B&B The Verhaegen

Not a hotel in the way we typically use the word, the Verhaegen slides in on the Francophone exemption. In English we’d call it a bed and breakfast, or maybe a guest house — whatever you want to call it, it’s a carefully preserved 18th-century mansion located just off the old port, two streets away from the historic center of Ghent. It's a historic center of its own, as well; Count d’Hane Steenhuyse, famed diplomat and key facilitator of the treaty of Ghent, lived here for a time with his family.

Yes, that’s the sound of the party animals and hip-hotel barflies clicking their way back off this page. Hotel Verhaegen is quiet above all, each of its four guest rooms individually decorated (though sharing a family resemblance) in a charming blend of original architecture, antique furnishings, and modern accents. Here the old style meets the new, and it’s a lively, well-humored mix: stately picture windows cast plenty of light on both sumptuous canopy beds and framed contemporary artwork; delicate antique furnishings dodge stodginess by virtue of the rooms’ expansive modern dimensions and airy, lofted ceilings. It’s clear the owners, Jan and Marc, have leveraged their careers as interior designers into a singular and gratifying personal statement.

If it’s business that brings you to Ghent you’ll appreciate the central location and the calm at the end of the day; and if you’re here just to get away you’ll find the town picturesque and full of sedate attractions, from the SMAK art museum to the restaurants and bars of the city center. Whatever your intentions, allow yourself the indulgence of daily breakfast in the dining room — knockout rococo oils by van Reysschoot keep fine company — or, weather permitting, the extraordinary box parterres in the French garden. If you’re the type, a brandy and a cigar by the fireplace should make for a dignified wind-down after sunset, too.