The Ghent Museums

The Ghent University Museum is located at the heart of the Ghent Botanical Garden, right around the corner from MSK Ghent and S.M.A.K. The GUM is a museum dedicated to science, research and critical thinking, where visitors can discover that scholarship is the result of trial and error, doubt and imagination.

In the centre of Ghent, close to Vrijdagmarkt, you can find the Museum of Industry in an impressive old cotton mill. Three permanent exhibitions bring the industrial past back to life.

St Peter’s Abbey is one of Ghent’s foremost monuments. Concealed behind its imposing walls is a surprisingly large garden with a vineyard, herb garden, fruit trees and ruins. The buildings you see today date from the 17th and 18th centuries, the impressive refectory from the Middle Ages. St Peter’s Abbey presents historio-cultural, literary and photographic exhibitions at national and international level.

STAM is the Ghent city museum. It presents the story of the city of Ghent. A permanent circuit leads visitors along a chronological trail of objects and multimedia which trace the development and growth of Ghent. Temporary exhibitions explore the concept of 'urbanity' from different angles. STAM's real showpiece, its raison d'être, is the city itself. A visit to the city museum is not complete without a visit to Ghent.

Design Museum Gent is closed. The museum is getting a new wing and a complete renovation. By 2026, all the buildings will be seamlessly connected and there will be extra space for temporary presentations, workshops, lectures and events, space for art handling and logistics, proper sanitary facilities and an elevator. A project with great and sustainable ambitions, a real bridge between the city, visitors and the design world. In addition to the extra multifunctional space, there will be a museum café, a terrace, a new reception area and a shop.