BRUSSELS, BELGIUM
Brussels is the political capital of Europe and Belgium’s largest city! As you walk and weave through the cobblestone streets, you’ll find plenty of very unique sculptures and monuments as well as cafes (with world-famous beer), shops (with world-famous chocolate), and food-stands (with world-famous french fries). You can’t go wrong!
Attractions:
Delirium Café: Beer lovers from around the world come to this bar for its vast beer selection. Delirium serves more than 2,000 different types of beers (a Guinness World Record)! They also have live music on Thursday evenings.
Manneken Pis, Jeanneke Pis, and Zinneke Pis: Three statues of a boy, girl, and dog peeing. I had a good time finding these!
Grand Place: This is the city’s main square and is surrounded by gorgeous buildings. Definitely worth walking around.
Plan a Day Trip: There are plenty to choose from here - Bruges, Ghent, Antwerp, Ypres, Leuven, etc. - and since the country is so small, you won’t have to spend a lot of time commuting.
Atomium: This building/museum was originally built for the 1958 Brussels World Expo and is located on the Heysel Plateau. The building’s shape is to the form of an iron crystal, magnified at 165 billion times. Super cool to check out! Entrance costs €15.
Mini-Europe: Located in Brupark (at the foot of Atomium), Mini-Europe is what it sounds like. A group of reproduced monuments representing over 70 cities in the EU at a scale of 1:25. Entrance costs €15.80. A combined ticket for both Atomium and Mini-Europe costs €27.60.
SANDEMANs Free Walking Tour: These tours are found all over Europe. They are free in the sense that they are tip-based. You pay what you think the tour is worth at the end. You can reserve your spot here.
Parc du Cinquantenaire: This park, also known as JubelPark, is on the eastern end of Brussels (about a 30-minute walk from the city center). Great place to walk around and relax!
Food Spots: There are plenty of vegan restaurants in Brussels! You can find them using this link.
Other spots to see in Brussels include: Royal Palace of Brussels, Saint Michael and Saint Gudula Cathedral, Royal Gallery of Saint Hubert, and Mont des Arts!
Accommodation:
MEININGER Bruxelles City Center: You know what you’re getting from a MEININGER hostel - a great vibe, social common area with an attached bar, and clean rooms. It is located 15 minutes walking from Grand Place and is completely CO2 neutral as well!
Transportation:
Ghent is 30 minutes by train from Brussels and costs €12. The bus ride is 1 hour and costs €8.
Bruges is 1 hour by train from Brussels and costs €17. The bus ride is 1.5 hours and costs €8.
Paris, France is 1.5 hours by train from Brussels and costs €76. The bus ride is 3 hours and costs €14.
London, England is 2 hours by train from Brussels and costs €105. There is no option to take a bus, but you can fly this route for between €70-€90 on Brussels Airlines or British Airways.
Amsterdam, Netherlands is 2.5 hours by train from Brussels and costs €48. The bus ride is 2.5 hours and costs €10.
Lux City, Luxembourg is 3 hours by train (indirect) from Brussels and costs €44. The bus ride is 3 hours and costs €14.
Zurich, Switzerland is 6.5 hours by train (indirect) from Brussels and costs €167. The bus ride is 6.5 hours and costs €22.
Berlin, Germany is 6.5 hours by train (indirect) from Brussels and costs €107. The bus ride is 12 hours and costs €30.
Munich, Germany is 7 hours by train from Brussels and costs €127. The bus ride is 13 hours and costs €22.
