The story of Brussels
Brussels grew from Bruocsella, "settlement in the marsh", a 10th-century island town on the Senne, a river the city later paved over entirely. As the seat of the Dukes of Brabant and then the Habsburg Netherlands, it collected palaces, guildhalls, and a habit of hosting other people's governments that culminated in the EU and NATO.
Its crown jewel nearly vanished: in 1695 Louis XIV's artillery flattened the Grand Place, and the guilds rebuilt it in four defiant years of gilded Baroque, the square UNESCO now calls one of the most beautiful in the world. In 1830 an opera performance in Brussels literally sparked the revolution that created Belgium.
Curiosities: the Manneken Pis owns a wardrobe of over a thousand costumes; Brussels claims comic strips as civic heritage, with Tintin and the Smurfs both Belgian-born; and Art Nouveau was practically invented here by Victor Horta.
What it does best
The Magritte Museum and Royal Museums of Fine Arts.
Moules-frites, waffles and serious chocolate shops.
The Grand Place, one of Europe's finest squares.
Weather, month by month
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High °C | 6 | 7 | 11 | 14 | 18 | 21 | 23 | 23 | 19 | 15 | 9 | 6 |
| Low °C | 1 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 9 | 12 | 14 | 13 | 11 | 7 | 4 | 1 |
| Rain mm | 75 | 60 | 65 | 50 | 65 | 70 | 75 | 75 | 65 | 70 | 75 | 80 |
Highlighted months hit the sweet spot: comfortable highs and manageable rain. Approximate long-term normals, pack for surprises anyway.
What's on
Ghent hands its entire city centre to ten days of free music and street theatre.
The world's most theatrical electronic music festival, in the town of Boom.
Recurring annually; exact dates move around, check locally before planning a trip around one. More on the events calendar.
Budget
hostels, markets, free sights
3★ hotels, restaurants, museums
4–5★, tasting menus, taxis
Rough per-person estimates including lodging, food, sights, and local transport. Compare with other cities.
Pair it with
Build a trip around Brussels →
Photo: Francisco Conde Sánchez · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons · all credits
