Skate-cation top 10: Ghent with Evelien Bouilliart

The city of Ghent in the North-West of Belgium may not be your typical European skateboarding destination, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t fun to be had there. You’ll find plenty of street spots and skateparks where you can get your four-wheel-fix between visiting castles and indulging in Belgian chocolate.

This is the second “skate-cation top 10” with the Autonomy team to celebrate their new Jetsetter travel series. Evelien Bouilliart’s new pro model in this series depicts iconic places in her hometown of Ghent, Belgium. We hit her up to get the local knowledge on places to skate and eat if we ever find ourselves in that part of the world.

Zuidpark

Zuidparklaan, 9000 Gent, Belgium

This is one of the most popular skateparks in Ghent and usually where people meet up before going to skate street spots — it’s really central to everything. If manual pads and ledges are your thing then you’ll like this one. I like Zuidpark because the vibe is nice. There’s always someone skating and it’s also located inside of a park where you can just chill when you want to take a break.

Kastart

Onderbergen 42, 9000 Gent, Belgium

Kastart is one of my favourite places to eat in Ghent. They have the best spaghetti! It’s in the centre of town, about 10mins walk from Zuid Skatepark and close to Curb Skateshop.

Brussels Central Station spot

Gent-Sint-Pieters, 9000 Ghent, Belgium

Ok, so this spot isn’t in Ghent but this is a really well known spot and there’s a good chance you’ll pass through Brussels if you’re coming to Belgium. At the main train station in Brussels there’s a plaza with flatground, ledges and stairs. I 50-50’d the nearby Monts des Arts hubba back in the day. It’s a legendary spot and Krak made an edit of everyone that has ever done a trick down it (see above!) . I’m pretty stoked to be part of that list.

Administrative Center spot

Administratief Centrum Zuid, Woodrow Wilsonplein 1, 9000 Gent, Belgium

On the same block as Zuidpark you’ll also find the City Hall which has some good stairs and ledges. I used to skate the stairs here all the time. It has always been a go-to spot to learn new tricks down the smaller sets.

Rampaffairz Skatepark

Vlamingstraat 6, 8560 Wevelgem, Belgium

Rampaffairs is an indoor park and a skate shop. It’s a 30min drive from Ghent but totally worth the trip — they’re one of my sponsors so of course you should go! They always host events and premieres so check their Instagram when you’re in town. Fun fact: this place used to be called Zumiez.

Keizerpark Skatepark

Vlaamsekaai 1, 9000 Gent, Belgium

This is the park I like to go to for a warm up session. It’s pretty mellow with a small quarter, some ledges and rails, and plenty of flatground. The park is located in Keizerpark just off Scheldekaai and is an easy skate from the main train station.

Ostend

Oostende, 8400, Belgium

Take a day trip to the seaside town of Ostend. It’s about 40 minutes by train and a nice change of scenery. This is actually the beach that appears on my new board graphic. The spots in Ostend are right on the boardwalk — you can take the train there and if you skate down, you’ll find them. There’s an indoor park called The Veiling, which was renewed a couple of years ago and it’s amazing (the video above is at the old park). Get yourself a skate sesh outside, have a waffle, and go to the park after.

Blaarmeersen

Zuiderlaan 13, 9000 Gent, Belgium

This skatepark hasn’t actually opened yet, but it will any day now so keep it in mind for your itinerary. This is going to be Belgium’s biggest skatepark and the plans look good! It’s being built at the Blaarmeersen Recreational Centre, which is a pretty cool place in itself. You can camp there, swim in the lake and walk through the forest.

Fitchen

Multiple locations

There are three Fitchen locations in Ghent. When you’re feeling weighed down by the Belgian beer and frites (AKA fries — which us Belgian’s invented!) this is the spot to go for some light healthy food, like wraps and salad bowls.

Curb Skateshop

Nederkouter 51, 9000 Gent, Belgium

Curb skateshop is owned by one of my homies I grew up skating with. He does a lot for the local skateboarders and even hosted my new pro model release at the shop when we needed a last minute venue. I didn’t have a clue it was happening and it turned out to be an amazing evening!

We’ve teamed up with Autonomy to give you a chance to win a $100 Autonomy Skateboards product giveaway. Each deck from the new series comes with a postcard featuring the series artwork and details of how to enter. Shop the Jetsetter series here.