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BE1008901

Gent, Belgium

Dining table, cupboard full of games and fireplace for cold winter evenings.

Dining table, cupboard full of games and fireplace for cold winter evenings.

View and terrace onto the garden, living room.

View and terrace onto the garden, living room.

Entrance hall

Entrance hall

Main kitchen with table for 6 (extendable for 8)

Main kitchen with table for 6 (extendable for 8)

The room on the ground floor is the play room, above it the main kitchen flooded with light because of the glass house.

The room on the ground floor is the play room, above it the main kitchen flooded with light because of the glass house.

Children's play area with tree house, big sandpit and trampoline

Children's play area with tree house, big sandpit and trampoline

Jutta's room

Jutta's room

Timon's room

Timon's room

Office and music room

Office and music room

Timon and Jutta at the North sea building a castle in the sand

Timon and Jutta at the North sea building a castle in the sand

Sandy beaches with gentle waves

Sandy beaches with gentle waves

Summer view of North sea (cabins only there in summer time)

Summer view of North sea (cabins only there in summer time)

Graslei - Ghent

Graslei - Ghent

Castle of the Counts / Gravensteen - Ghent

Castle of the Counts / Gravensteen - Ghent

Saint Michael's Bridge, view of the tower of Saint Nicolas'church and the Belfry - Ghent

Saint Michael's Bridge, view of the tower of Saint Nicolas'church and the Belfry - Ghent

Sint-Baafscathedral and book tower of Ghent University, designed by Henry Van de Velde - Ghent

Sint-Baafscathedral and book tower of Ghent University, designed by Henry Van de Velde - Ghent

Blaarmeersen: sports and recreation park in Ghent

Blaarmeersen: sports and recreation park in Ghent

STAM - Ghent City Museum

STAM - Ghent City Museum

Sint-Baafsplein: the theatre NTGent and the Belfry - Ghent

Sint-Baafsplein: the theatre NTGent and the Belfry - Ghent

The Krook, brand new city library.

The Krook, brand new city library.

Patershol - Ghent

Patershol - Ghent

Antwerp - The Port House - visitantwerpen.be

Antwerp - The Port House - visitantwerpen.be

The Jane - world famous restaurant by Sergio Herman in Antwerp

The Jane - world famous restaurant by Sergio Herman in Antwerp

Bruges

Bruges

Bruges

Bruges

Seaside - North Sea and sand beach

Seaside - North Sea and sand beach

North Sea

North Sea

Nature reserve 'Het Zwin' at the seaside

Nature reserve 'Het Zwin' at the seaside

The five of us in Monte San Savino (Italy).

The five of us in Monte San Savino (Italy).

The five of us in Lugano (Switzerland).

The five of us in Lugano (Switzerland).

Gold

Member since

2015


Open for exchange

The member has not specified any exchange dates

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Spacious townhouse with garden in Ghent

LOOKING FOR SUMMER 2022 DESTINATION. Looking forward to hear from you!
San Francisco? California? Sweden? Italy? Greece?
Furthermore we are always interested in long(er) weekends and all Belgian school holidays.

Have you heard of Ghent before? If so, then you are probably excited to visit our city. If not, come to our place to discover this "hidden treasure".
We highly recommend these Instagram pictures to get an idea of what our city looks like: https://www.instagram.com/weheartghent/
Or this postcard movie recently made with drones:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLXhjLlJ1Rs (Ghent from the sky)

According to Lonely Planet: "Asking citizens of Ghent what they think of their city is a pointless exercise: you’ll find only unanimous love. And with good reason. Ghent ( www.visitgent.be ) is one of Europe’s greatest discoveries – small enough to feel cosy but big enough to stay vibrant. It has enough medieval frivolity to create a spectacle but retains a gritty industrial edge that keeps things ‘real’. Tourists remain surprisingly thin on the ground, yet with its fabulous canalside architecture, wealth of quirky bars and some of Belgium’s most fascinating museums, this is a city you really won’t want to miss."
http://www.lonelyplanet.com/belgium/flanders/ghent

We live in the city of Ghent. Our house is very spacious (250 m2), well equipped and sunny with garden to the south. There is a garage for one car on ground floor. Use of our bikes is possible.
The main kitchen is on the first floor where we live, but there is also a smaller kitchen on the ground floor (useful in summertime when living outside). The big living room is next to the kitchen and offers a terrace and a view over the garden. There are 2 bathrooms and 3 toilets (one on each floor). On the ground floor there is a brand new comfortable (rain)shower room and a separate play room for the kids where they mainly store and play their Lego bricks and Playmobil toys.
On the second floor there are 4 bedrooms (3 rooms with a single bed, 1 room with double bed and there's an extra bed that can be put in one of the 4 rooms) and a bathroom.
The downstairs kitchen and the playroom open onto the garden. We have a big wooden terrace (with comfortable table and chairs for at least 6 people) and a big garden to the south.
In summer time, when it's too hot, the trees offer some welcoming shadow on the lawn. At the back of the garden there is a little opening in the garden wall to the neighbours. Next door my sister's family lives. They have two daughters (born 2011 and 2013). They won't bother you during your stay, but it might be good to know that they can help you out on everything.
If you would like to get along, your children might play in a double sized garden with extra 2 swings and a slide. Their chickens offer fresh eggs.

The historical city centre of Ghent and the central station (Gent Sint-Pieters) are within 10 minutes reach by bike or 25 min. on foot.
We live very close to two main highways (E40 and E17) that take you to the seaside (45'), Brussels (40'), national airport (50'), Antwerp (45'), Bruges (30') ... in no time. These destinations can also easily be reached by public transport.
One of the many reasons why we like our house is its location: the fact that everything in Ghent or further away is within reach. Ghent is a hidden treasure from mass tourism but a very trendy, living and beautiful city. There is something for all ages and interests to explore in the very near surroundings (in Belgium, but also in the north of France and the Netherlands). As our country is very small, distances are no issue. For further questions or information, feel free to contact us!

For travellers from another continent it might be worth mentioning that also Paris, Amsterdam and London can easily be reached. Depending on the means of transport it only takes 2-3 hours to reach each of these capital cities.
Also other major Dutch cities are nearby: Rotterdam, Delft, Breda, Maastricht, Leiden, The Hague, ...
Lille in the north of France is about 1 hour by car or by train from here.
Maybe you are not that familiar with our little country, but take a look at a map and check out our location and the many places worth visiting within no time. We think you'll be surprised.

Our house offers all modern comfort: washing machine, tumble dryer, wifi, the Sonos music system can be operated with any mobile device, smart tv, Playstation 4, Nintendo Wii U, dvd player, dish washer (one in every kitchen), 2 refrigerators and freezers, oven, microwave, central heating, fireplace in living room, outdoor furniture, sunbeds, sun screens, barbecue, fire basket, a brand new table tennis, intex pool in summer time, ...
In the neighbourhood there are several local shops (bakery, grocery, butcher, ...), but also a variety of supermarkets can be found within 2 km.
Upon arrival you will find our well documented folder about the house, the amenities, the neighbourhood and other things you might want to know to make your stay as comfortable as possible.

In August 2015 The Guardian wrote a very interesting article about Ghent:
http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2015/aug/03/ghent-gent-belgium-guide-food-music-art
Quote: The second in our series of guides to Europe’s alt cities takes us to Ghent, a medieval masterpiece on the surface, but bang up to date with its underground music scene, cutting-edge design and pioneering sustainable projects. Local creatives reveal their highlights.

A more recent American article (April 2017): http://www.cntraveller.com/recommended/cities/ghent-belgium-city-guide/

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Our Family

  • 2 Adults
  • 3 Children
  • 7 Exchanges made

Occupation

  • Chief Logistics Administrator / Provost Ghent University
  • Teacher in secundary education

Our Home

  • House Type: House
  • Floor: 3
  • Environment: In the city
  • Bedrooms: 4
  • Bathrooms: 2
  • Sleeping Capacity: 6
  • Living Area: 250 m2
  • Total Area: 600 m2

References

In my house

  • Pets - Not allowed
  • Small children - Allowed

Exchange Types

  • Non-simultaneous exchange
  • Home exchange

Indoor

  • Free internet access
  • Computer available
  • Central heating
  • Fireplace
  • Toys and games
  • Washing machine
  • Dishwasher
  • Clothes dryer
  • Television
  • Piano
  • Guitar
  • Other musical instruments

Outdoor

  • Garden
  • Terrace or deck
  • Balcony
  • BBQ
  • Garage
  • Bicycles: 5

Facilities

  • Non-smoking house
  • Use/Exchange of car

Our Destination Wish List

  • Open to any destination
  • Rotterdam, Netherlands
  • Bavaria, Germany
  • London, UK
  • Paris, France
  • Spain
  • Portugal
  • Italy
  • Germany
  • Austria
  • Switzerland
  • United Kingdom
  • Ireland
  • United States
  • South Africa
  • Vietnam
  • Indonesia
  • Greece
  • Hungary
  • Denmark
  • Norway
  • Sweden
  • Iceland
  • Canada
  • Copenhagen, Denmark
  • Stockholm, Sweden
  • Berlin, Germany
  • Netherlands
  • Canada
  • Vancouver, BC, Canada
  • San Francisco, CA, USA

Spoken Languages

  • English
  • Français
  • Deutsch
  • Dutch

Occupation

  • Chief Logistics Administrator / Provost Ghent University
  • Teacher in secundary education

Children

  • Boy - Age: 18
  • Boy - Age: 16
  • Girl - Age: 14

Pets

  • We do not have pets.

About Our Family

We are Jeroen and Griet and our 3 children, Jona, Timon and Jutta. Our children love to play and explore things, so you will find many toys and gadgets in our house and garden.
We both like our jobs but in spare time we enjoy the good life: good food and drinks, meeting friends, reading, being outside in the garden or in nature, visiting cities, ...
We are both into running to stay fit. The children combine different interests, the oldest is into badminton, circus school and art school, the middle one loves football and is the goalkeeper in a local team, he has started to play the guitar. Our daughter does gymnastics and art school as well. The three of them are into scouting.

We are very eager to explore this way of travelling. Our first exchange in Denmark was a big success. We're open to all kinds of offers close to and further from home, shorter or longer stay. Because of my job and the children we are limited to Belgian school holidays, but these still leave quite a lot of possibilities.
We love the place where we live because we can easily combine city life with the peacefulness of an own spacious property. Throughout the normal school weeks we do everything by bike, but for further excursions we take the car or public transport.
We could agree on a car exchange if wanted so.

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References

This member has completed 7 home exchanges. Those referenced below may contain feedback/impression from its exchange partners: