We leave the Europa Buscentre at 6.30am and catch the early morning HSS to Scotland. From Stranraer we proceed to Hull where we take the overnight sailing to Belgium.

After disembarking in Zeebrugge we proceed directly to Brugge, where we are welcomed by our local guide who introduces us to the city with a morning tour before we check into our hotel. We have the remainder of the day free to explore before dinner in the hotel, around 7.00pm.

Just an hour to the east lies Ghent, with more listed buildings than any other Belgian city. Here, as in Brugge, we find canals and narrow alleys with gabled houses - many of which are adorned by flowers, especially at this time of year. We are again shown round by a local guide, with the remainder of the day free to explore.

You can spend a relaxing day exploring Brugge today, taking in some of its many museums and canals, or you can join an optional trip, at no additional cost, through West Flanders.

Travelling along the Flemish Coast we take in the port of Ostend, the seaside resort of Nieuwpoort-aan-Zee before stopping at the market town of Veurne. For lunch we stop at the medieval city of Ypres - reduced to rubble during World War I. There are many attractions to visit amongst them the Flanders Field Museum and Menin Gate. Continuing our journey inland, we have a short stop in Gistel, where you will have a chance to buy chocolate in the local factory.

Tonight you are free to enjoy one of the many fine restaurants that Brugge has to offer.

After a leisurely breakfast, towards the end of a relaxing tour, we still have plenty of time for shopping and even visits we have earlier missed. Zeebrugge is just ten miles away so we do not say farewell to Brugge until late afternoon.

We retrace our outward route, breaking the journey in England and Scotland before catching the evening HSS from Stranraer to Belfast, where we arrive around 10.00pm.