Ghent’s Free-Stay Strategy Pays Off with NYT Feature
The Belgian city of Ghent has secured a coveted spot in The New York Times thanks to a tourism strategy that offers foreign journalists, travel professionals, and influencers up to 800 free overnight stays per year. The initiative, which pairs complimentary hotel rooms with tailored visit programs, has proven to be a long-term investment in putting the city on the international tourism map.
According to VRT NWS, the recent New York Times feature was the direct result of a visit by four American journalists earlier this year. The NYT article, published on July 28, 2026, listed Ghent among six alternative canal cities to visit instead of Amsterdam or Venice.
A Strategy Built on Overnight Visitors
Ghent’s approach centers on attracting the so-called “pyjamatoerist”—a visitor who stays overnight rather than a day-tripper. “We find it important to attract tourists who stay longer than a day in Ghent,” said Rudy De Wit of vzw Gent Hotels, which represents 35 hotels with over 3,000 rooms. “That’s good for us, but also for the city. They provide extra income and at the same time we can spread them well, keeping the impact low.”
The hotel sector offers free stays—typically two nights with breakfast—to journalists and travel professionals writing about tourism. The city of Ghent contributes 45,000 euros per year to support this collaboration between the hotel sector and Visit Gent.
Last year, 198 foreign journalists visited Ghent through press trips, mostly from Europe but also from Argentina, Australia, and the United States. An additional 47 specialists writing for travel guides, magazines, or blogs also visited, with 600 to 800 free overnight stays provided annually.
Tailored Visits and Editorial Freedom
Visit Gent, the city’s tourism service, crafts personalized programs for visiting professionals. “The offer can consist of guided tours, tickets, boat trips, or meals,” said Sofie Bracke, Ghent’s Alderman for Tourism. The city also organizes thematic press trips, such as inviting 55 journalists for the upcoming reopening of the Design Museum.
Crucially, there are no content agreements with visiting journalists. “The visiting journalists can write whatever they want afterwards, even bad things, although we’re not really afraid of that in Ghent,” De Wit said. “The mention in The New York Times at the end of July was the effect of a visit by 4 American journalists earlier. It’s a long-term investment.”
The New York Times Feature
The NYT article praised Ghent as “eminently walkable” due to being mostly car-free, with 1,400 years of history spanning from the Gravensteen medieval castle to modern street art. The newspaper noted that “people are often too busy with Bruges to experience Ghent’s charm,” and highlighted the city’s Beguinages, street art pioneer status, and vintage shops.
Ghent was one of six cities on the list, alongside Haarlem (Netherlands), Aveiro (Portugal), Hamburg (Germany), Strasbourg (France), and Livorno (Italy). The feature has generated significant international attention, with outlets like LINDA.nl and NL Times covering the list.
Managing Tourism Sustainably
Ghent’s strategy is part of a broader effort to manage tourism sustainably and avoid the overtourism problems seen in cities like Amsterdam and Venice. The city has implemented a hotel stop in the center, restricted large guided groups, and added controls on Airbnb rentals. A 2023 residents’ survey showed that Ghent residents were becoming less welcoming of tourists, prompting the city to redouble its efforts to balance tourism with livability.
“Tourism is an important economic factor, but we want to ensure that livability and authenticity are not compromised,” Bracke said.
The strategy appears to be working. Ghent recorded 1,609,054 tourist overnight stays in 2025, and early 2026 data shows a 1.6% increase in overnight stays compared to the same period last year. US tourists to Ghent increased by 27.8% in arrivals and 16.6% in overnight stays in early 2026, according to P-magazine.
A Model for Other Cities
Ghent is the only Flemish city with such an extensive hotel-sector collaboration for press trips. Toerisme Vlaanderen (Tourism Flanders) coordinates press trips across multiple cities, and more than 600 articles about Flemish art cities were published in foreign media last year linked directly to press visits. Bruges also appeared in The New York Times in July 2026.
“This unique collaboration ensures that we put Ghent as a destination in the spotlight together instead of promoting separately,” Bracke said. “With the right story, we also know how to reach the desired target group optimally.”
What’s Next
As Ghent continues to build on its international visibility, the city remains focused on attracting visitors who will stay overnight and contribute to the local economy without overwhelming its historic center. The hotel sector employs approximately 500 people directly, and the city sees continued growth potential in business and congress tourism.
“In Ghent there is no mass tourism and we want to keep it that way as a sector,” De Wit said. “We want to show tourists a livable city.” With the NYT feature generating buzz and tourism numbers trending upward, Ghent’s patient, quality-focused approach to international promotion appears to be delivering results.