Oostende Travel Forum

Myself and husband and another couple are travelling to Ostend in August on an organised coach tour. (We are all middle-aged people but love a good night out). We will be staying at the New Astoria Hotel and although I have found a little information about it on the internet I wondered if anyone had any more information. Also, my husband is wondering how the price of beer in Belgium compares to the price of beer in England?

Hi Sandra & Maurice,
Belgium wouldn't be the country of beer if it would be too expensive. You'll be able to find a pint starting at 2.50 Euro. Might be more depending on the area. But beer's excellent here so he'll be pleased.
Don't know about the hotel.
Enjoy your trip.

Ben

if your husband likes beer, belgium is the place.
when you find beer this good, the price doesnt matter,

And for things to do in Oostende.. try Patrikske's pages. He lives there and can probably give you all the advice you want

I think the price does matter as you can pay as well as 1,95 Euro up to 3,5 Euro for the same Duvel...
you can drink 2 for the price of one `-)
that DOES matter!
2,50 Euro for a strong beer might be the average price you will have to pay in a taverne. If you go to a local pub, it might be less.
In Oostende you should try the combination of schrimps croquettes and Rodenbach (if it is really hot weather).
From Oostende it is only a giant jump away from Brugge. Do consider to visit one of the local breweries there (Gouden Boom, serving Brugse tripel) but avoid the one of the Halve maan (Straffe Hendrik) as that is rather a tourist trap (to my opinion).
Do avoid as well buying any beer in specialized beershops, unless you are going for very specific beers like Westvleteren trapist beer, or really small brands like Oerbeer or Stille Nacht (Silent Night) from the Dolle Brouwers brewery, which I highly recommend trying.
Most average (and really good brands) you can find in the regular supermarkets at fair prices, sometimes even in promotion at reduced prices are in luxury packs with a beer glas.

Cheers!
and do mind the quality beers in Belgium are really strong, don't drink them in huge amounts, but enjoy their tastes!

Thank you very much to everyone who has replied to my question. I am sure we will enjoy ourselves whatever the price of the beer but we were just interested to compare with our prices here in England. It was also interesting to look at all your home pages and has made us look forward to our holiday in Ostend even more. We are also going to visit Brussels and Bruges and a hypermarket while we are there. Thank you again.

Check the main events that go on while you're visiting Bruges and Brussels... you might stumble onto something interesting... I have some links with agendas and events...

sorry irisbe i did not mean to sound that money doesnt matter,the price also varies a lot in the uk,but what i was trying to get over,is that a few glasses of quality belgian beer is better than many litres of poor overpriced english lager

hahaha no problem, is that I like and know the beers here so I do appreciate it when they don't charge you too much so you can have a few more `-)
I was in Ghent last week and in a dirty pub that is more like a museum, they charged 3,5 Euro! in a dirty glass! I thought that was outrageous. In the pub around the corner where we live, we can have the same drink at 1,90 euro, and that in clean glasses, accompanied with nuts and served with a smile!

You will have a nice time and yes, try to visit Brugge too. A tram ride along the coast towns is also interesting. Check VT member Funkymama's page. She lives there and arranged a great VT meeting for us.
Will you have a tour of Brussels or time to walk around yourselves?

Thank you for your comments Sjalen. Yes, we are going to Brussels and Brugge but as we are travelling to Belgium on an organised coach tour I am not sure what the exact itinerary is as yet. I presume we will have some free time in both Brussels and Brugge. We could always travel to Belgium another time more independently. I am sure we would enjoy the tram ride along the coast as you suggest. We are travelling on the 25th August and leaving on the 29th August and we have been wondering if the weather will be similar to England - I presume it will be. We are really looking forward to our tour and staying in Ostend.

Having now returned home from Belgium I can say to everyone who replied to my posting that we really enjoyed ourselves and the beer was worth every penny (euro)! My husband particularly enjoyed Duvel and I liked each one I tried. We had a lovely holiday and will no doubt visit Belgium again.

i am going to ostend on monday staying at the new astoria i have heard some bad reports about this hotel but im little woried