Bruges is one of the most tourist-oriented cities in the world, according to a study published by One Street Back, which looks at the ratio of tourist facilities compared to everyday life. Five other Belgian cities also made it into the top 100.
One Street Back measures the extent to which neighbourhoods around tourist attractions still serve everyday life for locals. It tallies the number of places that serve locals, like bakeries, cafés, pharmacies, hairdressers, vets or driving schools, and compares this to the number of places that serve tourists directly, like hotels, guesthouses, souvenir shops, sights, or museums.
The organisation used data from OpenStreetMap and data provided by volunteers to rank 95 cities in 36 countries.
Bruges ranks well above other cities in Belgium, reaching as high as fourth globally. Of the five neighbourhoods within reach of the city's main attractions, One Street Back found that four had more visitor places than facilities for locals. On average, it found 189 locations for tourists per 100 for locals.
Brussels, in comparison, is more oriented to its local inhabitants. One Street Back found that of the 10 neighbourhoods within reach of major tourist attractions in Brussels, none have more tourist than local facilities, though two neighbourhoods are close to crossing that threshold. The capital averages 37 visitor places per 100 everyday shops, significantly lower than Bruges.
Flagey is highlighted in the research as a famous district that is still strongly oriented towards the local inhabitants, with only 14 tourist places for a total of 142 everyday places.
The listing further includes Ghent, Antwerp, Leuven and Liège.
The most tourist-oriented cities in Belgium
| Global rank | City | Visitor places per 100 everyday shops |
|---|---|---|
| 4 | Bruges | 189 |
| 45 | Brussels | 37 |
| 56 | Ghent | 29 |
| 58 | Antwerp | 28 |
| 84 | Leuven | 18 |
| 88 | Liège | 16 |
The most tourist-oriented cities in the world
Globally, with 746 tourist places for every 100 local places, the ranking found that the Moroccan city of Marrakech is the most tourist-oriented, having six out of its eight measured neighbourhoods with more locations geared toward tourists than locals.
The ranking highlights the walled historical and cultural centre, Medina, as the most tourist-oriented famous neighbourhood in the world, with a total of 401 visitor places for 35 local shops.
Marrakech has almost triple the average number of tourist places of the second-ranked city, Venice. The Italian coastal city, known for its small waterways and gondolas, has 249 tourist places per 100 local places. One Street Back did find that all five measured neighbourhoods have more tourist places than local places.
Cusco (Peru), the historical capital of the Inca Empire, ranks third on the list, with 213 tourist places per 100 local places.
The least tourist-oriented cities in the ranking are Toronto in Canada, Taipei in Taiwan and Montpellier in France.
