Going to Brussels for a few days next week, has anyone been and got any decent travel advice?

No idea what to expect really but any ideas for tourist attractions, nice bars, clubs or retsurants would be welcome.

I’ll be with my girlfirend, not sure where we’re staying yet but I imagine will be fairly central.

Place du petit sablon is nice for antique type shops and places to eat in the daytime. Most touristy bars are around the Grand Place but still worth a look. Expensive shops etc on Avenue Louise. Around the Gare du Nord is the red light area so maybe avoid (depending on tastes)..

the bike hire is quite useful.

also if you are going on Eurostar you can go anywhere in Belgium on the same day if you show you Eurostar tickets (except Thalys)… as a continued journey – same on the return day.

If you’re flying, go through baggage check a bit earlier than you’d do usually on the way back – I regularly fly there, and there are often issues with staffing on the check that lead to stressy queues.

Aux armes de Bruxelles http://www.auxarmesdebruxelles.com/be/ nice place to eat (if a bit pricey) but they don’t seem to have an english version of their website anymore.

I used to live in Place de Petit Sablon! Visit Perroquet just up the hill from there for nice pittas and general ambience. Another good bar is Volle Gas in Fernand Coq and that’s near Matonga, the Congolese area – a little rough but interesting to walk around if you want something different. If you don’t, then Grand Place is really worth seeing obviously. Delirium just east of Grand Place is a well-known tourist spot but I actually really like it (the only central place worth going to for Mussels is on the block just south of it – avoid the other nearby ones). Fin de Siecle is a nice restaurant, Les Brassins too but there’s not a lot near it (but it really is a nice restaurant). If you have a couple of hours for a walk, I recommend Grand Place up to the Royal Palace, then down the hill to Sablon – check out the little park – then head up the hill next to the music school past Perroquet to the Justice Palace for a nice view.

I really like Brussels, but it’s not like New York, Washington or London with 50 museums and all that. It’s more just a nice European city with good restaurants and bars, just a good place to be.

Excellent, thanks guys!

jhw- yeah I kind of thought it might be like that, a bit more low-key than most big cities but hopefully with a nice relaxed vibe etc which will suit us fine for a short break in January. I think we’ll also heading over to Bruges as well for a bit so I imagine that will be similar.

Oh and watch your bags at Midi station and public transport from/to, lots of thieves about and the police don’t care (but it’s not as bad as Nord station which is a bit like Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome).

And if you get a taxi into town from Midi (wise), don’t let them overcharge you. They’ll try. Stick to the mandatory amounts on the back of the driver’s seat.

Although taxis in Brussels are really cheap and a viable alternative to public transport.

Just watch the petty crime. It’s a nice place but they don’t have a handle on petty crime! Unemployment a massive problem in Belgium right now etc. Delirium is notorious for thieves, in particular, but I always go back.