Things to do in Brussels

Brussels centres on the Grand Place, a square of guild houses rebuilt within five years after French artillery levelled it in 1695. UNESCO listed it in 1998. A few streets over, the small bronze Manneken Pis has been drawing crowds since 1619.

Old town and the EU quarter

• Grand Place. Guild houses and the Gothic town hall, floodlit after dark.
• Manneken Pis. A small fountain with an outsized following; it gets dressed in costume several times a year.
• EU quarter. The Berlaymont and the European Parliament sit east of the centre, a different city in tone.
• Atomium. Nine steel spheres built for the 1958 World's Fair, still the city's biggest single structure to visit.

What people book here

Brussels sells itself two ways: games and walks. Chocolate tastings and beer-focused tours are the two food angles that come up again and again.

• Self-guided games. Scavenger hunts and mystery walks through the old town, phone-led rather than guided.
• Comic-art walk. Murals of Tintin and other Belgian comics along a marked route.
• Chocolate and beer. Tastings and short classes sit alongside walking tours built around one or the other.
• Day trips. Waterloo, Luxembourg and Dinant all run from Brussels for the day.

Practical

• Weather. Around 23C in July, 6C in January, with rain likely most months; carry something waterproof rather than trust the forecast.
• Getting around. Metro, trams and buses run on one ticket; the old town itself is walkable end to end.
• Airport. A direct train reaches the centre in well under half an hour.
• Language. French and Dutch both official here; menus and signs usually run in both plus English.
• Tipping. Already in the bill; rounding up is normal, nothing more.