The Charm of Brussels

Brussels, the capital of Belgium is a beautiful city. The places to see in Brussels cannot be exhausted in a short article. Nevertheless, some of the highlights of Brussels are Grand Place, Town Hall, Mannekin Pis, Galeries St Hubert, Mont Des Arts, European Union, Ommegang Festival, The Museum of Musical Instruments, The Belgian Center for Comic Strip Art, The Dinosaur Gallery at the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences, The Cantillon Brewery, The Cantillon Brewery, Cathedral of Saints Michel and Gudule, Palais de Justice, Palais Royale, Royal Greenhouses, Place du Grand Sablon, Place du Petit Sablon, Museum Horta among several others.

Grand Place is one of the most beautiful buildings constructed in Gothic style in 13th century. It is the major city center where you can enjoy the Belgian hospitality at a terrace café. It is now listed under the UNESCO heritage. The town hall within the Grand Place will charm you with its Gothic architecture and wired façade. The building is 315 feet high with Archangel St Michael at its top.

The little boy peeing in a fountain (Mannekin Pis) has been amusing visitors since almost four centuries. The visiting heads of states have traditionally offered their national dress to the naked boy that is housed in the Brussels museum. Galeries St Hubert built in 1847 is the first shopping arcade of Europe dotted with cafes, shops, and theatres. Mont Des Arts located midway in the city is rich in museums and monuments attracting tourists.

Brussels has large chain hotels such as Hilton and Marriott. The upper end hotels in luxury category offer discounts up to 70 and 75 percent as often announced in their websites. If you carefully select your hotel to stay you might discover that the five star hotels are priced less after discount than four or three stars. The luxury hotels can be priced as low as Euro 70, while a lesser starred hotel can cost you 9 to 10 Euro more.

While selecting the hotels location is an important consideration. The location can considerably affect the tariff per night in a hotel. The hotels located near Grand Place that have a number of sites of tourism importance such as museums, and shopping centers can be relatively expensive. As for instance a four star hotel located in the centre of the city may cost as much as a five star hotel located at a distance. Although most of the hotels are expensive in Brussels, the cheaper ones can be found in the range of 50 Euro.