The port and university city of Ghent, located in the East Flanders province of Belgium’s flemish region, was at one time one of the riches cities of northern Europe. With a well-preserved, pedestrian-only medieval center and numerous waterways passing through town, Ghent is a popular visitor destination. Running in Ghent has some of the same pleasures of nearby Bruges: pleasant waterside paths, numerous parks, and a pastoral countryside.
Some of the best places to run in Ghent are along the Leie River and other canal paths. Probably the most popular run in Ghent is the loop around the Watersportbaan, which can be combined with a tour of the Blaarmeersen Lake. We’ve also put together a comprehensive ‘runseeing’ tour of Old Town. For some gentle trail running, we recommend heading over to the Bourgoyen-Ossemeersen Nature Reserve and the Parkbos. Even just across the river in Drongen, there is some lovely pastoral running along quiet farm roads. Note that Ghent is not a large city — some of our central routes are overlapping and can be combined.
Transport in Ghent consists of buses and a decent tram system. Trains go to places outside the city. We’ve also created a guide to running in Bruges and surrounding countryside (30 km away) and Brussels (45 km northwest).