Top 10 Things To Do In Brussels

Brussels, the capital of Belgium, is a beautiful city known for its lovely buildings, its many works of art, its wonderful food, and of course its tasty beer. If you are planning a visit, what are the top attractions you absolutely must see? My top ten list would have to include the following:

1. The Grande Place, perhaps Europe’s most beautiful town square. If you visit in spring or summer, you are in for a real treat as every evening between April and September the town square and its buildings are illuminated every night while classical music is played. The illuminations occur in two sessions of approximately 15 minutes each night – times vary depending on what time of year it is and when the sun sets.
2. The Bruparck is a shopping and entertainment complex which includes a reconstructed Belgian village (complete with cafés and restaurants), an indoor swimming complex and family water park called the Océade (featuring water-slides, wavepools, saunas, jacuzzis, log flumes, and toboggans), and the Kinepolis, one of the largest movie complexes in Europe with 24 cinema rooms and an IMAX screen.
3. Mini-Europe is a park that gives you a quick tour of Europe’s top attractions all in one place. It has over 300 models and sites, including reproductions of Big Ben in London, gondolas in Venice, and a bullfight in Seville.
4. The Atomium, a relic of the 1958 world’s fair, is known as Brussels’ Eiffel Tower. It is a building modeled after an elementary iron crystal consisting of 9 atoms and magnified 150 million times. Visitors can take the elevator to the upper sphere where they can enjoy a panoramic view of the city and dine in a restaurant called Chez Adrienne.
5. The Toone Theater, located on the top floor of a 17th-century pub, features marionettes performing classical operas or folktales. They will perform in different languages on demand.
6. The Belgian Comic Strip Center – showcases the history of some of Belgian’s top graphic artists, including Hervé (author/illustrator of the Tintin books) and René Goscinny and Albert Uderzo (author and illustrator of the Asterix books).
7. The Iguanadons of Bernissart – a collection of Dinosaur skeletons found in the 19th century in the south-Belgian village of Bernissart and now on display in the Museum of Natural Sciences.
8. The Manneken Pis – the world-famous (if slightly tacky and often-parodied) statue of a little boy peeing. At certain times of year he is dressed in different costumes (he has appeared as Elvis, as a samurai warrior, as a shriner, and in some 600 different costumes in all), and at these times his fountain runs with beer instead of water.
9. Brewpubs – Beer connoisseurs often claim that Belgium has the best beer in he world, and I’m certainly not going to argue that. No trip to Brussels would be complete without sampling one of the lovely fruit beers (flavored with cherry, peach, raspberry, and other fruits) or perhaps a strong Trappist ale. Some recommended pubs include La Morte Subite (The Sudden Death), home of perhaps the best fruit beers in town, and Le Cerceuil (The Coffin), decorated with coffins and skulls. The less morbid may prefer La Fleur à Papier Doré (the Golden Paper Flower), favorite meeting place of the Belgian Surrealists in the 1920s.
10. Frites – And, of course, after enjoying a few of these excellent beers, you may well find yourself craving another Belgian specialty, “frites” – or, as we call them in the US, french fries. In Belgium the traditional topping is mayonnaise instead of ketchup, although at “friteries” around town you can find them served with all manner of toppings. (I particularly enjoy the satay sauce – an Indonesian peanut-based topping.) One of the best places to go is the Friterie Antoine, often named as the place with the best fries in town. Yum!

Author: Maria Scinto

About Author: Maria Scinto has traveled throughout Northern Europe and of all things Belgian is most fond of Frambozen beer and Asterix comics.