Belgium · Flanders · Gent
Mariakerke, Gent — Area Guide & Where to Stay
Mariakerke is a sub-municipality of Gent, north-west of the centre, cut in two by the Brugse Vaart into Mariakerke-Centrum and Kolegem.
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Where to stay in Mariakerke
Not every neighbourhood fits every trip — here's what each one is good for.
Mariakerke-Centrum keeps the parish streets around the Onze-Lieve-Vrouw Geboortekerk, while Kolegem holds the eastern half that the canal cuts away, and both are residential ground that Gent's hotel trade never reached. The Brugse Vaart decides more here than any hotel sign does. Anyone booking inside Mariakerke is here for an event at the Flanders Sports Arena, for family, or for a quiet address with the old city an easy run away.
Kolegem has no front desk.
Few places to stay in Mariakerke — most visitors book in Gent nearby.
About Mariakerke
What are the main landmarks in Mariakerke?
Churches make up almost the whole of the list. The Onze-Lieve-Vrouw Geboortekerk carries the parish name, while Sint-Jan-Baptistkerk, Sint-Vincentiuskerk and Sint-Jozefskerk fill out a register that runs longer in bell towers than in anything else. The Flanders Sports Arena is the one big secular hall.
Museum Dr. Guislain is the single museum the record attaches to this ground. Three studio houses, one of them the Atelierwoning by RAAMWERK, close the inventory.
What is the history of Mariakerke?
Mariakerke ran its own affairs until 1977. The merger came on 1 January 1977, when the municipality was folded into Gent and took its place among the sub-municipalities of the city in the province of East Flanders. No founding year is recorded for the village that came before, so the written line starts at the boundary change.
What survives from before that date is the parish geography: the Onze-Lieve-Vrouw Geboortekerk at the middle of Mariakerke-Centrum, and Kolegem holding a separate name on the far bank of the Brugse Vaart.
Common questions
What is the best area to stay in Mariakerke?
Gent: visitors who came for Gent and keep Mariakerke as a name on the map.
Good for
More areas in Gent
Updated September 2026