Everelmus Hotel

Everelmus is a townhouse on the Dijver, the canal path that runs through the old centre of Bruges, next door to the Groeninge Museum. Built in the early 18th century on the bones of older medieval buildings, it has been fully restored rather than rebuilt, so original parquet floors and tiles laid 300 years ago sit alongside new plumbing and wiring. Four guest rooms fill the house: Kermes, Orpimento, Malachite and Azzurro. Kermes has a freestanding oval bath in an otherwise plain bathroom. Malachite keeps its old timber roof structure exposed overhead. Orpimento looks out on the Belfry tower through a high ceiling. Azzurro occupies the former coach house at the back of the garden, reached by a blue wooden stair, with a sleeping alcove tucked under the old roof beams. Three of the four rooms face the canal. Beds are custom-made, linen comes from Valerie Barkowski, and bathrooms use Serax homeware and Axor fittings designed by Philippe Starck. Breakfast is served in the garden or on a covered terrace; afternoon tea moves into the salon in winter, with a view of the Dijver where the sound of horse-drawn carriages still passes below. Check-in runs from 4pm. It is a small, quiet base for exploring the Golden Triangle on foot.