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Ostend surprises us!
On a route through Belgium in a motorhome we discover the Belgian coast from De Panne, where we visit Plopsaland, the park of the Maya bee to Ostend Belgium, in the north near Bruges Belgium.
The Belgian coast is totally different from what we are used to in Spain. The beaches are extensive and until you reach the sea you have to walk minutes and minutes on the sand.
Ostend Belgium, surprises us and not only for its immensity of sea and beach, but also for several discoveries that we will undoubtedly keep in our memory: the seals and James Ensor.
Getting around by bike, a must to enjoy Ostend and Belgium
To move around Belgium with complete freedom and enjoy it, you must bring your bicycle. Without a doubt, it is an essential that transforms the trip to Belgium. Getting around by bike in Belgium Ostend is easy, safe and comfortable. Thousands of flat bike lanes safeguarded from traffic make you travel the city, its beautiful parks and its promenade safely.
And in Ostend if you don't have your own bike you are lucky. On the promenade, in front of the beach, you will find different places that rent bicycles for you. Normal bicycles and others not so normal in different ways and very fun to go in groups or as a family.
What to see in Ostend Belgium. Ostend what to see
Belgium Ostend beach
Ostend beach is large, long and wide. The sand is fine and the water is quite a distance from the sand, so you will have to walk a bit to soak in the sea.
Ostend seals
The best thing about Ostende beach, is that suddenly walking you find a sign and a fence in the sand that warns you that there are seals and that you should not disturb them because they take good bites. And there is not only the poster, but you see them so richly for the water and for the sand! Our little ones did not want to leave there. They loved seeing them so much that we repeated the Ostend Belgium seal sighting the following day. Without a doubt this is the Ostend to see number 1 if you go with children.
Ostend parks
Another essential thing to see in Ostend Belgium is to walk through its parks. Some beautiful parks, with lakes, flowers, bike routes and with many children's play areas that our children loved. You can also rent a boat and row for a while on one of its lakes.
Ostend and the James Ensor House Museum
James Ensor, the Flemish primate painter of a thousand faces, or rather, a thousand masks. A painter who was born in Ostend and never left Ostend. A curious character of those who catch you.
Honestly, he was not a Flemish painter that we knew, but going to visit his house museum made us know him and you do not know the game that he gave us all, especially the children, throughout the trip. The character and painter caught and marveled us, for his curious story and for his works full of cynicism, daring, harlequins, skeletons and especially masks.
This museum and house of James Ensor is well worth a visit. Discovering it through the audio guide that they give you in Spanish, with a special explanation for the smallest of the house makes it a very, very good and surprising experience. The price with the audio guide is € 12 for an adult and € 6 for a child from 6 to 14 years old, for those under 6 it is free. You will really love young and old. If you don't know Ensor, you will soon be fans. Without a doubt this is the Ostend to see number 2.
Where to eat in Ostend Belgium
Ostend restaurants
In Belgium Ostend you will find many restaurants both on the seafront and in the most commercial center of the city. We ate at the CultureCafe de Grote Post, the restaurant of the municipal theater and culture center a good place with good value for money that attracted us for its dishes of fresh shrimp cooked in different ways. We tried the shrimp croquettes, the shrimp salad, their typical stew with mushrooms and it must be said that everything is great. It is also close to the Ensor House Museum so it is perfect for a visit and then eat.
Where to park and sleep in a motorhome in Ostend Belgium
In Ostend you will find a motorhome area that does not really have services as an area nor that you can not spend the night. Let's go is a day-only motorhome parking not a motorhome area as parking4night shows.
We decided to spend the night in the car park in front of a park in Ostend, a not forbidden place that seemed quiet. The problem was that it is one of those places that is so quiet that the kids come to make their drinks in the car. Luckily in Belgium the bottle and the party lasts until midnight so there was no more problem. Then we moved around the city by bike, being only 00 minutes from the beach and the center from where we parked.
Ostend Belgium photo gallery
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