Given the rich cultural heritage and high standard of living in Belgium’s Flanders region, it’s surprising that several sophisticated Belgian cities have not yet had their moment. Then again, the fact that Antwerp and Ghent are not on everyone’s radar means savvy travelers will have more space to enjoy exquisite yet intimate world-class hotels that are microcosms of the cities they are located in. Both Botanic Sanctuary Antwerp and Ghent’s Pillows Grand Boutique Hotel Reylof gracefully juxtapose their historic settings and groundskeeping with their expressions of modern luxury through sublime on-property restaurants, landscaping, spas, room décor, and service.

While fashionable neighborhoods, museums, and cultural highlights of these hotels’ respective cities are just outside their front doors, one could spend an entire stay on the property taking in the well-manicured gardens, eclectic artwork, and architecture spanning several centuries. Their rooms and suites are elegantly minimalist yet embrace guests with refinement thanks to rich color palates and textiles. The restaurants, meanwhile, are regarded as local favorites and run the gamut from Michelin-starred meals to beautiful informal cafes.

Both hotels also elevate exploring Antwerp and Ghent “like a local.” On-property wellness amenities and spas are beautifully built into historic structures, adding depth to their status as “urban retreats.” While the plush settings and landscaping insulate guests from tourist crowds, the locations are minutes on foot from some of the cities’ best and most important historic landmarks, shopping, and dining—the best of both worlds.

Botanical Sanctuary is a garden of sensory delights. The moment he or she arrives, the guest leaves the busy city and emerges in a grove of alders that frames the grounds of a 12^th-century monastery. Once inside the greenhouse-inspired lobby entrance, giant flowers created by Mio Gallery Paper Art Studio pull the guest into a plush sitting area with a color scheme of greens, pinks, and purples that fall somewhere between pastels and jewel tones Michelin-star rated restaurants, an exclusive spa, memorable event spaces, luxurious jewelry and fragrance boutiques, and spacious, well-appointed rooms.

Luxury and well-being are front and center yet never at the expense of the structures’ origins or intended use. The sanctuary’s past as a sacred space for reflection is respected through the way architects Eric De Vocht and  Maryse De Vocht connect the buildings–Sint-Joris, Monasterium, Sint-Elisabeth, Alnetum, and Filips Van Marnix Huis—visually and through outdoor landscaping and underground tunnels. In addition to 108 rooms and suites, the property incorporates the monastery’s original 15th-century chapel, an apothecary outfitted to sell an exclusive range of wellness products, 18 meeting rooms, a movie theater, and The Unprecedented, an elite members-only whisky club.

Every visitor can savor the  “Botanic Breakfast Experience,” a lavish spread of rotating classic and modern dishes built from prime elements from local producers run the gamut from impeccable made-to-order egg dishes to fish, seafood, Belgian cheeses, artisanal bread, and charcuterie elevates the experience of fueling up for a day around the walkable city. However, gastronomy-focused travelers owe it to themselves to make reservations for at least one of the destination restaurants. Henry’s Bar & Bistro is a sophisticated hangout with its décor morphing into a convivial backdrop for classic fare and inventive mixology. Two-Michelin-starred headliner restaurant Hertog Jan by Gert de Mangeleer and Joachim Boudens is an immersive experience that brings together the hotel’s most distinctive aesthetic elements, including its built-in greenhouse settings, beehives, and an herb garden.

At Michelin-starred restaurant Het Gebaar, chef Roger van Damme designs informal lunches and high tea service to register as special occasions through his beautifully crafted bites and premium teas. Michelin-starred restaurant Fine Fleur, steered by chefs Jacob Jan Boerma and Thomas Diepersloot’s Bar Bulot, sister to the Michelin-starred Bar Bulot in Bruges, provides a fine stage for Gert de Mangeleer and Joachim Boudens’s à la carte brasserie menu of classic Belgian and French fare.

The property’s landscaping and monastic underpinnings also shape the hotel’s Health & Spa Club a destination within a destination. The single and couple treatment rooms and seating areas offset an artfully curated treatment menu incorporating bespoke facials and treatments based on the exclusive “3CureMethod,” Phytotherapy, Traditional Chinese Medicine, and Ancient Monastic modalities. The fitness facilities include an 18-meter swimming pool, whirlpool, saunas, steam rooms, and serene waiting areas. The wellness component of the hotel continues in the Saint Charles Store just off the lobby, where one can purchase the same beautifully packaged products for gifts and home.

As Antwerp now enjoys a reputation as a fashion and lifestyle capital, visitors should make an effort to step outside the sanctuary into chic neighborhoods that feed the soul. A walking tour with Carolien Krijnen is recommended to get a personalized itinerary of places she feels are world-class yet locally beloved and would never be mistaken as tourist magnets. While there are many must-dos around the city, some of her recommendations include stylishly avant-garde The Chocolate Line, Bar Georges, DL Muze Jazz Cafe, and the enduring Michelin Bib Gourmand-rated steakhouse Ciro’s. Restaurant Album is recommended for its inventive uses of seasonal local ingredients.

While Pillows Grand Boutique Hotel Reylof is designated as a four-star property, the décor, cuisine, spa, landscaping, business amenities, and service add up to a five-star experience. Under the direction of interior architect Lot Sturm, the former residence of early 18^th-century poet Baron Olivier de Reylof is redefined for 21^st-century travelers in terms of how practical and decorative elements are combined.   The newer wing that brings the property up to 158 rooms and suites is nestled into a lush center courtyard, ensuring visual and sensory continuity. This flows into the original carriage house, Spa Reylof, sitting between the former residence and the new wing with a full-service spa, hammam-style steam room, saunas, and fitness facilities.

Guest room and suite configurations, including the “Junior Suite” and “Pillows Suite” all have an aesthetic foundation of parquet flooring, subtly ornate accents and wallpaper, floor-to-ceiling windows, and simple-yet-cozy furnishings. Other amenities include Nespresso machines, flatscreen televisions, and rain showers. The higher-end terrace suites, including the “Reylof Suite,” “Family Room,” and “Presidential Suite” feature lush extras such as freestanding tubs and integrated sound systems.

Chef Paul de Groote anchors the fine dining restaurant LOF and devises dishes that are fittingly modern yet don’t stray too far from Flemish culinary. He takes pride in how he combines different regionally sourced ingredients to bring depth and texture to simple and solid Belgian dishes. Olivier le Petit Bistro (olivierlepetitbistro.com) is similarly popular for the way it integrates some of those ingredients into classic French and internationally-influenced dishes, including its red curry and salmon fish croquettes, elevated “Blooming Onion” with nori and jalapeno mayonnaise, Dover sole, and “Olivier Pithivier” presentation for two with Belgian endive, chicken, brie and truffle.

The Living Bar, accessed via a spectacular spiral staircase just beyond the check-in area, is a workspace and informal meeting room with a Louis XIV aesthetic made more welcoming with modern touches such as plump armchairs and contemporary lighting. After sundown, when it’s not used for private parties and mixers, it transforms into a casual yet refined bar serving fine wines, beers, and classic and modern cocktails. Other public rooms on the first and second levels are enlivened with the juxtaposition of chandeliers, airy light fixtures, and pops of color from a curated selection of framed modern photography and art canvases. This continues into the (LOF cafe) where breakfast is served.

Ghent’s medieval historic quarter, buzzy downtown, and the Lys River await a few blocks beyond the property. House of Alijn and Saint Bavo’s Cathedral are a short walk over the river via footbridges. Nearby side streets are packed with boutique chocolatiers and artisanal food vendors, including high-end chocolatier Deduyschaever and vegan producer Holy Cow, 250-year-old mustard producer VVe Tierenteyn-Verlent, inventive casual restaurants Balls & Glory, which also offers meatball cooking classes, and Fituur Tartaar.