City Information
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Airport
Brussels
International Airport (commonly known as Zaventem) is 13 km
northeast of the city centre. Flight time from London is just under
1 hr. For airport and flight info, call the BIAC Service Phone on
0900 70000 or visit the airport’s website: www.brusselsairport.be.
The terminal is in the middle of major redevelopment, to match
Brussels’ growing importance as a European hub. The old terminal
building has been largely remodelled, and the new Pier A satellite
terminal for intra-EU flights finally opened in May 2002, comprising
31 boarding gates and shops, restaurants, lounges in the 7th-floor
atrium (The Topaz). New baggage carousels are still under
construction, due to open in Spring 2003. Other renovation has
included the creation of new hospitality lounges and the Skyport
Corporate Meeting Centre – ten hi-tech rooms for groups of up to
20, with secretarial services, interpreters and catering. Airport
shopping has changed very little since the end of tax-free on intra-EU
flights. Although you may no longer be eligible for duty-free
cigarettes and booze, you can still take your pick from the usual
welter of handbags, silk scarves, fluffy toys, etc – all at
special ‘travel value’ prices.
City
Centre
Express
trains run between the airport and city every 20 mins, stopping at
Brussels North, Central and South stations – journey time about 20
mins. Cost of a first-class single is €3.70, second-class €2.40.
A taxi takes about 30 mins, and costs around €40 (you can usually
pay by credit card). There is a taxi rank right outside the Arrivals
hall, so the unmarked pirate cabs shouldn’t waylay you. However,
queues in the rank can be long when the business flights arrive, so
if you’d rather avoid the wait, think of booking your taxi in
advance from Taxis Verts. A bus service runs two an hour, stopping at seven key locations,
including Schumann (for the European Commission) and NATO. Number 12
bus leaves from below the Arrivals hall. Cost of a single ticket is
€3.
EUROSTAR
Up
to 9 high-speed Eurostar passenger trains run daily between London
Waterloo and Brussels Gare du Midi (South Station). Journey time is
2 hrs 40 mins. Upgraded security measures resulting from Sept 11th
mean you need to check in no later than 30 minutes before departure.
Best to book in advance: either on-line or by phone ( Website: www.b-rail.be). Timetables and current prices are on the
website. Extensive construction and renovations have yet to overcome
the station’s somewhat seedy location, and pickpockets can be a
problem.
THALYS
From
Brussels Gare du Midi, you can take the Thalys high-speed train to
Paris (1 hr 33 mins), Amsterdam (2 hrs 38 mins), or Cologne (2 hrs
33 mins). Website: www.b-rail.be.
Orientation
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The
old heart of Brussels is the glorious square known to
French-speaking Walloons as the Grand’Place, and to Dutch-speaking
Flemings as the Grote Markt. The square is surrounded by a maze of
narrow streets, and beyond that by busy boulevards following the
pentagonal lines of the old city walls (in fact, this historic core
is sometimes called ‘the Pentagon’). It’s all very attractive,
if somewhat touristy.
Beyond this is a second periphery of boulevards and middle-class
neighbourhoods built at the turn of the century, when Belgium was at
the peak of its prosperity. Finally come the modern suburbs,
enveloping what were once outlying villages, and girdled by a
thunderous orbital motorway known simply as the Ring.
A system of underground road tunnels criss-crosses the city, making
a big saving on surface travel – as long as the tunnels are not
jammed, and you can find your way through the labyrinth.
The easiest way to orientate yourself in Brussels is to consider the
city as a clock-face, with the Grand’Place at the centre. At
roughly 12 o’clock, near Place Rogier, are the gleaming towers of
the new downtown business district, including the World Trade
Centre. In the same direction, but out on the edge of town, is the
Heysel with its exhibition halls, the Atomium, and other
attractions. NATO is in the outer suburbs at 2 o’clock, on the road to the
airport. A number of industrial concerns and multinationals are
based in business parks on this side of the city.
Belgian government ministries, andthe multiple office blocks of the
European Union are concentrated just outside the centre at 3
o’clock, around Rue de la Loi and the Schuman roundabout. The
shiny new European Parliament is a little further south, at 4
o’clock. The city’s most prestigious shopping street – also home to many
companies – is Avenue Louise, which strikes out from the centre at
5 o’clock, heading south-east towards the Bois de la Cambre park.
Further in the same direction is Chaussée de la Hulpe, where still
more major companies have established their headquarters.
Around
the City
Taxis
are the easiest way of getting around, and are usually plentiful in
Brussels – but phone from the hotel or restaurant, or walk to the
nearest rank rather than trying to hail one in the street. Trips
within Greater Brussels cost €0.99, plus a basic charge of €2.35
(€1.86 at night). Tips are included, but it’s normal to round
up.
Brussels’ comparatively modest size is a boon. Outside the rush
hour, it should be possible for a cabby to zoom you clear across
town via the road tunnels in no more than 20 mins, with about €8
on the clock.
If you are going out of town, it’s worth calling to ask for a
fixed-price quote, using the magic invocation ’,i>prix forfait’.
Taxis Verts is the biggest of many cab
operators, and routinely used by major companies as a courier
service for urgent documents and packages.
What
is Interesting
Grand’Place/Grote
Markt: This magnificent market square is reckoned to be the most
beautiful in Europe. Apart from being a great place to sip a beer,
it also includes the City Museum, the excellent Krediet bank art
gallery, the Brewery Museum, a chocolate museum, and changing
exhibitions in the finest building of all, the Hôtel de Ville (Town
Hall).
Place St Géry: The real birthplace of Brussels is hidden in a maze
of scruffy streets still in the throes of restoration, although the
area has bloomed recently as the restorations approach their end,
with a cluster of new cafes and bars springing up for perfect
people-watching afternoons. A chapel built here by the 6c St Géry
(St Gorik) was the seed from which grew an entire city. Since 1881,
the site has been occupied by a Victorian-style market hall, now
serving as an exhibition centre with all-day bar.
Cathedral:
The Cathedral of St Michel and Ste Gudule was begun in the 13c and
not completed until the 15c. Its cavernous Gothic interior has been
the setting for many dramatic scenes over the centuries – such as
the rituals of the Order of the Golden Fleece, founded by Philip the
Good in the Middle Ages. Today, it is Belgium’s national church,
and the setting for state occasions of similar pomp.
Royal
Museums of Ancient and Modern Art: It’s handy to have two
important collections in the same location – but not necessarily
time-saving, since it’s impossible to take in both on the same
visit. Ancient has biggies like Brueghel, Rubens andRembrandt, while
Modern houses Delvaux, Magritte andDali. Note that, like most
Belgian museums, it is open Sun but closed Mon.
Grand
Sablon: This sandy, sloping area was once used as a practice
range by the city’s archers. Today, it provides an equally
target-rich environment for collectors, drinkers, anddiners. The
wedge-shaped open space is lined with fashionable antique shops, cafés
and restaurants. and at weekends, a high-quality antiques market
bivouacs in the middle.
Flea
Market: As you walk from Sablon, down the Rue Blaes, towards the
Place du Jeu de Balle you’ll soon get a feel for the area as you
browse the countless antique and junk shops that line the roadside.
The Place du Jeu de Balle is occupied every morning by the city’s
flea market, the Vieux Marché. On weekdays, it’s a mix of genuine
bargains and ghastly junk; at weekends, the quality rises (it’s
also the only place where you’ll see any signs of life on a Sunday
morning). For the best pickings, get there by 1000.
Manneken
Pis: He may be downmarket and politically incorrect, andyet
‘Petit Julien’ (as he’s known in these parts) is still the
biggest symbol of Brussels, an icon with more balls than the Atomium.
If you simply must see this much-photographed little fountain,
you’ll find Julien doing his stuff on the corner of Rue de
l’Etuve and Rue du Chêne, 5 mins from the Grand’Place.
Belgian
Comic Strip Centre: Even if you’re not a fan of Tintin or the
Smurfs, there is good reason to seek out the Belgian Comic Strip
Centre, in the narrow streets north-east of the Grand’Place. The
handsomely restored building is one of the finest surviving
buildings by Victor Horta, Belgium’s great art nouveau architect.
Cinquantenaire
Park: This elegant park, close to the EU buildings, includes a
cluster of fine museums: the Museums of Art and History, the
Military Museum, and Autoworld – considered by purists to be one
of the finest car collections anywhere.
The
Heysel: Brussels’ biggest crowd-pulling attractions are
clustered on the Heysel plateau, on the northern edge of town. As
well as the exhibition halls and sports stadium, there’s
Mini-Europe, the vast Kinepolis cinema complex, a swimming-pool
complex andof course the Atomium. Get there by Metro.
Waterloo:
The battlefield is about 20 km south of Brussels, in rolling
country outside the bustling dormitory town of Waterloo. It’s an
odd mix of tourist kitsch and haunting atmosphere, but worth the
effort. Tramp around the muddy, bloody contours of history, then eat
in the Bivouac de l’Empereur, at the foot of the Butte du Lion.
Just don’t ask for boeuf Wellington.
Shopping
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Travel
If
you’re buying some of Belgium’s famous chocolates (and you
certainly should), here is a selection of Bradman’s Best: Neuhaus;
Corné de la Toison d’Or; Wittamer; Mary; Godiva. But you can also
find some of the best pralines in simple corner shops.
Where
to Tour
The
best place to start discovering Brussels is the Grand’Place. On
one side is the magnificent Gothic Town Hall, with a tourist office
in the basement. Opposite is the City Museum, in a similarly
grandiloquent building, and all around are magnificent gilded
mansions, which once housed the wealthy trade guilds.
The cobbled square has been the stage for many dramatic events over
the centuries, including declarations of war, jousting matches, and
celebrity executions. Today, it is still the centre of life in
Brussels, with regular rock and classical concerts, an outdoor ice
rink, a big historical pageant each summer, the famous ‘carpet of
flowers’ summer display and the international Christmas market
during the festive season.
From the Grand’Place, you can head off to explore either of
Brussels’ two distinctive areas: the Bas Ville, comprising the
huddled streets around the square; or the Haute Ville, the big
official buildings on the plateau above.
Downtown
Leave
the square via the Rue de la Colline, and continue into the Galéries
St Hubert – an elegant, glass-roofed shopping arcade built in
1846. At its mid-point, the arcade is intersected by the Rue des
Bouchers, a busy, cobbled alleyway lined with tourist restaurants.
Turn left into the stream of pedestrians ambling past pre-occupied
waiters fretting around seductive displays of seafood.
At the end of Rue des Bouchers, either digress a couple of blocks
right to see the Monnaie opera house, or continue on Rue Grétry –
crossing busy Boulevard Anspach and ultimately arriving at Place St
Catherine, where you’ll find a shoal of top fish restaurants.
Now bear left along Vieux Marché aux Grains to Rue Antoine Dansaert.
Turning left, follow Rue Dansaert and Rue Orts back towards
Boulevard Anspach. Hidden in the tangle of streets to your right is
Place St Géry, site of the original settlement of Brussels. At the
end of Rue Orts you will see the neo-classical Stock Exchange –
with the Grand’Place lying just one block beyond.
Uptown
Again,
leave the Grand’Place via Rue de la Colline – but this time walk
to the far end of the Galéries St Hubert, and continue for one
block on Rue Montagne aux Herbes Potagères, before turning right up
Rue d’Assaut. On the slope ahead is the Cathedral of St Michel
andSte Gudule, sandwiched between the modern blocks of the National
Bank and European Conference Centre.
Continuing uphill from the cathedral will bring you to the Haute
Ville, opposite the Parliament building. Turn right along Rue Royale,
beside the pretty little Parc de Bruxelles, to the cluster of grand
buildings around Place Royale, including the Royal Palace, the
Palais des Beaux-Arts, the Museums of Ancient and Modern Art, and
recently revamped Dynasty Museum, with memorabilia of Belgium’s
royal family.
Beyond Place Royale, Rue de la Régence begins to descend onto the
wedge-shaped open space known as the Grand Sablon, lined with fancy
antique shops, restaurants and cafés. From here, just follow signs
back to the Grand’Place, downhill all the way.
