Worth Getting Out of Bed For
With Hotel Flora being in the thick of the action, a lazy morning could easily be spent ogling the Cathedral of Our Lady’s gothic splendour or the waterside fortress of Het Steen. It would, however, be remiss to not look beyond the historic core – though a compact port city, Antwerp is known as a creative cauldron that has helped build the country’s main cultural columns. A cradle for fashion designers who have moved the needle for the industry (Dries Van Noten, Martin Margiela, et al.), this is a city reputed for its timeless ‘fits and style: if you’re finally swapping out your frayed, tea-stained WFH sweats, try Graanmarkt 13, an emporium overflowing with more independent labels than you’d find in Anna Wintour’s walk-in wardrobe. Highlights include Sofie D’Hoore, known for her flowing silhouettes; Kassl Editions, which purveys unisex items; and Aeyde, a maker of minimalist footwear. And, of course, skipping out on the Dries Van Noten flagship, set across a 19th-century corner block, would be a sartorial sin. There’s a saying that every Belgian is born with a brick in their stomach. Accordingly, Antwerp, with its patchwork of contrasting buildings, is a calling card for architecture aficionados. Classic forms abound, notably at the 1905 Antwerpen-Centraal whose exterior is done out in the neo-gothic style. But for modern envelope-pushing designs, seek out Zaha Hadid’s love-hate Port House whose 2016 intervention has drawn comparisons with a cantilevered diamond. MAS, which has the look of a Jenga game seconds from collapse, hosts art-and-culture exhibitions across 10 floors. And for something even more leftfield, head south of the city for Happel Cornelisse Verhoeven’s Brandweerpost; its red-brick walls are so refined it appears like a render. And as all the museums and guidebooks will remind you, Peter Paul Rubens is the north star of the country’s arts scene – Rubenshuis, the famous painter's home and studio, features plenty of his baroque masterpieces as well as an unusually small bed (made all the smaller if you're arriving after a night at Hotel Flora). For an exploration beyond the Flemish masters, walk the grounds of the Middelheim Museum sculpture park, with highlights by Auguste Rodin and Alexander Calder, or the Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp, the city’s incubator for fledgling talent.
