Hotel Julien

Hotel Julien feels unmistakably Antwerp. It opened in 2004, when the city’s boutique hotel scene was still taking shape, and it grew gradually from one townhouse into two. That evolution still defines the place today. Rather than one grand lobby and a predictable hotel layout, Julien unfolds through a sequence of courtyards, salons, staircases and rooms that retain the scale of a private house.

The architecture does much of the work. Sixteenth century fabric remains visible in timber beams, old staircases, fireplaces, mouldings and vaulted cellar spaces, while Peter Ivens and Bea Mombaers introduced a quieter contemporary layer of pale wood, stone, dark joinery, modern furniture and carefully chosen art. The result feels edited rather than styled. Historic details are allowed to stay slightly irregular, which gives the interiors far more character than a polished restoration ever could.

The mood changes as you move through the building. A dark sitting room with carved wood and a fireplace gives way to a bright courtyard framed in black steel and greenery. Below, the spa occupies the old vaulted cellars. Above, the rooftop terrace looks directly towards the Cathedral of Our Lady, one of those rare city views that needs very little embellishment. Food is deliberately kept simple. Breakfast is taken seriously, while coffee, light dishes and drinks cover the rest of the day. There is no destination restaurant, which suits a hotel sitting within walking distance of some of Antwerp’s best places to eat.

If you want the room that best captures the hotel, choose the Experience Terrace Room. At 36 m², it has a private terrace with a direct cathedral view, plus an oversized bathtub and walk in shower. The larger Experience Suite offers more space and a separate living room, but the terrace room has the stronger sense of place.