http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/ Welcome to Been there. Your tips on the places you know - that you love, live in or have just visited - are what make this guide. http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/28355 We just enjoyed ourselves walking the canals, eating and drinking and seeing whatever we fancied - and somehow we saved €30 each on two days of entertainment, without really trying. The Belfy & Dali exhibition are €18 together to start with - so you can see how the savings add up quickly.
You may be given a card if you're in a grand hotel but the rest of us end up buying one - and it's great value!
You get a visitors' guide with it too.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/28355 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/19233
With a range of cheap, fresh and tasty offerings like rotisserie chickens, olives, cheese and international dishes, it’s the perfect place to bag a picnic or stock up on self-catering ingredients.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/19233 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/19234
‘Frites’ stalls around the city centre do them cheap, along with meatballs and sausages for a good snack.

Across the road, waffle stands and bakeries sell dessert dripping with chocolate and cream. What more to say except 'yum'.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/19234 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/19232 The included breakfast is pretty extensive – more than the usual cornflakes – but most importantly I think it is has the best location in Bruges. Just off T’Zand (one of the main squares), it’s a short distance from everything you could want to see or do in the city.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/19232 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/16031
Look no further than the International Youth Hotel (not Hostel) in Langer Straat. You've got all the familiarity of being close by the city centre and a room-style reminiscent of the French motorway hotels like Formule 1 and Campanile.

It has shared ownership with the next-door dormitory-based Youth Hostel, so do not book the wrong one. Two years ago, the cost per head for a group of 20 of us was £12 per night, including meagre and just adequate breakfast, but no more than two rolls each please. Nice to find a place where average age was less than 30.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/16031 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/8055
This magnificent Gothic building was built between 1376 and 1420 and renovated in the 19th and 20th centuries. On the first floor is the restored Gothic Hall, which can be visited for an entrance fee of 2.50 euros (price includes a very informative audio guide).

What strikes you first about the Gothic Hall is the vibrant colours with which it is decorated. The brown, gold, red and burgundy of the arched ceiling and the large, multi-coloured wall frescos. The latter were commissioned towards the end of the 19th century and show scenes from the history of Belgium and Bruges such as the defeat of the French at the Battle of the Golden Spurs in 1302. Where the ceiling arches meet are small keystones showing scenes from the New Testament and around the perimeter of the hall, where the arches touch the wall, are small frescos representing the months and seasons.

A small room leading off from the hall contains a number of historical artefacts including an interesting and detailed map of the city.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/8055