Question 1

Brussels on Your Own

Accepted Answer

Most of the sights in central Brussels are within reasonable walking distance of one another, and Manneken Pis is about five minutes from the Grand-Place. Add the shopping galleries, the fish restaurants of Sainte-Catherine or a hunt for comic-strip murals. The Grand-Place: The square measures 68 by 110 meters and has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1998. In August of even-numbered years, a huge carpet of flowers is laid across it. Manneken Pis: The 55.5 cm bronze boy is about five minutes' walk from the Grand-Place, at the corner of Rue du Chêne and Rue de l'Étuve. The statue on the corner is a replica; the original is in the Brussels City Museum, and his costumes are shown in the GardeRobe MannekenPis on the same street. The galleries: The Royal Saint-Hubert Galleries hold a variety of shops, and Jean Neuhaus II introduced the praline there in 1912. Sainte-Catherine: The old docks around the church of Sainte-Catherine have been turned into fountains and are known for fish restaurants. Watch the touts: On Rue des Bouchers, just north of the Grand-Place, waiters have a reputation for pulling passers-by into restaurants, and cheap set menus can hide a high bill. Getting back on time: All-aboard is usually about 30 minutes before sailing, and your ship posts the exact time. A ship will not wait for passengers touring on their own. Carry your passport: In Belgium you must carry your passport at all times.

Question 2

Getting Around

Accepted Answer

The STIB-MIVB network of metro, premetro, trams and buses covers the Brussels region, and one ticket allows an hour of travel with as many changes as you need. You can tap in with a contactless bank card. Premetro lines 4 and 10 run north to south underground and link the North and South stations with the area around the Grand-Place. Validate your card or ticket on the first vehicle and again at every change. Tickets from the Flemish De Lijn and Walloon TEC buses are not valid on STIB-MIVB, and STIB-MIVB tickets are not valid on them. Metro line 6 is the easiest way to reach the Atomium, which stands on the Heysel plateau in the north of the city.

Question 3

Food and Drink

Accepted Answer

Most visitors start with the three classics: mussels, fries and chocolate. Add a waffle and a glass of the lambic beer brewed in and around Brussels, and you have covered the basics. Moules-frites: Mussels, usually served with fries, are a Belgian specialty. Fries: Fries are sold at friteries, or fritkots, all over the city, and Brussels people argue about which one is best. Local dishes: Look for stoemp, mashed vegetables, and eels in green sauce. Lambic: Lambic beers are fermented with wild yeasts from the Senne valley around Brussels. Gueuze is rather sour, and kriek, a cherry lambic, is rather sweet. Chocolate and waffles: Brussels is a center of chocolate and praline making, and Brussels waffles are a local specialty. Brussels sprouts: The vegetable takes its name from the city and may have originated there.

Question 4

Tipping in Belgium

Accepted Answer

Tipping is not usually done in Belgium, because a service charge is included. You may still leave a little as thanks. The currency is the euro. A simple way is to pay slightly more than the bill and tell the server to keep the change.

Question 5

Pageants, Comics and Art Nouveau

Accepted Answer

Brussels keeps up folk traditions that go back centuries, alongside a modern role as a European capital. It was also one of the major European centers of Art Nouveau. The Ommegang: Every July, a costumed pageant recalls the entry of Emperor Charles V and his son Philip into the city in 1549, ending in a spectacle on the Grand-Place. UNESCO recognized it in 2019. The Meyboom: On 9 August, a young beech tree is paraded through the city with processional giants and planted with music and songs, a custom dating from 1308. Art Nouveau: Victor Horta, Paul Hankar and Henry van de Velde built many of the style's houses here in the 1890s and early 1900s, and four of Horta's town houses have been a World Heritage Site since 2000. Puppets: The Royal Theatre Toone, a marionette theater close to the Grand-Place, is a good introduction to the old Brussels dialect. Comics: Comic-book murals are painted on walls around the city center.

Question 6

A Brief History

Accepted Answer

Brussels grew from a settlement on the river Senne into a trading town on the road between Flanders and the Rhineland, and became the capital of independent Belgium in 1830. Since the Second World War it has also been a center of international politics. Founding, around 979: Brussels is usually said to date from around 979, when Charles, Duke of Lower Lorraine, brought the relics of Saint Gudula to a chapel on an island in the Senne. Trade: On the route between Bruges, Ghent and Cologne, the town grew rich on textiles, and later on lace and tapestry. The canal, 1561: The Willebroek canal opened in 1561 and linked Brussels with the river Rupel. The bombardment, 1695: During the Nine Years' War, Louis XIV's troops shelled the city. The Grand-Place was destroyed along with about 4,000 buildings, a third of the city, but the town hall's facade and tower survived. Revolution, 1830: The Belgian Revolution began in Brussels after a performance of the opera La Muette de Portici at La Monnaie. On 21 July 1831, Leopold I became the first King of the Belgians. Covering the Senne, 1867 to 1871: The river had become a health hazard and was covered over through the city, making way for new boulevards. Art Nouveau and world's fairs: Brussels was a leading center of Art Nouveau around 1900 and hosted world's fairs in 1910, 1935 and 1958. The Atomium was built for Expo 58. A European capital: The Brussels-Capital Region was created on 18 June 1989. The city hosts the main institutions of the European Union and NATO's headquarters. To learn more ashore: The Brussels City Museum, in the King's House on the Grand-Place, tells the city's story and keeps the original Manneken Pis.

Question 7

Brussels with Children

Accepted Answer

Brussels works for children who like a statue with a story, and the comic murals give older ones something to hunt for. Younger children: See Manneken Pis, then visit the GardeRobe MannekenPis on the same street to see some of his costumes. A waffle on the way back to the Grand-Place rounds it off. School age: Go hunting for comic-book murals around the center. Next to the Atomium, Mini-Europe has 1:25 scale models of famous buildings from across Europe. Teenagers: The Atomium is a model of an iron crystal magnified 165 billion times, built for the 1958 world's fair. In the center, sit on the steps of the old Stock Exchange with the locals.

Question 8

Accessible Travel

Accepted Answer

The oldest streets around the Grand-Place can have uneven cobblestones, but the rest of the center is fairly easy to walk. Allow for cobbles on the Grand-Place and the lanes around it. Metro announcements are made in Dutch, French and English. Ask your cruise line about step-free transport from the ship or the coach drop-off point.

Question 9

Shopping

Accepted Answer

Chocolate, lace and beer are the classic things to bring home from Brussels. Most shops open around 10 or 11 a.m., and many close on Sundays and Mondays. Chocolate: Chocolate makers have shops across the city and on the Place du Grand Sablon. Supermarkets sell good Belgian chocolate bars for much less. Lace: Several lace shops face the Grand-Place. Some sell lace made abroad, so ask where it was made. Beer: Supermarkets carry a wide range of Belgian beers, usually for far less than the tourist shops. Flea market: A flea market is held every day on the Place du Jeu de Balle in the Marolles.

Brussels

Good to know

Reaching Brussels