Est. 2006
Shining a light on the green and gorgeous
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What is green travel?
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Under 5 hours
by train from London:
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Arrive same day by train from London:
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Require overnight stopover from London:
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Train + Ferry:
How to travel by train from London to Ghent, Belgium
Travel by train from London to Ghent in about two and a half hours by taking the Eurostar from London St Pancras to Brussels and then a simple same-station change of trains for the service to Ghent.
Ghent is one of Belgium's oldest cities with some wonderful places to visit such as the Castle of Counts, St Bavo's Cathedrals, the world heritage site at Ghent Belfry, and lots of great places to eat, including lots of vegetarian and vegans restaurants.
Flight-free travel from London to Ghent:
Journey Time: from 2 hours 35 mins
Sample timetable: Depart London 11.04pm, arrive Ghent 2.56pm
Changes: 1
Transfer: Quick same-station change of platform within Brussels Midi station
Frequency of Departures: 18/day
Carbon emissions: 9.5kg (flight would be 116.8kg)*
Tickets provided by Trainline, which allows you to buy tickets for multiple train operators in multiple European countries. It does charge a small booking fee, but offers several useful facilities, such as a free email alert service to let you know as soon as bookings open for your chosen route so you can snap up the cheapest tickets when they become available.
How to book train tickets as part of a package with accommodation
If you want someone to book the whole journey for you or combine it with staying in hotels en route, get in touch with the travel agent Byway through its page for booking enquiries.
On Board Eurostar
For ticket types (Standard, Plus and Premier) and information on what it's like on board, see our Guide to Eurostar
What's the journey like?
Take the Eurostar to Brussels Midi station where there's an easy same-station platform change to board the intercity train to Ghent. Keep an eye out on the platform at Brussels for the handy guide to the layout of incoming trains, which shows you where your carriage will arrive into the station so you can make your way to the correct part of the platform before the train arrives.
Miss your connection?
Don’t panic. Railteam’s ‘Hop on the Next Available Train’ service means that if you have missed your connection because of a delay on the preceding leg of your journey, you’ll automatically be put on the next available high-speed train. NB Remember to get your ticket stamped by your Train Manager.
Stopover in Brussels 🏠
If you want to break the journey and stay overnight to see a bit more of Brussels while you're travelling through, there are lots of lovely places to stay conveniently near Brussels Midi.
Hotels close to Brussels Midi station 🚉
As their names imply, both Appart'City Confort Bruxelles Centre Gare du Midi and Park Inn by Radisson Brussels Centre Midi are just a few minutes walk from Gare du Midi (where you'll arrive on Eurostar). Rooms from about €100 per night. For more hotels near the station, see Hotels near Brussels Midi station
Green Traveller's Top Pick 💚
Aloft Brussels Schuman is the latest brand to join the Starwood Hotels group fold. Aimed squarely at a younger, socially connected, urban audience. This 147-room branch in the centre of Brussels features rooms with kingsize beds, a bar that’s home to both a resident DJ and a pool table, a 24-hour “grab and go” cafe and an in-house gym. It’s Green Key certified, with electricity supplied from renewable sources and rooms cleaned with biodegradable products.
Eco-certified hotels in Brussels ✔️
If you're looking for other sustainable green hotels in Brussels, then these have all been certified by an accredited ecolabel:
Hotel Made In Louise is a 15-min walk from The European Parliament (and just 5 mins walk from the Louise Metro Station, which is three stops from Gare du Midi).
Stanhope Hotel by Thon Hotels is an upmarket boutique hotel where you can have breakfast on a courtyard terrace. Nearest metro is Trone.
On arrival in Ghent
Welkom in Gent! Ghent has two main train stations: most international trains arrive at Gent-Sint-Pieters, in the south of the city, a ten minute tram ride (line one) from the heart of the city; however some services arrive at Gent-Dampoort, which is a few minutes’ stroll to the north-east of the city centre.
Hotels in Ghent
Green Traveller's Top Pick 💚
Hotel Carlton is a three-star hotel just 200m from the railway station (and an 8-minute walk from the ICC Convention Centre). Certified by the ecolabel Green Key it uses eco products (often 'cradle to cradle') for cleaning, washing and maintenance and the fabrics, furniture and appliances are also given a sustainability test before purchase. Products often come from local producers and/or are produced in a sustainable manner (for example, bread and pastries come from the local baker, are home-made, and the butter comes from a local farmer). The hotel says that at least 50% of the company's profit is reinvested in the company and a sustainability test is carried out for each investment.
Other eco-certified hotels in Ghent ✔️
Campanile Hotel & Restaurant Gent is an unfussy, (relatively) cheap and cheerful two-star hotel 3km from the railway station (there's a bus that takes you to a stop just across the hotel) where rooms are from £61 per night. It doesn't get brilliant reviews on booking.com but if you just need a place for the night it could fit the bill. Certified by the ecolabel Green Key,
Treck Hostel is a quirky hostel with double rooms in indoor caravans that's about a mile from the railway station. Also certified by Green Key (see link above), it gets a high rating from people who have stayed through booking.com.
More about Ghent
The historic heart of Ghent is almost entirely pedestrian, fairly compact and very flat: walking is a fantastic option for getting around, and one of the best ways to take in the historic architecture. If you do need to make a longer journey – or are feeling tired – the city has a great integrated tram and bus system, run by De Lijn, whose site includes a journey planner and a map of the Ghent transport network.
If you buy your tickets from a machine, a single trip costs 1,20€, or 2,00€ if you buy on board the bus or tram. Multi-trip tickets, which offer a discounted total price and can also be used in some other Belgian cities, are available too: for more information see De Lijn’s tickets and fares page.
If you intend to visit some of the city’s major sites, and will be using public transport a lot, it might be worth getting a CityCard Gent: it offers unlimited travel plus entry to many of the main attractions for 48 or 72 hours.
Ghent’s flat, largely traffic-free nature means cycling can also be a good option for getting around: the city’s tourist board offers a list of recommended cycle hire providers in Ghent.
