Huis van Alijn

Ghent


Set in a restored 1363 children’s hospice complex, this delightful museum examines everyday life from the 1890s to the present, with a fabulous emphasis on the 1960s to the '80s. Most of the exhibits are refreshingly self-explanatory, including quaint recreated shop interiors, photos of wedding fashions and a disarmingly moving collage of family home videos. There's always something new happening. The annexed café is a great spot to socialise and sample the local beers.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Ghent attractions

1. Patershol

0.06 MILES

Dotted with half-hidden restaurants, enchanting Patershol is a web of twisting cobbled lanes. Its old-world houses were once home to leather tradesmen and…

3. Vrijdagmarkt

0.1 MILES

Once the city’s forum for public meetings and executions, this large square is named for its Friday market (still held). Tempting cafés sit beneath step…

4. Gravensteen

0.12 MILES

Flanders’ quintessential 12th-century stone castle comes complete with moat, turrets and arrow slits. It’s all the more remarkable considering that during…

5. Werregarenstraat

0.15 MILES

Ghent's attachment to graffiti as an art form began in this central alley, known locally as Graffitistraatje. The website has a live map showing the…

6. Grasbrug

0.18 MILES

To admire Ghent’s towers and gables at their most photogenic, stand just west of the little Grasbrug bridge over the Leie at dusk. It’s a truly gorgeous…

7. Design Museum

0.19 MILES

A vast toilet-roll sculpture humorously marks the back side of this museum, which has a collection specialising in furnishings including baroque, art…

8. St-Jacobskerk

0.19 MILES

The Romanesque twin towers of this iconic church date from the 12th century but the church itself has undergone numerous expansions, renovations and…

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