subway.

update: Etap Brugge Centrum Station opens May 17th

The four star luxury Hotel Heritage, located in the heart of historic Bruges, has won the prestigious TripAdvisor Choice Award for Best Luxury Accommodation for 2009. According to TripAdvisor, this year’s awards are the biggest ever, with 443 hotels honored in the seventh year of the competition. Hotels received awards in the following categories: Best Bargains, Best for Families, Best Hidden Gems, Best Inns & B&Bs, Best for Romance, Best Luxury, Best Service, Best All-Inclusive and Best Brands.

Unlike any other hotel awards programs in the world, TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice winners are based on the millions of real and unbiased reviews and opinions about hotels on tripadvisor.com and content from across the web

The 24-room Hotel Heritage earns this recognition for the first time by TripAdvisor, after being in the top 3 rated hotels in Bruges for over a year. The hotel was listed #68 out of 100 hotels chosen from around the globe. “We are very proud to have earned this recognition from travelers who have experience the true luxury experience we offer at the Hotel Heritage,” said Johan and Isabelle Creytens, the owners of the hotel. “This award comes at a great time, as we are preparing for renovations and additional amenities that will delight our guests even more.”

Click here to visit the tripadvisor-page of ‘hotel Heritage’.

Source: http://www.traveldailynews.com

10 reasons why you really should visit Bruges at least once in your life:

1. It is the most well preserved medieval city in Belgium
2. If you like good food, then Bruges is the place to be. There are a lot of excellent restaurants and it even got one with 3 Michelin-stars (De Karmeliet)
3. If you like good food, then you probably like a good drink too. We can recommend you the local beer ‘Brugse Zot’. It already won a lot of prices. You can visit the brewery (De Halve maan) and taste the beer afterwards in the bar.
4. If you like a good drink, then you certainly need to visit the oldest bar in town (café Vlissinghe). It exists since the 16th century. Really a must-see!
5. If you like (older) art, you can visit the ‘Groeningemuseum‘. It has a worldfamous collection of the Flemish Primitives, with masterpieces by Jan Van Eyck, Hugo van der Goes, Hans Memling and Gerard David. Here you can find some examples of the collection.
6. For a beautiful panoramic view of the city of Bruges, you need to climb the 366 steps of the Belfry. It has an impressive clock mechanism and a carillon with 47 bells. The Belfry has an important role in the movie ‘In Bruges’.
7. You can make a beautiful walk around the city and visit one of the 4 remaining medieval gates (Ezelpoort, Smedepoort, Gentpoort and Kruispoort)
8. Bruges has a lot of chocolate shops. Take a walk on ‘The Chocolate Walk’ – A chocolate trail that takes in all the finest chocolate shops of Bruges.
9. Probably the most romantic place in Bruges is the ‘lake of love‘ (’Minnewater’ in Dutch). It’s the former harbor of Bruges and now a peaceful and very romantic place.
10. ‘The church of our lady‘ is the tallest structure in the city. It’s also the second tallest brickwork builing in the whole world (122,3m). The altarpiece of the large chapel in the southern aisle enshrines the most celebrated art treasure of the church—a white marble sculpture of the Madonna and Child created by Michelangelo around 1504.