august-2011

BELGIUM Population 10,431,477 Currency Euro GDP
BRUSSELS
† €26,700 Dialling code +32
Airport code BRU Average temp (Aug) 17°C
There’s music in the air
this month as the Brussels
Summer Festival (12-21
August, bsf-brussels
summerfestival.be) brings
more than 30 concerts to
bars, clubs and open-air
stages in the Mont des
Arts. Nick Haslam is
our city guide
PLACE ROYALE
Flanked by graceful 18th-century
buildings, Place Royale sits at the
cultural core of the city centre.
SLEEP Best Western Hotel Royal Centre
(160 Rue Royale, bestwestern.com,
tel. (0)2 219 0065, rooms from €79) is
a smart, modern hotel within minutes of
both the Royal Palace and Grand’Place.
EAT Kwint (1 Mont des Arts, tel. (0)2
505 9595) is an eclectic blend of
restaurant, delicatessen and art gallery,
with a series of rippling sculptures which
seem to flow from the bar. Foie gras,
truffles and wild salmon are all on offer.
The Bozar Brasserie (Palais des Beaux-
Arts, 3 Rue Baron Horta, tel. (0)2 503
0000) in the centre for fine arts is
slightly lighter on the pocket, with an
excellent menu of European cuisine.
CULTURE The Royal Palace (16 Rue
Brederode, monarchie.be) is open for
two months every summer, showing
priceless art and furniture from all over
the world. Don’t miss the new ceiling in
the hall of mirrors, made up of more
than a million shells from scarab beetles.
In an art deco former department store,
the Musical Instruments Museum (2 Rue
Montagne de la Cour, mim.be) features
four floors of instruments, with an audio
system that enables you to listen to them.
INFO
Brussels Airport is
15km northeast of
the city in Zaventem.
Train Trains depart
every 15 minutes
at peak times for
Brussels’ three
main stations.
The journey takes
25 minutes and
costs €5.
Bus The bus
station is a level
below the arrivals
hall. The 12 to the
city centre departs
every 30 minutes;
one-way tickets
cost €3.
Taxi The journey
to the city centre
costs €25-€35 and
takes 25 minutes.
Tourist offi ce
The main offi ce is
on the Grand’Place
(tel. (0)2 513 8940,
visitbrussels.be).
Leafy luxury in the
pretty garden of
hotel Le Châtelain
LATER The Marquee (20-22 Rue Sainte-
Anne) is a club that’s popular with the
well-heeled young set of Brussels’
classiest quarter. International live
bands play hip-hop, funk and pop.
TIP The restaurant and café on top of
the Music Instrument Museum offers
wonderful views of the city.
CHÂTELAIN
This smart quarter of prosperous
terraced houses set around leafy
squares features many small shops
and friendly bars, which overflow
on to the pavement during hot
summer days.
SLEEP Le Châtelain (17 Rue du Châtelain,
tel. (0)2 646 0055, le-chatelain.com,
rooms from €99), just off the fashionable
Avenue Louise in the heart of this
quarter, is a stylish, comfortable hotel
with a private garden. There’s also a
fitness centre on the top floor.
You can book
your train tickets
from the airport to
Brussels city centre
on our website. See
brusselsairlines.com
for details.
PIERRE CHARPIN AU GRAND-HORNU
> 11.09.2011
VINGT ANNÉES DE TRAVAIL
EAT La Piola (2 Rue du Page, tel. (0)2
538 9129) serves the best Italian food
in the quarter, with an excellent-value
lunch menu and a lovely leafy courtyard
for an aperitif after 6pm. Quincaillerie
(45 Rue du Page, tel. (0)2 533 9833),
in a restored ironmonger’s shop, serves
top brasserie food.
SHOP Les Petits Riens (101 Rue
Américaine) is an extraordinary charity
shop that sprawls over three floors,
selling everything from retro clothing to
bicycles – you may well pick up a bargain.
Eden (27 Rue du Page) sells tea from
all over the world – sample a few before
choosing the brew for you.
BOURSE
This bustling downtown area
minutes from the Grand’Place has
leading fashion shops, the city’s
best cafés and the lovely opera
house within easy walking distance.
SLEEP Brussels Marriott (3-7 Rue
Auguste Orts, tel. (0)2 516 9090,
marriott.com, rooms from €129) offers
elegant rooms just five minutes from
Grand’Place. Plaza Hotel, (118-126
Boulevard Adolphe Maxlaan, tel. (0)2 278
0100, leplaza-brussels.be, rooms from
€200) is owned by Baron Jean van Gysel
de Meise, so expect well-bred luxury.
The hotel has a fascinating history, with
famous faces from Winston Churchill
to Brigitte Bardot passing through its
doors since it opened in the 1930s.
EAT Comme Chez Soi (23 Place Rouppe,
tel. (0)2 512 2921) specialises in French
cuisine, with menus ranging from a
simple lunch to a seven-course dinner
served in an elegant art deco salon.
Le Kokob (10 Rue des Grands Carmes,
tel. (0)2 511 1950) serves up Ethiopian
food and live music.
www.grand-hornu-images.be
†PER COUNTRY PER CAPITA
*PRICES QUOTED ARE FOR A RETURN TICKET IN B.LIGHT ECONOMY FROM OR TO BRUSSELS, ALL TAXES AND FEES INCLUDED, IF BOOKED ON BRUSSELSAIRLINES.COM. TICKETS ARE NOT CHANGEABLE, NOR REFUNDABLE. PRICES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT PRIOR NOTICE