1898 The Post

Style

Neo-Gothic grandeur

Setting

Postcard-perfect Graslei

Boutique hotel 1898 The Post inhabits the building that was once Ghent’s head post office, a tour de force of neo-Gothic architecture built for the 1913 World’s Fair. Its fairy-tale turrets rise high over the Graslei, the city’s historic grain port, flanked by mediaeval guildhalls with decorative façades and steep gabled roofs. Inside, you’ll find plenty references to the building's former occupation (polished-metal pencil cases and postcards in the rooms, for example), but the furnishings also call to mind the man of letters himself: antique writing desks, glass ink bottles and bookcases abound. Having poured yourself a whisky at the honesty bar or sunk into a chair by the fire, you could be forgiven for thinking that you weren’t actually in a hotel at all, but staying in the castle of some bookish baron.

Facilities

Rooms

38, including eight suites.

Checkout

Noon, but flexible, subject to availability. Earliest check-in, 4pm.

More Details

Rates don’t include breakfast, but there's à la carte or an American-style buffet laid out in a vintage-style open kitchen for €40 per person (€20 for under-13s). Expect home-made bread, cold cuts, flaky pastries, cereals and fruit.

Also

All of the public areas are wheelchair accessible, as are the ground-floor rooms. The Envelope No. 1 is adapted for disabled guests, with wider door frames and rails in the bathroom.

Free Internet Access

Laundry

Room Service

At the Hotel

Gym, lounge, terrace, laundry, charged laundry service and free WiFi throughout. In rooms: flatscreen TV, minibar, Nespresso coffee machine, free bottled water and Guerlain bath products.

Our Favourite Rooms

For sheer old-world romance, it has to be the Tower Suite, which looks like it sprang from the page of a Brothers Grimm fairy tale. Split over two floors in the hotel’s octagonal tower, the suite has a white-marble bathroom with a double-headed shower on one level, and a king-size bedroom with antique wooden floorboards above. 360-degree views are the icing on this two-tiered cake.

Packing Tips

Holster your favourite pen – you can’t help but feel inspired to recapture the pre-email era by dashing off a letter or two.

Also

Ghent hosted the 1913 World Fair, when many of its historic buildings – including the post office – were given a thorough facelift before the crowds arrived. It's why they look so great, even today.

Children

All ages are welcome. Cots can be added to some rooms for €30 a night, and extra beds are €75; numbers are limited, so be sure to ask in advance.

Gallery

Food & Drink

Top Table

Choose any of the tables by the large windows, which overlook the canal and the picturesque Korenlei on the other bank.

Dress Code

Ghentrify yourself with a tweed jacket, tortoiseshell glasses or a pair of brogues.

Hotel Restaurant

Serving breakfast and afternoon tea (when the terrace is closed), the Kitchen looks more like a living room than a restaurant, with an open fire, armchairs and dark-wood tables lit by jade-green reading lamps. Hot dishes are served from a modern kitchen that’s masquerading as something more traditional; the buffet is laid out across a large stripped-wood counter and dining table. If the terrace is closed, home-made cakes and fine teas make an appearance. Once the china’s been cleared away, the room tends to become an extension of the Cobbler cocktail bar.

Hotel Bar

Named after the type of cocktail shaker they use, the Cobbler takes aim at Ghent’s upmarket bar scene, showcasing an award-winning team of mixologists. Those who like to watch should plump for one of the soft leather stools at the zinc-topped bar; otherwise, settle in one of the armchairs by the windows. The hotel also has a residents-only honesty bar, found in the tower. Like the Cobbler, it’s furnished with bookcases, armchairs and antiques, making it feel like a private room at a gentleman’s club. A glass drinks trolley holds decanters of premium spirits, but you can also order wine, champagne and cocktails.

Last Orders

Breakfast is served from 7am to 11am (8am to 11am on weekends and public holidays). In the Cobbler, drinks flow from 5pm to midnight (1am, Friday and Saturday).

Room Service

All drinks and bar bites available at the Cobbler can be delivered to your room.

Planes

The closest international airport is Brussels, which is served by many European routes; there are also direct flights from some larger US airports. From Brussels airport, it takes 45 minutes to reach the hotel by car. Hotel transfers can be arranged on request from €150 each way.

Trains

Ghent’s Sint-Pieters station receives regular intercity services from Brussels, Bruges, Antwerp and Ostend. From the station, walk to Gent Korenmarkt perron 5, where you can catch the number 1 tram to Gent Van Monckhovenstraat. You’ll be able to see the hotel’s clock tower when you exit the station.

Automobiles

The city centre was pedestrianised in 2017, proving how keen the government are to make Ghent foot-traffic-friendly – contact the hotel to request a permit to enter the car-free zone if you're planning to park at the hotel (€35 a night). A car can be useful for a day trip to Bruges, Brussels or Antwerp, but it’s not necessary if you’re staying in the city.

Worth Getting Out of Bed For

Ghent’s Museum of Contemporary Art, otherwise known as SMAK, has a permanent collection containing works by Karel Appel, Francis Bacon and Andy Warhol. The gallery has also made a name for itself with exhibitions that lean towards the daring and provocative end of the scale, even suggesting that visitors ‘recover’ from their visit in Citadel Park, which is just across the road. The cobbled lanes in Patershol have remained largely unchanged since mediaeval times, making this a particularly charming neighborhood to wander round. The area was once the dwelling place of members of the Order of Carmelites, or Paters, giving the place its name. Today, many of the decorative-fronted buildings hide small restaurants, bars, boutiques and art galleries within their depths. Those wanting to delve even further into the past should make the trip to Saint Peter’s, a former Benedictine abbey that’s stood since the 7th century. It’s now home to a museum and exhibition space; the abbey gardens are also a blissfully quiet place to spend a sunny afternoon.

Earn or Redeem Points with World of Hyatt

This Mr & Mrs Smith hotel participates in the World of Hyatt loyalty program. As a member, you can earn and redeem points and enjoy exclusive benefits for qualifying nights. .