By Miranda Seymour. Before our trip, whenever my husband and I mentioned to friends that we were off to visit Antwerp, we got two reactions. Those who'd never been there rolled their eyes. Those who had been there claimed it was their favourite haunt. The prettiest of ports: Antwerp, with its cathedral at its heart, is a Belgian hidden gem. So, why hadn't they bothered to tell us?
Antwerp, it emerged, was the best-kept secret of all our friends. It's a secret that's too good to be kept. We spent just three days in this gorgeous Belgian city; back home again, I wish we'd stayed a week or even two. Antwerp is a place as you sense from the moment you enter a glorious train station masquerading as an Art Deco palace that has always known how to enjoy itself β and how to make new arrivals feel welcome.
When, for example, did a perfect stranger β a middle-aged businesswoman with a briefcase β last run backwards up an escalator to ascertain how she could help you with your directions? In Antwerp, such friendliness, while never intrusive, seems normal.
We stayed at the comfortable and elegant Hotel 't Sandt. Reasonably priced, it offers splendid views, enormous beds, bathrooms big enough to hold a party in we didn't and friendly staff who probably wouldn't have scolded us if we had.
Hotel 't Sandt turned out to be just a stone's throw from one of Antwerp's most engaging new restaurants. The Zuiderterras, beside the River Scheldt, is shaped like a ship and offers long views of the new waterside boardwalks that give this area a Manhattan feel.
