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Amsterdam & Bruges
with kids, the real way

Fly nonstop into Amsterdam or Paris, hand the stroller down onto a train, and step off a few hours later into Bruges — frites, chocolate, and a bell tower you can climb. Here’s exactly how we routed it, what we did in each city, and what it costs from Boston.

By The Fredette Family · Last updated September 2026 · 9-min read

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Bruges is not a city you fly into — it's a city you arrive at by train, as a detour from somewhere bigger. Our version: fly nonstop from Boston into Amsterdam or Paris, spend the bulk of the trip there, then hand the stroller down onto a train for a couple of nights in Bruges before looping back to fly home. It sounds like more moving parts than it is — one change of trains in Brussels, and you're stepping onto cobblestones instead of pavement.

Apr–Jun, SeptBest time to go

4–12Good for ages

8–9 daysIdeal length

~$5.5–8.5kRough budget (family of 4)

Getting there

Fly nonstop, then train into Bruges

Boston Logan has a year-round nonstop into both cities that put you closest to Bruges, so the first decision is just which one you'd rather spend the bulk of the trip in. Either way, Bruges itself is reached the same way: by train, changing once in Brussels.

Option one

Fly into Amsterdam

Delta flies nonstop 2x daily, KLM about 4x weekly, and JetBlue daily (JetBlue pauses in early January) — all year-round from Logan. From Amsterdam Centraal, the train to Bruges takes about 3 hours, changing once in Brussels, on a mix of Eurostar, NS and SNCB trains.

Option two

Fly into Paris

Air France flies nonstop 2x daily, plus Delta and JetBlue daily — also year-round. From Paris Gare du Nord, Bruges is a bit closer: about 2 hours 45 minutes total, Eurostar to Brussels-Midi (about 1h22m) and an SNCB train onward (just under an hour), and you can book it as a single through-ticket rather than two separate legs.

How we'd route it

Same city in, same city out

Pick Amsterdam or Paris as your base, do that city first, train down to Bruges for a couple of nights, then train back and fly home out of the same airport. It keeps the luggage logic simple — no lugging a car seat or extra bags through a third city's transit system — and both train routes run through Brussels, so neither one is really "more of a detour" than the other. Book train tickets ahead of time, especially in summer; the Eurostar/Thalys legs sell out and the seats book by specific train, not an open ticket.

In Amsterdam

The five things worth your time

Amsterdam rewards slow mornings more than a packed checklist — the city itself, on foot along a canal, is half the point. These five are the ones we'd actually block out time for.

Museum · 1–2 hrs

Van Gogh Museum

The largest Van Gogh collection anywhere, and genuinely engaging even for kids who don't know his name yet — the color and the brushwork do the work.

Museum · free under 18

Rijksmuseum

Big and can feel like a lot, but it runs family-friendly trails and activities, and admission is free for everyone under 18 — pick a wing rather than trying to see it all.

Hands-on · a half day

NEMO Science Museum

The green ship-shaped building near Centraal is built for kids to touch things, not just look at them, and the rooftop terrace is free and one of the best views in the city.

History · book weeks ahead

Anne Frank House

Powerful and worth doing, but it's heavier material and a slow-moving line inside — we'd save it for kids old enough to sit with the history, and tickets go fast, so book online well before you fly.

Free · a whole morning

Walk the Jordaan, then a canal cruise

Narrow lanes, small canals, and playgrounds tucked between the houses — then let the kids sit down for a canal cruise and watch the same city go by from the water.

Pre-book museum tickets and the canal cruise through GetYourGuide. Anne Frank House in particular sells out its own timed slots separately — book that one directly, as early as it opens.

In Bruges

What to actually do once you're there

Bruges' whole old center is walkable in an afternoon, so there's no packed itinerary here — just the handful of things that made the stop worth it.

Eat this first

Frites, with mayo

Belgian fries are double-fried — once low and slow to cook them through, then a second hot fry right before serving, which is what gets them so crisp outside and soft inside. They come in a paper cone with a dollop of mayonnaise on top instead of ketchup, and it took our kids about one bite to stop asking for ketchup at all.

Everywhere you turn

Chocolate shops

Bruges has an enormous concentration of chocolate shops for its size, from small family-run counters to bigger names, and most will let the kids watch pralines being made in the window. Easy to turn an afternoon walk into a chocolate-shop crawl without really planning one.

Worth the detour

Half Moon Brewery (De Halve Maan)

One of Bruges' last family-owned working breweries, running since 1856, and still making Brugse Zot and the notoriously strong Straffe Hendrik. The €5 tour walks through the historic brewing floors and up to a rooftop observation deck with one of the best views over the city — and kids get a kick out of the beer pipeline underneath the whole old town, which carries beer more than 2 miles to the bottling plant instead of trucks.

Time it right

The Wednesday market on the Markt

The main square, the Markt, hosts a food market every Wednesday morning, roughly 8am to 2pm — fruit, vegetables, cheese, sausage, flowers. Get there around 9am, before the tour groups arrive, and it's one of the easiest ways to see how the square actually functions for the people who live there rather than only how it photographs.

The view

Climbing the Belfry

The bell tower on the Markt is 366 steps up a narrow spiral staircase, with six landings along the way to catch your breath — no elevator, so this one is for kids old enough to manage stairs on their own, not a stroller day. Adult tickets run about €15, ages 7–17 about €13; book a timed slot a day ahead since the staircase limits how many people go up at once. The view over Bruges' red rooftops at the top is the payoff.

Honest notes

What landed — and what we’d skip

What the kids actually loved

The fries with mayo, hands down — it became the running joke of the whole trip. NEMO's rooftop in Amsterdam. And in Bruges, just wandering: cobblestones, canals, a chocolate shop around every corner, nobody in a hurry.

What we’d skip or watch out for

Booking the train tickets at the last minute — the Brussels-connecting legs sell out by specific departure, not a flexible pass, and we'd have paid more if we'd waited. The Belfry climb with anyone who still needs a stroller; there's no way up but the stairs. And trying to cram both cities into fewer than 8 days — Amsterdam alone could easily fill a week, and Bruges deserves at least two full days rather than a rushed afternoon in and out.

Book it yourself

Everything we used for Amsterdam & Bruges

Flights from Boston

Boston (BOS) to Amsterdam (AMS) or Paris (CDG)

We search and book on Skyscanner and compare both routings before picking. Both are overnight flights that land mid-morning, so the kids sleep most of the way.

Skyscanner

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Where to stay

A city apartment, plus 2–3 nights in Bruges

Filter for a family room or a kitchen in your base city, then a small, central Bruges stay for the side trip — you won't need a car in either.

Booking.comAirbnb

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Tickets & day trips

Museums, canal cruise & the brewery tour

Pre-book the timed-entry museums, the canal cruise, and the Half Moon Brewery tour so you're not standing in a line with kids.

GetYourGuide

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Staying connected

An eSIM before you land

Airalo for data the second we step off the plane — maps and train schedules with two kids in tow.

Airalo

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Travel insurance

We never fly without it

SafetyWing for longer trips — your home health plan usually won’t cover you abroad, and nothing covers a missed train connection but this.

SafetyWing

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What it costs

Amsterdam & Bruges with kids, roughly — from Boston

Real ranges for a family of four (2 adults + 2 kids), flying nonstop from Logan and splitting the trip between a home-base city and a short Bruges stay. Ballpark estimates to plan around, not quotes.

8–9 days · family of 4

$5,500–$8,500

all-in, flights included

Flights (BOS–AMS/CDG, x4)$2,800–$3,800

Lodging (5–6 + 2–3 nights)$1,300–$2,100

Trains, Brussels connection$350–$650

Food, museums & the brewery tour$1,050–$1,950

Adding more kids? It’s mostly about the beds and the seats.

Kids don’t add cost evenly — lodging and flights are the real levers. A child under 2 flies as a lap infant for very little; every child 2 and over is essentially another full seat (~$700–$950 round-trip from Boston). Museums are cheap or free for kids across both countries, and train fares for children are discounted on the Brussels connection.

Rule of thumb: +1 child ≈ one more flight seat + one more train seat. Lodging usually absorbs a third child before it needs a second room.

Flight figures reflect typical round-trip BOS–AMS/CDG economy fares (roughly $700–$950 per seat, less in fall, more in peak summer). Swap the headline range for your own numbers once you’ve booked — real receipts beat estimates every time.

Pack smart

The exact kit we pack for a two-city trip

Lightweight stroller, the carry-on setup, and everything else that earns its space when you're also hauling bags onto a train — in one tested list.

See the packing list →

Before you go

Read Rosie in Paris with them first

Kailah wrote and illustrated our Paris picture book, drawn from our family’s travels — a lovely way to get the kids excited about a European trip before wheels-up, especially if Paris is your way in.

See the book →

Quick answers

Amsterdam & Bruges with kids: FAQ

How many days do you need for Amsterdam and Bruges with kids?

About 8–9 days total works well: 4–5 in Amsterdam (or Paris) and 2–3 in Bruges, plus the travel days between them. Bruges itself is small — its old center is walkable in an afternoon — so it's a side trip you layer onto a bigger city stay, not a standalone week.

What’s the best way to get from Amsterdam or Paris to Bruges?

By train, changing once in Brussels. From Amsterdam Centraal it's about 3 hours; from Paris Gare du Nord it's about 2 hours 45 minutes and can be booked as a single through-ticket. Both routes run on Eurostar/Thalys plus a local SNCB connection, and both are far easier with kids and luggage than flying into a third airport.

Is Bruges walkable with young kids and a stroller?

Mostly yes — the old center is flat, compact cobblestone streets and canals, easy to wander for a few hours. The one exception is the Belfry: 366 narrow spiral steps with no elevator, so that climb is really for kids old enough to do stairs on their own.

Is Amsterdam good for young kids and toddlers?

Yes, with the right pacing — canal walks, playgrounds tucked into the Jordaan, and NEMO's hands-on exhibits all work well for younger kids. The Anne Frank House is genuinely moving but heavier material, so we'd save that one for kids old enough to sit with the history.

Keep planning: Paris with kids · England with kids · the gear we pack · how we book every trip · all destinations

Amsterdam & Brugeswith kids, the real way