Fodor's Expert Review Jan van Eyckplein

A colorful yet low-key square that lies at the center of Hanseatic Bruges, the Jan van Eyckplein is landmarked with a statue of the famed 15th-century painter. It includes the old Tolhuis (Customs House), built in 1477, where vehicles on their way to market had to stop while tolls were levied on goods brought from nearby ports. The Poortersloge, a late-Gothic building with a slender spire, was owned by the guild of porters and used as a meeting place for the burghers. It's occasionally open for contemporary art exhibitions. The bear occupying one niche represents the legendary creature speared by Baldwin of the Iron Arm that later became the symbol of the city.