Best Things to Do in Antwerp on a Budget
Best Things to Do in Antwerp on a Budget
Antwerp packs a lot into a compact, walkable centre, and a good share of it costs nothing. The trick is to spend your money only where it earns its keep: paid tickets here top out around €12, and several of the best views and squares are free. This guide sorts the city’s core sights by what they cost, so you can build a full day without overspending.
The free half
Start with the free MAS rooftop in the Eilandje docklands: the spiralling glass-and-sandstone tower gives a 360-degree sweep over the port, river, and old town, and you do not need a museum ticket to ride up. The Grote Markt costs nothing to wander, ringed by ornate guild houses, the Renaissance city hall, and the 1887 Brabo Fountain, which retells the giant Antigoon legend behind the city’s name. Het Steen, the medieval riverside fortress, opens its courtyard and rooftop viewpoint for free; only the interactive “Antwerp Story” inside is ticketed.
For a genuinely quiet detour, walk Cogels-Osylei in the Zurenborg quarter, one of Europe’s best-concentrated Art Nouveau streets, free to stroll and far calmer than its equivalents in Brussels. Antwerpen-Centraal itself deserves ten free minutes: the 1905 “railway cathedral” is a sight in its own right. The Diamond District around the station is worth a respectful walk to sense a working trade hub that handles most of the world’s rough-diamond trade, though much of it closes Saturdays and Jewish holidays.
The paid sights worth €12
The Cathedral of Our Lady (€12 adult, €10 concession, free under 18) is the one paid ticket almost everyone should buy: it holds Rubens’ great altarpieces, The Descent from the Cross and The Elevation of the Cross, and in 2026 it is the place to see his work, since the Rubenshuis is closed for renovation until at least 2030. Plantin-Moretus (€12, free on select Wednesdays) is the only museum individually on the UNESCO list, preserving the world’s oldest printing presses. MoMu, the fashion museum (about €12), runs its Antwerp Six 40th-anniversary show through 17 January 2027. DIVA (€12) tells the diamond and jewellery story if the district’s working streets leave you wanting the curated version.
Eat, drink, and get around cheap
Order “een bolleke” for a De Koninck amber beer, roughly €2.50-3.50, the cheapest genuine Antwerp ritual there is. A frituur cone runs €3-5, and Antwerpse Handjes, the hand-shaped butter-almond biscuit tied to the Brabo legend, make a cheap packable souvenir. A single De Lijn ticket is about €3 for 60 minutes; a day pass runs about €9. One 2026 note: the premetro tunnel under the Scheldt is closed for renovation from May 2026 to around the end of March 2027, so cross to Linkeroever on the free Sint-Annatunnel or the free ferry instead of a tram.
For a fuller free-and-cheap breakdown, see the Antwerp budget city guide , and to string these sights into fixed days, the 3 day Antwerp itinerary does the sequencing for you. Do the free rooftops on your first clear morning; Antwerp’s weather can turn by afternoon.