OT: Brussels - Hotels

rubertoe

The EPO has offered to take me away for my birthday (which is just before Christmas) and I quite fancy a weekend in Belgium and in particular Brussels (although open to suggestions) giving my love of the local brews.

Anyone been? Anyone recommend a decent hotel that wont break the bank? and suggest things to do while we are there (this will probably be combined with Christmas shopping trip as well)? Or should I be looking at somewhere else in Belgium (not Antwerp, she might start looking at rings....)?

Will be looking to travel on the Eurostar.

tgotb

Plenty of Pro Cyclocross races to watch, if that floats your boat:
5 Dec - Essen
6 Dec - Overijse
19 Dec - Antwerp
20 Dec - Namur (World Cup)
26 Dec - Zolder (World Cup)
27 Dec - Diegem
29 Dec - Louenhout/Wuustwezel

dhope

I'd give Airbnb a go rather than a hotel

ugo.santalucia

Hotelwise, either you break the bank or it's going to be shite... that's the reality of European capitals... to which there is no exception.

The alternative is to stay in a smaller place (not Bruges, not Gent) and a better hotel... Belgium is so small that you will hardly notice.

Bear in mind once you have seen La Grand Place and a couple of other places you can even leave Brussels behind... it's a big tourist trap where you get terrible value for money in bars and restaurants.

If you have a car go for dinner at the "molenberg", which is at the foot of the famous climb... nice restaurant in an old water mill and not overly priced for a set menu kind of fine dining...

Try Ypres for a nice town to stay at reasonable price...

arthur_scrimshaw

Go to Barcelona instead - two hour flight, better weather and food.

frazered

Thon hotels are generally ok in Belgium. I have stayed at the Thon Hotel EU http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Hotel_Review-g950780-d2293060-Reviews-Thon_Hotel_EU-Etterbeek_Brussels.html, it is not in the grand place which is tourist centraal but quite new.

you can day trip Bruges and Ghent by train quite easily. the weather is generally not good though.

graeme_s-2

I had my stag do in Brussels and then my wife took me back for my 30th Birthday, although in the summer both times.

I've very much enjoyed both trips. For the stag do we stayed in Hotel St Nicholas, which is central but pretty basic (and I imagine relatively cheap). For my birthday we stayed in the Sofitel Brussels which was really very nice, but located in the European Quarter not far from the Thon Hotel that Frazered mentioned. I've stayed in a Sofitel in Paris since then, and they seem to generally be set up for business people, so are often in business districts and very well appointed, but you can often get decent deals in them at the weekends etc. when there are fewer business travellers around.

European Quarter is a reasonable walk, or a short Villo/taxi ride from the centre.

Delerium is worth a look for beer, but is very touristy. Better than that is Moeder Lambic which is a proper specialist beer bar.

The second time I was there I used this map (since updated): http://www.use-it.travel/cities/map/2015_brussels/?zoom=2
They have a whole website about Brussels now which is here: http://brussels.use-it.travel/
I found the recommendations on the map to be really excellent.

We found we could get good food without spending a fortune, although we didn't go to any fine dining restaurants either time we were there.

stuaff

Brussels is great both for things to do and for links to the rest of the country. If culture's your thing, lots of it. Fine arts museums are excellent. Last time (May) I stayed in the Meininger Hotel- bit of a cross between a business hotel and a hostel (they have singles, doubles, family rooms and dorms), was quite a few student groups in there unsurprisingly, decent but not pricey, and a good location. Gent and Bruges are both gorgeous and well worth a visit.