Just back from a 4 night stay in Brussels to attend Andre Rieu concert. Thought I would share my views on Brussels in general with you. I have a completely different outlook on this trip as I would normally have as my mum had to use a walking stick and was a bit slow on her feet and I was more aware of the facilities (or lack of) for disabled/older/infirm visitors.
Had provisionally booked both the Carrefour de l%26#39;Europe and the Dominican Hotel earlier in the year as I couldn%26#39;t decide which one would best suit my mum%26#39;s needs. Cancelled both last Monday as she was ill and didn%26#39;t think we could travel. However Wednesday brought good news that she could, and I telephoned the Dominican who very kindly reinstated our original booking. Delighted with the choice - Fab hotel and when I saw the Carrefour was glad with my choice as I thought the Carrefour may be a bit noisy around the vicinity whereas the Dominican was a haven of tranquility (hotel review to follow).
Took train into Gare Central (2.90euro each).This is where the problems started with regards to disabled facilities. The step from the train to the platform was sooo high, a very kind gentleman had to practically lift my mother onto the platform whilst I struggled with the bags. Took taxi to hotel (10 euro) which when I realised we were so close to was a rip-off. The driver had obviously taken us on a scenic route as the station is practically around the corner from the hotel.
Hotel was fab and would highly recommend (even more so if you can get a special offer). Very pleasant receptionist checked us in and directed us to our room. We initially thought we would only be able to drop our bags off as checkin was at 3.00pm (we were there before 11.00am). Found our bearings and wandered over to the Grand Place (around the corner). What a beautiful place. I could have easily lain down in the centre of the square and gazed in amazement at the beautiful architecture for the day. As we were feeling hungry we ventured into Rue des Bouchers area. Had a pretty non-descript meal in a non-descript restaurant at astronomical price (69 euro for lunch and 2 glasses of wine). The guy out on the street had heard my mum saying to me she would like fish and harangued her (and I to a degree) to eat in the restaurant. Only for this trip was about her and for her, I wouldn%26#39;t have eaten in this place at all. The touting for business in this area is downright annoying, challenging to avoid and basically harassment. They all seemed to %26#39;latch on%26#39; to my mum as she was slower in her ability to get away from them and so obviously more polite than I was to them!. There is absolutely nothing endearing about this area at all. We went into a Chineese restaurant on the Friday evening and I left in disgust. The place was grubby, menu cards greasy and the tops of the condiment bottles left a lot to be desired. Never Again!
Following day brought torrential rain in the morning. I asked another friendly receptionist if there were any shopping malls in the vicinity (to keep my mum under cover) and she directed us to %26quot;the main shopping street in Brussels%26quot; - Rue Neuve (again only around the [another] corner). Nothing spectacular about it - chain stores with a mall at the end of the street (?city2). Reminded me of Henry Street in Dublin if any readers are familiar with it. However we spent a couple of hours in the Inno Department store and both of us did a bit of damage to the Credit Cards!. Dinner that night in Ricotta %26amp; Parmessan over the road from the hotel (highly recommended).
Opentop bus trip of the city on Saturday morning. Took a red bus tour (thank you to previous poster who recommend the red/blue as opposed to the green/yellow ones). Very pleasant bus driver sent my mum on up the stairs (another ordeal!) whilst I queued to pay. Reduction for her as an OAP - think it worked out around 34 euro for both of us.
Nice to see the city - we didn%26#39;t get off at any of the stops (my mother and her stick again!). Stopped at the Cathedral on the way back to the hotel and again back over to Inno to buy more.
Concert Saturday night at Heyzel Stadium. One of the two highlights of our trip and the reason we travelled. Taxi out and back as I didn%26#39;t want to chance the metro with that dreaded walking stick.
Other highlight came on Sunday when we took train to Bruge (those blasted high steps on the trains presented themselves again!). Thanks to Gaminari and the post to Casperica a few days ago I knew exactly where to go. BTW - Why don%26#39;t you have a Destination Expert badge Gaminari?. Will have to see about that!
Bruge - What a delight! Took the little sightseeing minibus around the streets (Great value at 11.50 each). Our driver was a delight and such a character. Anyone staying in Brussels MUST take the train to Bruge (1 hour trip)After much deliberation we bought our chocolates at the Dumon Shop. What a treat and highly recommended. The NICEST chocolates I have ever tasted (and I%26#39;ve tasted a few in my time!!. Those and the Champagne Truffles from Corne Port Royalin Galeries St Hubert will add inches to my waistline by the time I have them all scoffed!
Hotel booked us taxi to the Airport on Monday morning (50 euro).
Now for my observations:
Brussels being the %26#39;unofficial%26#39; capital of the EU is a disgrace with regards to disabled facilities. Pedestrian crossings didn%26#39;t have ramps or those little bubbly stones to let blind people know they are at at a crossing. My mum had a terrible time trying to climb up and down at the crossings. Being cognisant of the fact that the old town would have cobbled streets didn%26#39;t excuse the uneven walkways, uprooted cobbles etc. I probably wouldn%26#39;t even have been aware of how bad the facilities were if it wasn%26#39;t for her. Only saw one person in a wheelchair and her companion was having difficulties trying to navigate.
BRING CASH and don%26#39;t depend on ATM Machines. The lack of visible ATM machines is crazy. I saw one in Brussels (in that City2 place) and one on the main square in Bruge. I actually ran out of cash and had to borrow from my mum!
Anyone we encountered were very friendly and helpful and very respectful towards my mother (and her stick - my how I hated the rattle of it by yesterday!!!). One of the more endearing qualities of the city is its people.
Due to the fact that my mum was out of sorts to a degree we may have missed out on some of the special qualities Brussels may have, and didn%26#39;t get to see the museums etc (did see Mannequin Pis though in his little Tuxuedo!) or eat in any %26#39;fancy%26#39; restaurants. However the city didn%26#39;t endear itself to me in any great form and I would have no great desire to return. I would however recommend travelling on the further hour by train and staying in Bruge - which I will add to my %26#39;to do list%26#39; and maybe have a day trip to Brussels instead.
Absolutely no problem with language. Everyone speaks fluent English. I was worried that my school learnt French over 20 years ago would cause me hastle.
I in no way mean or intend to insult any of the regulars on this forum - and appreciate the help I have gotten over the past few months in preparation for the trip and hope they take my observations for what they are - my own personal experiences/opinions.
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Fortunately our stay worked out a little better, the Thon Residence Florence proved to be a very good choice and away from the main Tourist Trap of Grand Place.
I hear what you say about facilities for the aged, my Mum is 70 too and she didn%26#39;t cope very well with all the stairs up and down Metro Stations, especially with a travel bag in tow! :( Everywhere seemed to have steps and its no problem for me but I think Mum felt the strain quite a lot.
We did enjoy the concert although the seats in the Heysel Stadium leave a lot to be desired!! Maybe OK for a Football match but not very comfortable for a concert. We did however have quite an experience with the Metro out which was stopped at Bockstael due to a house which almost collapsed (the Mtero runs underneath it)and we were transfered to a Metro bus then back onto the metro at Stuvyernbergh. Thankfully a sweet little French girl who could hardly speak a word of English helped us and we may have even made it on the TV .......well the camera crew was out filming.........so we think we did!
We used the %26#39;Yellow/Green%26#39; open top bus on Sunday and I did manage to get my Mum to the top of the Atomium for a fantastic view but the commentary of individual sights was poor to say the least.
You have to choose where you eat carefully, some places just don%26#39;t seem to care so long as they put food infront of you but in the main most are OK. Being as we self catered we only ate out once and it was very pleasant - Rue Jardin off Avenue Louise.
Almost all restaurants serve basic food - Seafood, Pasta or Pizza. Bru Parc was packed on Saturday night so we ended up with chips and pitta bread......should have realised that.
We had a great weekend and an adventure, my Mum loved the French/Dutch cafe culture atmosphere. I love Brussels anyway.
Glad to you had a good time in the main, at least your Mum got to see her idol.........albeit from a BIG screen as the Orchestra were so small!
Jewels
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Brussels is indeed appalling as regards facilities for disabled people, but as regards the taxi taking you for a ride - you may not have noticed the one-way system! Gare du Midi would have been a better stop with someone who couldn%26#39;t walk very well, and easier for the taxi too.
I warn people time and time again against eating in the Ilôt Sacré (rue des Bouchers) - and then other people come on here and recommend it!! I hope they read your report and then they may understand why, except for 2 exceptions (Chez Léon and Aux Armes de Bruxelles), no local would eat there (other than the ones from a local newspaper who tested it recently pretending to be tourists, who reported that it is as bad as ever).
Re ATMs, if you are talking about Brussels (can%26#39;t speak for Brugge) I think it must be a matter of recognising them or where to look for them. For example, there is one - inside - near the metro escalator on the ground floor of the Monnaie Center (building in front of the Opera House, so maybe 100m from the Dominican), and another round the corner on rue du Fossé aux Loups (the street you cross to get to rue Neuve), opposite the SAS Radisson Hotel, also they are very often to be found in glassed-in enclosures at the entrance to banks, where you have to swipe the card in a machine by the door to gain access - one of these is on the Adolphe Max side of the Monnaie Center, so again not far from your hotel.
Anyway, glad you made it and survived the cobbles etc. Just be thankful you didn%26#39;t find the Place des Martyrs, which has the twistiest ones in the city.
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