The pretty European town overlooked by most tourists that is only three hours from UK

The lovely canal town is a perfect alternative to the more popular Bruges or Ghent (Image: Getty) Tourists are raving about a "hidden gem" European city break that's perfect for a long weekend away. Despite being just a short journey from Belgium 's capital Brussels, many Brits have never even heard of Mechelen. According to those in the know, the Belgian destination is packed full of things to see and do, with gorgeous architecture, cosmopolitan cafe culture and art galore.

Brits can hop on the Eurostar and get there in under three hours: two hours and 51 minutes to be precise. function loadOvpScript(){let el=document.createElement('script');el.

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Log('[Load] OVP tcfLoaded',new Date())})}},1500)}) Travel bloggers unite around the destination, which is in the Flanders region of Belgium, with many enthusing about trips there. READ MORE: Brits heading to Italy issued with major.