A plan for Antwerp

The origins of the name of Antwerp comes from aan de werpe, which is Dutch for "at the throw", referring to where the river throws its sand. The name also has a funny anecdote saying it comes from Hand werpen, which translated is "throwing hands". In the city flag, the castle "het Steen" and the hand of Antwerp are shown.

In the 16th century, Antwerp was one of the most important financial centres of the world, where traders from all over Europe and Asia sold and bought their goods. After the siege of Antwerp in 1585 by the Spanish, this role as a financial centre was taken over by Amsterdam. Nevertheless, since the 19th century and especially the 20th century, Antwerp has made a serious economic comeback.

Visit Antwerp tourism website

Climate

Antwerp has an oceanic and mild climate with cool winters, warm summers, and light, frequent precipitation year round. Summer temperatures average around 23 °C (73 °F) during the day and 14 °C (57 °F) at night; though temperatures climbing to or exceeding 29 °C (84 °F) and not going below 18 °C (64 °F) at night are not unheard of during heat waves. Daylight hours range between 05:30-22:00 in the summer and from 08:45-16:45 in the winter.

Antwerp City Pass. With the Antwerp City Card you can visit all museums and three monumental churches over a 48-hour period. It also features a 25% discount on attractions, sightseeing and bicycle rentals. In the free guide you find vouchers that you can use to enjoy benefits on typical Antwerp and Belgian products including chocolate and chips. €45/€55/€65. (updated May 2023)

Centre

1 City Hall/Old Market Square (Stadhuis/Grote Markt). This is the historical centre of town. The market square is surrounded by the typical medieval guild houses you find in most Flemish historical towns. The city hall is designed in special architectural style with a combination between Gothic and early Renaissance, and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This style is almost exclusively found in this region of Europe. The Brabo Fountain (Dutch: Brabofontein) is located in front of the city hall. Restaurants with terraces surround the square. During winter the Grote Markt is decorated with Christmas lights and a large Christmas tree. Several events take place at this location. Nice view of the cathedral. (updated Apr 2023)

2 Diamond District. This is south and southwest of the central station. You will find countless jewellery shops, as well as the Antwerp Diamond Exchange, one of the most important financial centres of the world's diamond industry. Majority of the world's rough diamond transactions take place here. The district is interesting from an ethnic and cultural perspective, for at least 50% of the diamond industry is in the hands of the city's Jews. Antwerp has a large population of Jews (about 50,000 people), a lot of them Orthodox. (updated Jul 2026)

3 The hidden street Vlaeykensgang. Connects Hoogstraat, Oude Koornmarkt and Pelgrimsstraat. It is a real street, but only accessible through unassuming medieval front doors in the streets. The medieval equivalent of a gated community. It now houses nice, informal restaurants and chic, discrete houses. A must see!

Jewish Quarter (Joodse wijk). One of the main Jewish centres in the world, with the beautiful 'Van Den Nest' and 'Bouwmeester' synagogues. Contact the Jewish community for a guide.

4 Bouwmeester synagogue, Bouwmeestersstraat 7 (close to the "Royal Museum of Fine Arts Antwerp"). (updated Oct 2021)

1 St. Anna pedestrian tunnel (Sint-Annatunnel), Sint-Jansvliet. Take St. Anna pedestrian tunnel (Sint-Annatunnel) to the Left Bank (Linkeroever) of the river Schelde. If possible, you should descend on the original wooden escalator. The walk through the tunnel takes 9 minutes at a casual pace. On the Left Bank, you have a beautiful view over the city centre across the river, so make sure you bring your camera! The Left Bank is very quiet compared to the city centre, and green with many parks along the riverside. A few km further north, there even is a small beach (Sint-Annastrand). Swimming is prohibited due to dangerous currents and heavy ship traffic, but the views over the city and riverbend are great. Best is to come here by bicycle (you can ride through the tunnel, many locals do this). If you are on foot and don't feel like walking back through the tunnel, the premetro will take you back to Groenplaats in under 5 minutes. (updated Jul 2026)

Antwerp by Bike — Discover Antwerp with a bike. The inner city is perhaps too crowded, but the green outskirts are really worth visiting. For bike rental, see [1] and "Vélo". "Antwerp by Bike" [2] has a charming tour with all the highlights of Antwerp, like the cathedral, the Butterfly Palace and the MAS museum (from July till September).

Baja Bikes (Bike Tours Antwerp). Antwerp is a perfect city to explore by bike. An English or Dutch guide will show you around and tell you all about the city. Besides that the guide knows where to go in Antwerp and can recommend you nice bars and restaurants. It is possible to do a highlights tour or book a private tour so that you will have your own guide. (updated Dec 2015)

2 Kinepolis Antwerpen, Groenendaallaan 394, ☏ +32 3 544 36 00. In this large cinema complex a bit north of the city centre many international movies are shown. Except for some children movies dubbing is rare and subtitles are common. (updated Dec 2022)

Football: Royal Antwerp play soccer in Pro League, Belgium's top tier. Their home ground Bosuilstadion (capacity 16,100) is 5 km east of city centre.

Antwerpse handjes are little biscuits or chocolates in the shape of a hand. Invented by a Jewish baker in 1932.

As with most Flemish towns, you can find many frietkoten in the city. These are places of which the Belgians are really proud of. Here you can buy the famous Belgian fries and other fried food for a reasonable price.

For lunch people often go eat a "smos", a sandwich with several layers of garniture in it. The name refers to the mess you make when trying to eat it. You can find them in several stores like Panos or Foodmaker.

De Keyserlei (the street that runs west from Central Station) is a street with a varied choice of restaurants. The side streets on the north side of De Keyserlei offer even more options, with Lebanese, South-African, Mexican, Italian and Vietnamese (to name but a few) restaurants all rubbing shoulders with each other. With so many restaurants in a small area the prices tend to be pretty competitive.

Chinatown takes up a couple of streets on the north side of Koningin-Astrid-plein (the large square to the north of Central Station). Look for the 2 lions guarding the entrance to Van Wesenbekestraat. Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, Thai and Nepalese restaurants are here as well as lots of Chinese options.

Budget

Broodje/Boterkoken (sandwiches) are local and inexpensive.

1 Aahaar (Vegetarian Indian Cuisine), Lange Herentalsestraat 23 (Minutes from Antwerp's main train station Central Station), ☏ +32 3 226 00 52. Mon-Fri 12:00-15:00 and 17:30-21:30, Sat Sun 13:00-21:30. Serves only vegetarian Indian cuisine, including a buffet with a daily changing menu. (updated Feb 2023)

2 D’Oude Stad, Oude Koornmarkt 13. (updated Feb 2023)

3 Kumpir Eethuis, Hoogstraat 10. (updated Feb 2023)

4 The Yellow Window Coffee House, Vlasmarkt 8. (updated Feb 2023)

5 Komida - City Campus UAntwerp, Koningstraat 8. (updated Feb 2023)

6 Brasserie lambik, Lange Leemstraat 16. (updated Feb 2023)

7 Falafel Tof, Hoogstraat 32. (updated Feb 2023)

Mid-range

Try one of the Indian restaurants on Lange Herentalsestraat.

Wherever you are in Antwerp, you will always be near a pub or another drinking facility. Not surprising in the city that has the most pubs per capita in the world. The pubs do not have a closing hour.

Drinks originating here are De Koninck (commonly called "Bolleke") beer, and Elixir d'Anvers – a liquor based on plants.

Den Engel — Most famous traditional cafe in Antwerp. Situated at Grote Markt.

De Vagant — A famous Belgian cafe serving about 300 kinds of Jenever.

De Muze — A jazz café in Melkmarkt. Relaxed atmosphere and live (jazz) music played on a regular basis. Beyond typical Belgian beers, coffee lovers can enjoy a true Italian Espresso or, if willing to drink something bigger, a "Koffie Verkeerd".

Caffénation — Most friendly bar in Antwerp. They have very nice specialized coffee creations and a cozy outdoor with lots of green. Good music. Say hi from "TheKitt" for a special, double shot cappuccino.

Paeters Vaetje, (in the Cathedral Square). Here you can order more than 100 kinds of beer. In summertime, you can also sit outside.

Kassa4, in the student neighbourhood, on the Ossenmarkt. Very popular student pub with a good choice of alternative music. Can be very crowded at times.

Den Hovenier — Typical Antwerp pub near the Sint-Jacob Church.

Café Beveren, near the river. Enjoy the automatic Decap Organ.

Stanny — Non-smoking café close to the station of Antwerp-Berchem.

Copa Cava — a cava bar on the vlasmarkt, with a cosy atmosphere and which serves relatively cheap and exclusive cava from Barcelona.

La Treille — intimate wine bar and shop at Haarstraat 23, close to the Grote Markt, serves and sells authentic wines (straight form the vineyard) out of Italy, Belgium and France.

t Vervolg — between the "groenplaats" and the "Grote Markt", very friendly prices mixed with house & RnB always ensures there's something going on Monday through Saturday evening.

SIPS. A cocktail bar.

Witzli-Poetzli (Blauwmoezelstraat 8, Meir. From 10:00 daily.) The Witzli-Poetzli is a very small café in the centre of city centre. It is next to the great cathedral. In the summer there's a unique terras in the shadow of the cathedral. In the winter it is a cosy place where people come to drink coffee and read a newspaper.

By public transportation

The public transportation company De Lijn has a dense network of buses, trams, and pre-metro (underground tram) connections in the city and wide area around it. Tickets can be purchased through the mobile app. You can also buy cards of €21 (10 fares, as of July 2025) or alternatively 1- or 3-day tickets at fixed points in town; inside transportation payment of tickets is only possible via contactless payment (cards or via smartphone); buying tickets in cash is not possible anymore. For one fare, you can ride up to an hour.

The tram system operates with low-floor articulated units (refer to the above photo), mostly in tunnels under the centre, & older high-floor tramcars, mostly on ground-level routes.

The central bus station is the Franklin Roosevelt plaats, near the central train station. Most buses leave from there or from the train station. Maps of the bus/tram network in the entire region can be found in PDF format here .

By taxi

Taxis are available, but they can be quite expensive. They await customers at specific locations around town (waving your hand will seldom work) like the Groenplaats or the railway station. You can recognize these places by an orange TAXI sign. The prices are fixed in the taximeter.

Mabo Taxi Antwerpen provides taxi rides in Antwerp for those who wish to avoid public transportation.

By car

Driving in Antwerp is not as difficult as many big cities in the world, but crossroads can seem very chaotic for foreigners. There are few free parking spaces, but many spaces where you have to pay (on the street or in underground car parks). The underground car parks are well-signposted. The prices are typically €2 to €4.80 per hour, depending on the area. As of August 2023, parking on the streets is only allowed for residents and permit holders; visitors have to park in a car park downtown, or at one of the 9 park-and-rides (€1) at the border of the city, with connections on public transport to the centre.

There are many one-way roads, that can make it difficult to get to a specific place. Try to park your car as close as possible and go on foot.

Most parts of Antwerp are safe, but some neighborhoods are to be avoided in the evening, especially the area around De Coninckplein and the neighborhoods of Borgerhout, Seefhoek and the Schipperskwartier. Still, these neighbourhoods have a very lively atmosphere and so are definitely worth a visit during the day.

Moreover, it is of utmost importance to lock your bike properly if left outside on the street throughout the city. If you need police assistance, the direct police number is 101. If you need a non-urgent police inquiry or the most nearby police station you can dial 0800/12312 for free. Most police officers in Antwerp are friendly and professional.

Like most of the rest of Europe, the number for emergencies (ambulance, police and fire) is 112.