I’m sure some of you have been to watch this or ride the sportive.

Is staying in Bruges a viable option or is Oudenaarde much better? We expect to drive or train over there, ride Saturday, spectate Sunday and drink a lot of beer.

cheers

oudenaarde and surrounds better as nice not to travel too far back to bruge when done – also depends if doing the full sportive from bruge including the 100km flat bit (very dull) from bruge and whether you have vehicles so can get back etc. Good to do it all but the fun is the last 150km as Im sure you know

you might find most places booked up for the weekend in oudenaarde already though. Id get onto it -I used to live in NL and last time I did it there were 17000 people so I drove home afterwards:)

there’s not a lot going on in Oudenaarde, done the RvV and then stayed to watch the race a few times and always stayed in Ghent which is a really very nice place to be

There’s a pretty good chance that you won’t be able to find anywhere to stay in Oudenaarde anyway. We stayed on the outskirts of Lille, which was a 40 minute or so drive to Oudenaarde, which was fine, and we had dinner/beers on the Sat in Lille, which was nice, but Oudenaarde may have been more lively. It also meant that one of us (me) couldn’t drink on the Sunday while watching the race, but that would have been the same if we’d stayed closer as we drove back home straight after. It’s a pretty awesome weekend either way, the sportive is tough, and the atmosphere for the race is amazing. I also love Bruges, so for me it would be great either way.

cheers all. that’s really helpful and yes Oudeanaade is booked up.

If you’re going to have to drive to the start, there are hotels in Kortrijk – 30 mins away. Some of the pro teams stay there.

Been a few years since I last did it. I’ve variously stayed in Bruges, Gent and Brussels. I’d advise Bruges or Gent.

Mind you, my advice is a bit out of date as the Oudenaarde finish has been introduced since I last went.

Was always my favourite weekend of the year. You’ll love it..!

Ghent is lovely, and if you are feeling energetic you can ride to the start of the sportive. Depending upon how much beer you are planning to drink it is worth considering cycling on the Sunday as well as it gives you a chance to see the race in multiple locations (although we just watched from the Oude Kwaremont).

The sportive is fantastic.

Went with a mate for the first time last year, was my best weekend involving bikes I reckon. Loved it, it’s my favourite race and riding the middle distance sportive the day before was fabulous, even in poor weather. Stayed at the Holiday Inn, Ghent Expo. Parking, tram to central Ghent next door for easy trains to Oudenaarde. Wish I could go again this year but school hols put paid to it. Have a great time!