Utrecht city is about an hour and a half drive from Antwerp. Sensibly, because this is Holland where all things are sensible, there are park and ride stations located on every major highway into town. You definitely want to park and ride, what makes Utrecht so lovely is how pedestrian friendly it is, and how few cars there are.
Utrecht is a University Town which means there is lots of great cheep food, fun bars and places to shop. It also means vibrant stencil work about town – like this one which marries Delft patterns with bombers.
Entry to the wonderful Centraal Museum also includes entry to dick bruna huis – the home of nijntje (Miffy in English). Even if you don’t have children this place is a must visit.
Centraal Museum has this amazing Victor and Rolf gown that I covet. Perhaps for a wedding some day?
Apparently Dick Bruna himself still regularly pops by on his bicycle to visit the Dick Bruna Huis. My favourite bit of this museum were the cabinets with letters and handmade outfits for nijntje sent from around the world (very frequently from Japan).
After a hard day of museums and fabulous coffee it is compulsory to sit by the canal and have a nice beer with something delicious. The choice of restaurants is rather good, particularly liked the cheap vegetarian De Werfkring at 123 Oudegracht.
Little Belgian Waffle 