belgium

[cobbler1]

anyone been to blaarmeerson site in ghent ? thanks

 

[KeithandSuefromNorwich]

Hi Rod

We're off to Blaarmeersen again on 21st June, our 5th visit.

Great site, in a sports park/village. Every sport you can imagine goes on there. A lake with a swimming area and a beach. Good fishing in the lake, the nearby rowing coourse and local canals. Nice food in the restaurant, and takeaways too. Shop is basic, but they have super bread. Milk is a problem in Belgium. We take 6 pints with us and keep an eye open for palatable stuff at the supermarket.

Pitches are individual and separated by hedges, but clustered together in enclaves of about a dozen. The local bypass can be a bit noisy if your hearing is too good, so we try to get a pitch near the lake. There is a supermarket a couple of ks away in the next village, Drongen, and others on the outskirts of Gent.

We walk to the centre of Gent in about 45 minutes, or you can take a bus from the campsite for 1 euro.

Cycling in the area is brilliant, and we spend most days riding to local towns for lunch, or even across the border into Holland.

Can't wait to get back there.

Keith

 

[rob_jax]

Camping Blaarmeersen in Gent is rated as the "best" (or one of the best) camp-site in Belgium. Truly a great site - and it's owned by the city of Gent...

Living part of the year in Holland, I'd disagree with K & S about the milk but that's life...

If you are using this as a base - then yes a visit to Brugge is probably essential, although I believe that the centre of Gent is superior...

And don't forget the village of Damme north-east of Brugge - a sort of Hay-on-Wye 5km from Brugge - loads of book shops (don't bother unless you speak Dutch / Vlaams) - but even more great quality restaurants and cafes - just enjoy.

The whole area is just charming - you may want to take your bikes - and you might want to remember that this area is the Dutch speaking region (so you can happily forget French unless you want some funny looks) and converse in English...

And if you want to win a bonus point with your wife - suggest "IJskreem Damme Blanche" as a desert in a cafe or restaurant - Belgian vanilla icecream with hot Belgian chocolate sauce - costs around Euro 5 and upwards - but it's worth it.

Robert

 

[Jonathan_5071894]

Hello Rod

Just back from a week at Blaarmeersen - we go each year as we have family in the area. It's a lovely site, with pitches in cul-de-sacs of around 10 pitches, some of which are hedged. In the middle of the site some pitches are more open. We were there over the bank holiday which was also a major holiday for the Belgians and Dutch so the site was full, but the facilities were not overstretched. Shower blocks are kept clean, and the staff are helpful, friendly and speak good English! This year we used C & CC Freedom vouchers and got 7 nights for the price of 6 - just 84 euros in total for car/caravan/elec and 2. A good bus service runs from the entrance to Ghent centre - much easier than taking the car! We had good days out in Ostend, Lille, Brussels, and a day in Holland to Middleburg - all within around an hour's drive from the site. If you want anymore information, just ask!

 

[rob_jax]

Jonathan,

I have friends in Middelburg (and Goes - the next town along the motorway) - did you visit the old town harbour in Middelburg? Great cafes / restaurants and a good way to chill for an afternoon.

RObert

 

[Jonathan_5071894]

Hi Robert

Yes we did visit the harbour area, and sampled the caf

 

[cobbler1]

Hi Robert

Yes we did visit the harbour area, and sampled the caf