Port info: Zeebrugge and Amsterdam.

Hi,

1st time posting so be gentle. My wife & i have just booked a 7 night Northern europe cruise on MSC Preziosa and are interested in one or two excursions.

First one is into Brugges from Zeebrugge, this is 42 euros each for return coach trip only from the ship into Brugges. Is it easy enough to use public transport & if so can anyone provide details,bus,train info,price & travel time?

Also the ship docks in Amsterdam & I wanted to get a rough idea if of the distance from ship to Amsterdam central station, can you walk it or are there shuttle buses provided, or do I need to sign up for an excursion here also?

Any assistance greatly appreciated, thanks in advance,

Kertir.

The central station in Amsterdam is a very easy walk from the cruise terminal, if that's where you are docking. Or you can catch a tram that will take you there on the main road just outside.

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Check this map of Amsterdam and section B5, https://www.amsterdam.info/print/map/

You will see the cruise terminal just west of Centraal Station and very close to city center. Public transport is excellent, trams and buses.

I may be a couple of years out of date on prices, but the other two main ways to get to Bruges are

- ship's shuttle (10 euros pp or less) for the 2 to 3 miles to Blankenberge station, where you catch the train to Bruges (10 - 15 minutes, about 8 euros return).

The awkward thing about this is that the train only runs hourly, and because you have no control over the timing of your shuttle from ship to station you might get there 5 minutes before a train leaves :) - or 5 minutes after one leaves, which means you have to hang around in Blankenberge for 55 minutes :(

(though if that happens you can take a taxi from Blankenberge station to Bruges for about the same cost as a taxi from the port).

- taxi from the port. Because there's no certainty of taxis being available, best to pre-book.

Go to the northern Europe forum http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?s=&daysprune=-1&f=192 and type Bruges taxi into the "search this forum" box for suggestions on operators.

I've done that for you with this western Europe forum (Bruges features in both those forums), and here are the threads on that forum which mention Bruges taxi. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/search.php?searchid=109447694

You can look for sharers on your cruise RollCall (post your ship's name & embarkation date & some kind soul will provide a link), or while you're on the ship, or even on the quayside.

Last I heard a taxi - most take 4 to 8 people - costs €50 each-way, so no more than €25 total per person.

Ask for the taxi to take you to Grotemarkt, which is right in the cobbled centre of the city close to the main

sights & canal boats.

Large coaches aren't allowed in the city centre, so ships' "Bruges on your own" transfers drop you near the coach park & the "little red bridge" over Minniewater, a pleasant 15 minute walk from the centre.

And the train station is also a pleasant 15 minute walk from the centre.

We know Amsterdam, but have never arrived by cruise ship. Centraal station is at the bottom of Damrak, a ten minute walk along Damrak takes you to Dam Square.

At the front of central station and along Damrak are canals & boat tours. Seeing Amsterdam from a boat is a must-do. Around €20 pp for something over an hour. If the weather's fine, choose a little open "Eco" boat - so much better than the glassed-in boats, they hold only about 20 people (along the sides), no obstructions to your views & photos, personal commentary by the captain/driver, they're driven by battery so no noise or fumes, and they can go up canals too small for the big boats. They berth along Damrak, less than 5 mins from central station and about 5 mins from Dam Square. If there are no free seats on the next boat or two, book to come back later in the day (if you're confident about the weather).

If you want to see Ann Frank's house it's no more than a ten-minute walk from Dam Square - but do pre-book a timed visit because the queue for on-spec tours can cost you half your day.

The red light district is across the canal from Damrak. Worth a wander for couples & families, it's not just for dirty old men in raincoats ;p

JB :)

We are returning to Zeebrugge next year and will do a taxi transfer as it worked out well last time and much quicker and easier.

Price is currently 33 euros with 6 and 25 euros pp with 8 (round trip).

I posted these replies on the MSC forum but have put them here as well for information.

Generally, they lay on a bus to Blankenburge in Zeebrugge where you can get a train to Brugges, It runs hourly to brugge and twice hourly back, costs 3 euro each way and takes about 15 minutes.

https://www.trainline.eu/train-times...erge-to-brugge

Amsterdam is a ten/fifteen minute walk to Central station on a fairly level road

and

For info once you get to Brugges it is about a 20/30 minute walk into the centre of the city or you can get the number 3 or 12 bus right outside the train station and get off at Brugge Markt which is in the Markt (Market Square). The walk is quite pleasant down narrow cobbled streets and you go through one of the main shopping streets (Zuidzandstraat) on the way, the walk may take longer depending on the amount of time you spend salivating over all the chocolate in the shops.

I have also just found this as well, I might be looking at this for October

https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Attrac...partner=Viator

For the transportation into Bruges, there is a bus company that runs every half hour starting at 8:30 am from Zeebrugge to Bruges for 20 euros per person, round trip. We are going to give it a try in August.

http://www.cruise-express.be/en/home

In Amsterdam, the walk between the cruise ship dock and the train station is vey easy and relatively short. We walked it with luggage and had no issues.

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We were just in Bruges via Zeebrugge 2 weeks ago. When we got off the ship, there were people there with charter buses going directly to Bruges. Based on another post I read, we had planned on taking a taxi so we could just get straight there, instead of dealing with the train schedule. We were on one of the first buses heading out to Bruges. It was €20/person round-trip and very convenient. It dropped us off about 10-15 minutes outside of town, but it was a nice walk. We were definitely ahead of any of the tour group crowds, there were maybe 2 groups on the streets with us. It was way busier a few hours later. I would definitely recommend it!

Check this map of Amsterdam and section B5, https://www.amsterdam.info/print/map/

You will see the cruise terminal just west of Centraal Station and very close to city center. Public transport is excellent, trams and buses.

Are taxi's also available? We are embarking in Amsterdam and staying in Haarlem pre-cruise. I don't relish the idea of getting luggage from the train station to the cruise terminal via bus.

For the transportation into Bruges, there is a bus company that runs every half hour starting at 8:30 am from Zeebrugge to Bruges for 20 euros per person, round trip. We are going to give it a try in August.

http://www.cruise-express.be/en/home

We used the Bruges shuttle bus recently (June) and it worked out really well. It costs €20 round trip. We booked in advance via the website but you can just turn up on the day. The port provides a free transfer to the gate as you're not allowed to walk then the bus is just about 100 yards to your right. The bus uses the same coach park as the cruises tours do and it's a lovely level walk into the town, passing interesting buildings. I downloaded a walking tour from TripAdvisor which proved to be excellent. I'd also highly recommend taking a canal tour early on so you get your bearings.

Are taxi's also available? We are embarking in Amsterdam and staying in Haarlem pre-cruise. I don't relish the idea of getting luggage from the train station to the cruise terminal via bus.

Yes cabs will be availble. You might have to phone them in order to get one, depending where you stay.

Check this special offer I saw that might work for you. https://taxi13000.nl/wp-content/uploads/taxi13000-10euroflyer-08.pdf

Another option could be Uber.

Yes cabs will be availble. You might have to phone them in order to get one, depending where you stay.

Check this special offer I saw that might work for you. https://taxi13000.nl/wp-content/uploads/taxi13000-10euroflyer-08.pdf

 

Another option could be Uber.

Thank you!