Belgium & The Netherlands: Part 1 – cycling through Luxembourg, Ghent, Bruges and EV4

Join the first part of a summer bike tour: visiting Luxembourg and the Belgian cities of Ghent and Bruges before heading north to join the EuroVelo 4 route and travelling east along the coast.

Our route on komoot: https://www.komoot.com/tour/2703764603?share_token=aFP4nk7BSnzoxvfLPHOSSusX6IgAKvJZuAI9LjIV9sPEbV0li3&ref=wtd

July 2025

Welcome to Middle Age Miles on our journey through Belgium and the Netherlands. This bike packing trip didn’t exactly start the way we planned. Instead of rolling out from Gent as we had hoped, train delays brought us to Luxenburg. Not a bad place to get stranded. So with an unexpected stop over, we made the most of it. A quick tour of the city, a relaxed evening, and an overnight stay. Now, this place is sometimes called Europe’s most beautiful balcony, and it truly offers stunning panoramic views. The next morning, we jumped back on the train to catch up with our original plan. Finally, Gent, the real start line of this trip. But Kent in July was packed. narrow streets, festival preparations, cobblestones, drum tracks. Let’s just say it wasn’t exactly the easiest city to navigate on a loaded bike. Beautiful, yes. Relaxing bike star, not so much. Hey, hey, hey. Apparently, we missed G’s muscot, a golden dragon perch at top the belfry tower, set to guard the city and bring good luck. So after looking around, we decided to return to the train station and keep on moving. Next stop, Brush. And this time it was as expected. Sure, there were also cobblestones, but the city wasn’t so busy. Pedalling past the canals, winding streets, and historic buildings felt like gliding through a living postcard. It’s the kind of place I’d love to come back to, slow down and explore more on foot. The Borg square is the old center of Brush. It was built in the 9th century is a fortress to protect the city from Vikings. Today, it is famous for beautiful buildings like the city hall and the Basilica of the Holy Blood. A church that keeps a relic set to contain the blood of Christ. I move my head with the helmet camera on like I’m trying to see everything at once. But hey, we are in Gromar. Gromark, also called Market Square, is the lively heart of Bruge. It is full of outdoor cafes and restaurants. The square is always busy with markets, music, and people enjoying the city. On the south side of the square stands the bell tower, 83 m tall with 366 steps and 47 bells. Heat. Hey, heat. Hey, heat. out of the city and we’re pedling north to the North Sea. From now on, we’re following Euroval Route 4. Heat. Heat. The change of scenery was perfect. Wide views, endless coastline, and to make it even better, a friendly tailwind pushing us forward. Both the Belgian and Dutch sides of the coast were stunning. Smooth cycling paths, fresh sea air, and that wonderful feeling of speed when the wind is at your back. The border must have been somewhere here. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. N. Heat. Heat. Heat. Heat. We’re passing by the cool cast iron bras lighthouse. We wrapped up the day at a small campsite. The owners used to grow pears here. You can still see them in the logo. And now alongside the orchard, they keep alpacas. Not exactly your everyday campsite guide, but it made for a memorable stop. Next up, we’ll keep following Urugu for East. Stay tuned.