Excursions for accompanying persons

Wednesday 16 May 2018 : visit of the City of Antwerpen - Fashion & Rubens

This walk is a cultural exploration of Antwerp as a vibrant lifestyle city that takes you past contemporary design, architecture and history icons. During this tour you will stop at shops, buildings and other places that were instrumental in the development of Antwerp as an international trend-setting fashion centre. Please keep in mind that this is not a shopping trip.

If Belgium equates beer and chocolate, Antwerp (in addition) stands for fashion.

Antwerp is a shoppers' paradise. The fashionwalk, combining the history of fashion, to nice to knows and need to knows and great shopping addresses, is a must for all fashionistas.

Let's begin with an exploration of (recent) fashion history. In the 80's of the last century 6 young talented fashion designers conquered the international fashion scene. The "Antwerp Six" were born: Walter Van Beirendonck , Ann Demeulemeester, Dirk Bikkembergs , Dries Van Noten , Dirk Van Saene en Marina Yee.

The story continues. These six pioneers paved the road for generations to follow. Veronique Branquinho, Bruno Pieters, Christophe Broich, ... influential names with important sales points in this trendy fashionable city.

The Antwerp Modenatie (a beautiful building complex that also hosts the world-famous fashion department of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts ) with the Fashion Academy and the Fashion Museum MOMU is the heart of the actual fashion scene.

Window shopping from classy boutiques with designer-collections to trendy shops with eye catching ready to wear silhouettes and pioneers in the "vintage"- circuit, we follow the creative and fascinating trail of Antwerp fashion.

Antwerp was home to Peter Paul Rubens, Belgium's most influential artist in early 17th century. Museums and churches around the city display some of his most famous paintings such as ‘The Descent from the Cross' (1612). One of Antwerp's most prized possessions is the artist's home, which also served as a studio where Rubens taught and worked. The Rubens House is still a very fine evocation of 17thcentury reality.

This artist’s home enables your visitors to discover Rubens’ multifaceted talent: the painter, architect and diplomat, the collector and scientist, the husband and father.

Thursday 17 May 2018 : visit of the City of Bruges - The historical Bruges

Bruges is situated 55 km from Ghent. Here you will attend some sessions and you will get the opportunity to meet the rich history of the city.

In 2000 the Unesco included the medieval centre of Bruges to the list of the World estate. The canals that connect the city with the North Sea, were a guarantee for the welfare and prosperity in the 15th century. Tradesmen built the city through one of the biggest Hanze cities. Big parts of the medieval partrimonium are still intact and nowadays form a decor for a fascinating dive into the past of the golden century, a romantic walk or a shopping excursion.