Antwerp Activities: Rubens, Rooftop, Beer
Antwerp Activities: Rubens, Rooftop, Beer
Climb ten floors on a spiral of glass escalators, step out into the wind and the whole port of Antwerp is laid out below you, for nothing. That free rooftop at the MAS sets the tone for a city where the best things to do cost little and the paid ones are worth choosing carefully. Everything below is in euros.
Start with the MAS panorama
The MAS on Hanzestedenplaats, in the Eilandje docklands, has a free 360-degree rooftop panorama. It is open Tuesday to Sunday from 09:30 to 22:00, and until midnight from 1 April to 31 October. It is closed on Mondays. The museum itself costs €12 for adults, €8 for ages 18 to 25, and is free under 18; a timed slot is needed, so check mas.be before you queue.
Rubens, in the right places
The Rubens House on Wapper has its historic rooms closed for renovation, but the garden, the library and the Rubens Experience are open from 10:00 to 17:00 (the library from 9:30). For the paintings, go to the Cathedral of Our Lady, where The Descent from the Cross and The Elevation of the Cross hang. Entry is €12 for adults and free under 18, with shorter hours on weekends: Saturday 10:00 to 15:00 and Sunday 13:00 to 17:00. Current opening dates are on dekathedraal.be . KMSKA, the fine arts museum in Het Zuid, holds a large Rubens gallery too.
A beer, a biscuit, a ferry
Brouwerij De Koninck on Mechelsesteenweg has a self-guided tour through ten interactive rooms, with two tastings of its amber Bolleke included, at about €16 to €18 for adults. See dekoninck.be for times. In the old centre, Philip’s Biscuits at Korte Gasthuisstraat 11 bakes Antwerpse handjes, the hand-shaped butter biscuits that nod to the city’s founding legend of Brabo and the giant’s severed hand.
Free architecture and a museum of migration
Zurenborg’s Cogels-Osylei is lined with Belle Epoque and Art Nouveau houses built between 1894 and 1906, and walking it costs nothing. The nearest station is Antwerpen-Berchem, about five minutes away on foot. For a quieter, more reflective hour, the Red Star Line Museum at Montevideostraat 3 tells the story of the emigrants who sailed from the Eilandje. It opens Tuesday to Sunday from 10:00 to 17:00, tickets are timed and sold online, and the price is €10 (€12 during exhibitions).
Getting around
Antwerp is easy on foot, and a De Lijn single costs €3 by contactless tap, with a day ticket at €9 and a 3-day ticket at €18. Trams do not cross under the Scheldt until about March 2027, so to reach the left bank walk the free Sint-Annatunnel, with its 1933 wooden escalators, or take the free Sint-Anna ferry from Het Steen. Keep an eye on bags around Centraal station, De Keyserlei and the Meir, and expect the odd strike to slow public transport.
If you prefer to have a guide, you can compare Antwerp tours on GetYourGuide . For routes you can follow on your own, the Antwerp sightseeing page and the walking routes page cover the squares and the alleys.
Tip: put the MAS rooftop at the end of your day, around sunset, and the cathedral spire and the cranes both glow.