15 Essential Things to Do in Antwerp, Belgium, Antwerp, Belgium

When I lived in Belgium as a young kid, Antwerp was the nearest big city to us. We were in a small town so Antwerp felt enormous in comparison. As it turns out Antwerpen is actually that large, being Belgium’s 2nd largest metropolitan area after the capital, Brussels. But that’s probably the only useful thing I remember from all my previous visits to the city. My memories of there had either become blended with other cities, likely in the Netherlands, or featured trivial moments like a human statue out in front of the cathedral.

On my trip this year to Belgium, visiting Antwerp felt like a given. If I was visiting the best that Flanders had to offer, surely I had to explore this great northern city. Like most of my Belgium trip, I was only visiting for the day so I had come moderately well-prepared for once. Still, by the time I arrived and got my bearings it soon became apparent that there is more than plenty to do in this thriving city. In order to give you somewhere to start when planning a visit, here are my picks for 15 things to do in Antwerp.  ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).