Meet Natalie, your expert in Belgium!
🌍 Lives in: Leuven, Belgium
Regions of Expertise: Countrywide - Brussels, Bruges, Antwerp, Ghent, Ypres, Leuven, Flanders Fields. Neighboring regions of France and the Netherlands.
Experience: 5 years leading tours
Languages: English, Nederlands
Natalie’s Specialties:
Get to know Natalie!
A note from Natalie
"Hi everyone, my name is Natalie and I’m a Go Ask A Local Belgium expert and a licensed tour guide here!
I work all over, but specialize in the Dutch-speaking region of Flanders. I can advise on your travel in all of our major cities and towns, and I also guide throughout each of them.
Whether you're looking to visit Brussels, Antwerp, Leuven, Ghent, Bruges, or other less well-known destinations, I would love to help! I’m especially interested in battlefield tourism, including both World Wars, as well as the Battle of Waterloo.
Read more
I was born and raised near Ghent in Belgium but I’ve since lived in different countries around the world, including Australia, the U.S. and Peru.
My first experience in (alternative) tourism was when I started my own small company with my Peruvian husband while living in Peru. If I had to describe myself in two words, it would be: traveler and lifelong-learner. I’ve studied a lot (too much according to my parents and husband), including 3 masters and a PhD.
Last but not least, I received my degree of Flanders Tour Guide and Leader in the middle of the Covid 19 crisis. My main hobby is and always has been traveling. That has become a bit more challenging since my son was born in 2017, but he’s very happy to join my husband and me on our own trips. If you’re traveling with kids, I’m now also an expert on family-friendly traveling.
I really do believe Belgium is still underrated as a destination. Most visitors pass through the country in just a few days, quickly visiting only a few key destinations. But Belgium has so much more to offer! Believe me when I tell you that you can easily spend a week (or more!) here.
As an avid traveler myself and an expert guide for Belgium, it would be my plesure to help you plan your visit and discover my country!"
Belgium Travel Consultations
Why plan with Natalie
Spend 60 minutes tapping into Natalie’s hyperlocal expertise to plan a better trip.
Frequently Asked Questions
-
Consultations cost $125 USD.
-
Consultations are held over Google Meet. Once you’ve scheduled your call, you’ll receive a confirmation email containing the link for your video call. On the scheduled day and time, just click that link to join.
-
Each consultation is different, but here are some common things that our experts typically help with:
Itinerary planning
Transportation, driving routes, and tips for how to get around
Practical travel information; culture, safety, weather, language, money/tipping, etc.
Suggested hotels/accommodations and advice on where to base yourself
Local recommendations for restaurants, activities, and unique experiences
Advice on reputable tour guides, tour operators, and excursions
Pro tips on how to best visit popular sights and attractions
Ways to avoid overcrowded destinations and tourist traps
Insider ideas on off the beaten path places, authentic experiences, and ways to connect with locals
-
What you can get done in an hour depends on your goals for the consultation and how organized you are coming into it.
In most cases, an hour is ample time to create a solid itinerary, answer your major travel questions, get practical advice on how to travel in your destination, and discuss lots of great local tips and recommendations.
To ensure that the hour is used efficiently, when you schedule your call, our pre-consultation questionnaire will ask you what your primary goals for the consultation are. Prior to the call, your Local Expert will review your questionnaire and prepare detailed information addressing those goals.
They’ll come into the call ready to share specific advice, recommendations, itinerary ideas/revisions, and useful links and resources for you to review together.
-
Yes! Each consultation is guided by a comprehensive pre-consultation questionnaire that you fill out immediately upon booking.
We’ll ask you a series of 30+ detailed questions that really dig into you, your trip, your interests and travel style, and what you want to discuss with your Local Expert.
The questionnaire will cover things like: the dynamics of your group, the things you enjoy while traveling, your budget, how early you want to start your day and how late you want to end it, whether you want to hit the highlights or roam the back streets, and even what types of restaurants you want to eat at.
Your Local Expert will focus only on your interests and travel style.
-
Our Local Experts are seasoned travel professionals who have spent decades working in their countries/regions. While their personal interests may be different from yours, they’ve worked with thousands of travelers and have recommendations and advice for every type of individual.
They know their destinations in-depth and can help plan a trip for every traveler and taste.
-
No. Our service is geared toward independent, do-it-yourself travelers who intend to make bookings on their own.
Our goal is not to plan your trip for you, but rather to help you plan a better trip independently. To that end, our Local Experts will give you all of the information that you need to confidently put your trip together yourself.
When Local Experts recommend things like restaurants, hotels, excursions/activities, tours, drivers, etc., they’ll provide you with contact details and links so that you can make the final arrangements on your own.
-
Almost every Go Ask A Local expert has at least 10 years of professional travel experience as a guide or trip planner in their country/region.
We work with a vetted team of seasoned professionals who know their destinations inside and out.
Unlike other companies, when you book a call, you’ll always be connected directly with your chosen Local Expert. We never pass anyone on to a junior sales associate or some anonymous back office team. With us, what you see is what you get.
Ready to plan with Natalie?
Here’s how to schedule your consultation: