Official Language:
Flemish
Secondary Language:
French, Dutch
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Currency:
EURO
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Population:
455,148 people call Bruges home.
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Weather:
Climate and current weather information for Antwerp Belgium: To improve the probability of decent weather, visit Antwerp between May and September. November to March sees the crappiest weather descend on the city and soak it to its concrete marrow, while May to August is when the grey skies and precipitation are occasionally leavened by some of that blue stuff overhead and a bit of sunshine. The average daily minimum temperature in Antwerp over its fairly mild winter season is 3°C (32°F) and the maximum is 6°C (43°F); summer temperatures can sneak up to a luke-high 25°C (77°F), though July and August can also be the wettest months.
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Your cruise ship will dock to Antwerp, located on the Scheldt River, more than 50 miles from the open sea. To the northwest of the city centre is Antwerp's one-time medieval harbour, which pumped imported weights and took duty-free steroids throughout the 20th century until it had swollen its dimensions into the third-biggest port in the world. Equipped with nearly 130km (80mi) of quays and the largest sea lock on earth, called Berendrechtsluis, the port today hoards upwards of 110 million tonnes (121 million tons) of goods every year, taking a drive through a heavily industrialised area doesn't sound like the most intriguing possibility for a day-trip, but the overwhelming mass of cranes, warehouses, factories and docks that are piled up in this vast metal landscape is a sight you won't forget. You can also see this gigantic artifice from the water by taking one of the cruises departing from Steenplein, the riverside square named after Antwerp's 13th-century castle.
The center of town is about a 10-15 minute walk. Metered taxis are available at the pier. Fares are rather high. Antwerp is the fifth-largest port in the world, serving thousands of ocean-going vessels each year. As many as 45,000 barges and 17,000 ships tie up to the 60 miles of docks every year. Antwerp is equally famous for its art treasures, diamond industry, and as a center of culture, relaxation and entertainment. During the Renaissance, Antwerp flourished as a center of Flemish culture. Rubens, Jordaens, Van Dyck and other famous painters lived here, with their works displayed in such fine museums as the Royal Art Gallery and the Mayer van den Bergh Museum.
The center of Antwerp is Grote Markt, at the heart of which stands the Brabo Fountain. It is topped by a bronze statue of Silvius Brabo showing the Roman centurion flinging the hand of the giant Antigonus into the Scheldt. According to legend, Antigonus extracted tolls from all passing ships, cutting off the arms of those who refused to pay. He was eventually beaten by Brabo, who tore off the giant's hand and threw it into the river; this gave rise to the name of the city, which literally means "hand-throw." Antwerp’s main attractions are around Grote Markt: the stunning City Hall, completed in 1566 and one of the most important buildings of the Northern Renaissance; Our Lady’s Cathedral, one of the finest gothic churches in Belgium; and on the north side of the square, the daintily restored 16th-century guildhouses. The city is perhaps best known as the world center for the diamond trade, much of it concerned with cutting and industrial applications. Its heartbeat is Pelikanstraat and Appelmansstraat. The entire process from mining exhibits to cutting and selling the highly finished product can be observed at Diamond Land or the Provincial Diamond Museum.
Antwerp is nicknamed "The Jerusalem of the West" because of its large orthodox Jewish (hasidic) community.In the Eighty Years' War on November 4, 1576, Spain captured the city and nearly destroyed it after three days. The Cathedral of our Lady in the Handschoenmarkt, in the old part of Antwerp is the largest cathedral in the Low Countries and is home to a number of triptychs by the Belgian painter, Rubens. It remains the tallest building in the city.During World War II the city was occupied by Germany and was liberated on September 4, 1944 when the British 11th Armored Division entered the city. After this, the Germans attempted to destroy the port of Antwerp, which was used by the Allies to bring new material ashore. The city was hit by more V-2 rockets than any other target during the entire war, but the attack did not succeed in destroying the port. However the city itself was severely damaged.The city got its name from a legend surrounding a giant that lived in the river Scheldt. This giant exacted a toll from passers-by who wished to navigate the river. On refusal, the giant often severed one of their hands. When the giant was eventually slain, his hand was sliced off and thrown (Flemish: hand werpen) into the river. Hence the name.Antwerp also hosted the 1920 Summer Olympics.
Antwerpians have always had the reputation of loving good food and drink. The city boasts hundreds of restaurants and eating-houses where first-class gastronomy, exotic dishes and simple everyday cuisine are served. The compact city center offers traffic-free streets lined by all kinds of shops, boutiques and cafés with their famous terraces. As an age-old trading center, a port and the crossroads of European highways, Antwerp is ready to welcome visitors to that very special atmosphere that makes it a place where everyone feels at home.
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Attractions |
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The Steen:
On the waterfront stands this gatehouse of a medieval fortress built on the site of a 9th-century fortification from which the town spread. Today it houses the National Maritime Museum.
Mayer van den Berg Museum:
This reconstruction of a 16th-century house creates a perfect showcase for some of the nation’s finest artworks.
Royal Art Gallery:
Housed in a 19th-century neo-classical building the gallery has 2,500 paintings spanning five centuries, including works by Rubens.
Van Dyck Exhibit:
A special exhibit from May until the end of August 1999 will take place at the Rubens House. The exhibit is to commemorate the 400th anniversary of Antoon Van Dyck, one of the world's greatest painters. He was born in Antwerp and worked in Geno and London. Due to the size of Rubens House and for security reasons, only small groups are allowed entry at one time. Guests wishing to visit the exhibit must anticipate long lines to enter.
Grote Markt :
This lopsided market 'square' (more of a truncated triangle), reserved for pedestrians and bordered by some marvellous Renaissance-style buildings, is not only the social heart of the old city centre but of Antwerp itself. Two sides of the square are dominated by the facades of some towering guildhalls, most of them constructed in the 19th century. These buildings were the headquarters of medieval Belgium's guilds, organisations that ostensibly represented groups of craftsmen (cloth-makers, tanners and so on) in matters of trade, but which coincidentally also helped increase the economic and political influence of wealthy, monopolising families.The most expansive bit of Renaissance architecture on Grote Markt is the Stadhuis, or city hall, a building taking up almost the entire western side of the square. Built in 1565, the structure has a mixed Flemish-and-Italian appearance that includes a statue-topped roofline. Near the Stadhuis' entryway is sculptor Constantin Meunier's Bag Bearer statue, a 19th-century bronze tribute to Antwerp's dock workers, while next door is the Etnografisch Museum (Ethnographic Museum), a roomy collection of worldly artefacts that includes tribal statues on long-term loan from the Congo (an enormous chunk of central Africa that was a Belgian colony until 1960) and tribal poles from the Indonesian province of Irian Jaya.The centrepiece of the old marketplace is the unflinchingly baroque Brabo Fountain, a large above-ground pond containing an 1887 sculpture that relates the legend (as opposed to the likely facts) of the naming of Antwerp. This legend has it that a river-dwelling giant who demanded a toll from passing shipmasters (or, alternatively, one of their hands if they refused) was slain by a Roman warrior called Silvius Brabo, who capped off a good day at the office by slicing off the giant's hand and throwing it in the Scheldt - hand werpen (hand throwing) apparently became the Flemish moniker Antwerpen.
Koninklijk Museum voor Schone Kunsten:
Antwerp has a wealth of museums and galleries that collectively form a historic panorama of the changing moods of this city. In the district of Het Zuid (usually shortened to 't Zuid and meaning 'the south') is Koninklijk Museum voor Schone Kunsten (Royal Museum of Fine Arts). The awesome collection of paintings affixed to the walls of this striking neoclassical building dates from the 14th century right up to contemporary times. It includes masterworks from the 15th-century Flemish likes of Jan Van Eyck and Rogier Van der Weyden, from 17th-century exponents of baroque like Rubens and Antoon Van Dyck, and from more recent creative types like James Ensor, Constant Permeke and surrealist René Magritte.
Museum Plantin-Moretus:
A few blocks south of the Cathedral of Our Lady is the Museum Plantin-Moretus, which details the printing dynasty founded by Christoffel Plantin in 1548 - one of the prime exhibits is a rare, painstakingly assembled Gutenberg Bible.Plantin-Moretus MuseumThis 16th-century patrician mansion was a famous printing house of the Plantin and Moretus families. The interior contains the printing works, proofreaders’ room, foundry, bookshop, and priceless old books and manuscripts.
Museum voor Fotografie:
To the west of the Royal Museum of Fine Arts is the Museum voor Fotografie (Photography Museum), where camera buffs can frame their eyes around old cameras, black-and-white prints and film-processing paraphernalia.
Nationaal Scheepvaartmuseum:
Non-arty types might favour the Nationaal Scheepvaartmuseum (National Maritime Museum). It's on the foreshore of the River Scheldt to the immediate west of the old centre, within the partly-restored confines of a castle called the Steen that dates from 1200 and is Antwerp's oldest building.
Onze Lieve Vrouwkathedraal:
The Cathedral of Our Lady is the biggest and best Gothic church in the country and one of the highpoints of Antwerp with its 123m (403ft) spire. It took nearly 170 years to bring this landmark construction project to completion in 1521; it has subsequently been graced by four canvases daubed by baroque hero Rubens.
Openluchtmuseum voor Beeldhouwkunst Middelheim:
Don't deny yourself the opportunity to ask a randomly selected passerby how to get to the (take a deep breath now) Openluchtmuseum voor Beeldhouwkunst Middelheim (Middelheim Open-Air Statuary Museum), a large park 4km (2.5mi) south of the centre that is scenically littered with over 300 sculptures, including carvings by Rik Wouters and Auguste Rodin.
Rubenshuis:
This is the former home and studio of the famed Belgian artist. Rubens built this baroque mansion in 1611 and lived in it until his death in 1640 at the age of 63. There have been some judicious restorations to the artist's living quarters, the studio where he produced many acclaimed artworks, and to the formal garden in the mansion's grounds.
St Jacobskerk:
Antwerp's wealthy faithful built this church as their own private place of worship. They had the 23 burial chapels and assorted other rooms constructed from over 100 types of marble and decorated with the work of famous artists of the time.Rubens himself is buried here alongside his family, in a small chapel adorned with a whimsical family portrait entitled Our Lady Surrounded by Saints.
The Meir:
This is Antwerp's main promenade, a pedestrian-only shopping zone unrolled from the streets of the old centre to just shy of the grand, dome-roofed bulk of Centraal Station. At the Meir's eastern end where it merges with Leysstraat, the thoroughfare that completes the journey to the main train station, is a statue of Antoon Van Dyck, a respected local practitioner of the baroque arts. West of here is Koninklijk Paleis, a rather regal hang-out of the Belgian royal family, while at the western terminus of the Meir is the Torengebouw, a 1932 Art Deco tower that is dubiously considered Europe's first skyscraper. At regular intervals along the promenade are decade-old stone blocks colloquially called bobkes, a spiteful amalgamation of the name of former Antwerp mayor Bob Cools - Cools introduced the blocks to stop cars parking illegally on the Mier, but they've since gained an unhealthy reputation as proficient shin bruisers.
Ghent:
Nearly 60km (37mi) southwest of Antwerp is the city of Ghent (Gent in Flemish and Gand in French), once a medieval-era powerhouse due to its 14th-century status as the largest cloth producer in Europe, and rebellious when it came to tax increases. It is now the capital of the Flanders province of Oost-Vlaanderen and home to a significant university student population. The most famous medieval attraction in Ghent is inside the otherwise unremarkable St Baafskathedraal (St Baaf's Cathedral): a stunningly overwrought piece of art by 15th-century artist Jan Van Eyck called De Aanbidding van het Lams God (Adoration of the Mystic Lamb). It may sound like the title of a Frank Zappa song, but this 20-panel altarpiece with its allegorical portrait of Christ's death is thought to be one of the earliest-known oil paintings, not to mention a luminous work of genius.Other Middle-Aged features of Ghent include Belfort, a 14th-century belfry that stretches up from Botermarkt and allows magnificent city views, and Gravensteen, an imposing 12th-century moated and turreted castle. Burdened with the unfortunate acronym SMAK, the Stedelijk Museum voor Actuele Kunst (Museum of Contemporary Art) is worth a browse for its collection of Belgian artistry and the work of international gate-crashers like Warhol and Christo. Another decent local gallery is Museum voor Schone Kunsten (Museum of Fine Arts), which has Flemish Primitives like Rubens, Van Dyck and Delvaux on display.
Lillo:
Close to the oceanic mouth of the sea lock, which is guarded by an invisible line marking the border between Belgium and the Netherlands, is Lillo, a scenic polder village (a polder is a tract of low-lying land reclaimed from the sea). For the port of Antwerp to grow so dramatically over the past century, it had to subsume the surrounding farmlands and polders, and any villages lying in its way. Lillo is one of the few places to have survived this inundation of the immediate countryside and it pays homage to its great escape in a small museum depicting town life before Antwerp's port hit industrial puberty.
Zurenborg:
Located 2km (1.25mi) southeast of Centraal Station and snuggled up against the 'Ring', the busy motorway that angles around the eastern edge of the city, is the architecturally sublime neighbourhood of Zurenborg. Chosen by Antwerp's wealthiest residents a century ago as the place where they would feverishly embrace (and also compete with) the then-current Art-Nouveau craze, the streets at the heart of this district yield a breathtaking vista of decorative constructions. The showcase thoroughfare is Cogels-Osylei, where intricate Art-Nouveau and gaudy baroque facades impatiently shoulder neo-classical columns and neo-Renaissance symmetry; all of the structures were built between 1894 and 1914.Hanging around the roundabout on Cogels-Osylei are the chateaux-imitating Wiltte Paleizen (White Palaces), while Art-Nouveau dominates the frontages of the Huize Zonnebloem (Sunflower House) and De Morgenster (Morning Star) elsewhere on the street. On nearby Waterloostraat are the wonderful mosaic motifs of De Vier Seizoenen (The Four Seasons) and the confidently named Les Mouettes (The Dumb). Hidden on the smaller streets just beyond Waterloostraat are other architectural finds like the neo-classical Euterpia House and the leering wooden figures occupying Twaalf Duivels (Twelve Devils). Catch tram No 11 from the centre and let it run you along Cogels-Osylei.
Golf:
Royal Antwerp Golf Course This course was built in 1888 by Willie Park, Jr. and Tom Simpson. It is an 18 hole, par 73, 6378 meter course. Besides golf de Pau the Royal Antwerp Golf Club is one of the oldest established golfcourses on the continent. It dates back to 1888, when it was constructed by Willie Park in an extensive area of woodland just north of Antwerp. It was modernized by Tom Simpson in 1920 andeven today it retains its special character. Eighteen well-modelled fairways extend through heather, shrubs and bushes and various trees such as silver birches and pines.
Shopping:
Meir and De Keyserlei are the main shopping streets. On Sundays you will find major shops closed; the Bird’s Market near the City Theater offers a special Sunday morning market with stalls selling everything from live animals to plants, textiles and foodstuffs. In addition to diamonds and lace, the most popular items are the world-famous Belgian chocolates (pralines). When making substantial purchases you should inquire about a refund of the VAT (value-added tax).
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More Information |
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Useful Links About Antwerp:
Antwerp Travel Information
Antwerp tourist information office
Grote Markt 15
BE-2000 Antwerp
Tel. (+32-3) 232 01 03
Fax: (+32-3) 231 19 37
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