Find out how to get to the airports in Belgium by car, bus and train and get some money-saving tips. We’ve also created a text snippet that you can send family and friends who you can’t greet at the airport, with instructions on how to get to Ghent from Brussel Zaventem Airport.

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There are 5 airports in Belgium: Brussels Airport, Charleroi Airport, Antwerp Airport, Ostend Airport, and Liege Airport.

For this guide, we will focus on the main ones; Brussels Zaventem and Charleroi South.

Brussels Airport – Zaventem

To the airport

There are no direct bus connections from Ghent to Brussels airport, only trains.

Where and When: From Ghent Sint-Pieters Station there are trains to Brussels Airport every 10 to 20 minutes. The journey takes 1h for direct trains and 1h30 for non-direct trains. Check out the timetables.

Fares: The standard single ticket price is €16.10, but be aware of discounts such as Go Pass 1 for people under 26 years old and Seniors Tickets for people over 65.

If you are not sure which ticket is right for you, try this simulation.

The Diabolo fee is a contribution to the project of making the airport more accessible and is included in most tickets. If you’re traveling with a Rail Pass you will have to add a separate ticket including only the extra fee, which costs €5.40.

And then?

The train stops right at the airport – you just have to go through the automatic gates by scanning your train ticket or MOBIB card.

You can buy your ticket online here, at the counter or at a ticket machine in any station.

From the airport

Here are instructions on how to get from Brussels Zaventem Airport to Ghent by train, easy to translate in your own language and send to your friends/family, for when you can’t pick them up yourself.

• When entering the airport from the plane: Follow signs for exit/luggage reclaim.
• Follow the signs for train station in the arrivals hall. You need to take the elevator or escalator to level -1.
• If you didn’t buy a ticket online, buy one from the ticket machine or the counter.  
• There is a direct train to Ghent (Gent-Sint-Pieters) which leaves each hour and takes about 1 hour, but you can also take the next train to Brussels and change to a Gent train there. There are 3 stops in Brussels where you can make the change; The names of the stations in English, Dutch & French: North/Noord/Nord, Central/Centraal/Centrale, South/Midi/Zuid.
• There is a second train station in Ghent called Dampoort. Change in Gent-Sint-Pieters for a connection.

Tips:  

• The French word for station is “Gare”.
• If it’s rush hour, get off at the North station to have a better chance of getting a seat on the Gent train.
• If you have a lot of luggage, get off at Midi, which is more modern and generally has escalators.
• There is also a slow train which takes you to Ghent in about 1h30 directly from the airport with many stops in between.
• There is a city called Genk, so be careful not to mistake it for Gent.
• Get the SNCB app on your phone to see timetables and be informed of delays.

Charleroi South-Airport

Bus

You can go directly from the Ghent “Kiss and Ride station” to Charleroi Airport with the Flibco buses. A bus is provided 9 times a day – check out Flibco’s schedule for more information.

The Kiss and Ride bus stop is behind Gent-Sint-Pieters Station (Sint-Denijslaan 203).

The journey takes around 1h30 and a one way ticket costs from €5 to €20; the earlier you book the cheaper it tends to be.

The Flibco bus will drop you just in front of Terminal 1.

Tips: If your plane arrives at Charleroi Airport at an inconvenient time and you have to wait for the Flibco bus for longer than 1h30, another option is to take the shuttle bus to Brussels Midi/Zuid and take the train to Ghent there, see the next section for how.

Train and shuttle

First, from Gent-Sint-Pieters Station you have to take the train to Charleroi-South/Sud, changing at Brussels-Midi/Zuid. From Ghent there is a train every 20/40 minutes. Check out the timetables. And it takes around 1h30 to get to Charleroi-South. The standard single ticket costs €18.10.

Then, from Charleroi-South you have to take the shuttle which is a TEC bus (line A) to the airport.

The cost of this bus is included in any Gent-Charleroi South Airport standard train ticket.
You can use a Rail Pass or Go Pass to Charleroi South, and then get a separate ticket for the shuttle, which costs €6.

The journey takes approximately 2h20 in total.

See below how to get a standard ticket online.

Going to and from the airport by car

To get from Ghent to Brussels Zaventem Airport by car generally takes 1h.

Charleroi South Airport is situated approximately 1h10 by car from Ghent.
(Of course, this depends of the traffic conditions.)

Parking

Read about Parking at Brussels Airport and parking at Charleroi Airport.

Taxis

Everything about taxis at Charleroi Airport, and Brussels Airport.

Carpooling

A lot of people are working at the airports but live in other cities, which means that carpooling might be an option, especially if your is flight very early!! Try blablacar.

Other airports near Belgium

From Ghent Dampoort, you can also get to an airport outside Belgium with Flixbus. For example: Amsterdam Schiphol, Stuttgart Airport, and Paris Charles de Gaulle.

Have a safe trip and don’t forget to share this guide with your friends and family to simplify their lives too!

Have you ever been to Antwerp Airport, Ostend Airport or Liege Airport? Or have tips we haven’t included? We would love to hear your tips on how to get there, please leave a comment – or email us at hello@thesquare.gent

Disclaimer:

The information on this page is based on the information found on official government and local websites, and on the experience of the authors. While we have done our best to make sure it is accurate, rules and regulations change and each individual situation might be different, so it is always a good idea to check with appropriate authorities for the latest information. Consequently, the authors do not assume any responsibility or liability for any issues or damages stemming from the use of the information found on this website.

About the author:

Jenny is originally from Finland and moved to Ghent in 2019. Now she works as self-employed organising events, supporting businesses with marketing and helping people starting their own businesses by being a community manager of Entrepreneurs Anonymous & co-organiser of Freelance Business Day. Find out more and connect with her on LinkedIn.