This guide to know the best of Brussels in 3 days It will help you organize the daily routes in the best way to not miss anything important of the capital of Europe.
During the first two days you will have visited all the interesting places of the historic center and the Sablon neighborhood, as well as other more remote places such as the Atomium and the European Quarter. On this third day, we suggest you visit one of the Belgian cities, located among the most beautiful in Europe such as Bruges, Ghent, Antwerp or Leuven.
This practical guide to travel Brussels in three days It is based on the experience of our two trips, the first combining Bruges and Brussels and the second knowing Ghent, Leuven and Antwerp.
Practical advice for traveling to Brussels
These practical tips can help you prepare a trip to Brussels:
- To get to your hotel or the city center from one of the two airports in the city, you have several alternatives: train, bus, taxi or this convenient direct transfer to the hotel. More information in this post on how to go from Brussels airport to downtown.
- To stay in Brussels we recommend the Hotel Park Inn by Radisson Brussels Midi, with very good connection to the airport and 15 minutes walk from the center. In addition to its excellent location to visit other Belgian cities by train, it has a 24-hour reception and one of the best quality / price ratios in the city. For more information you can consult this post about where to stay in Brussels.
- To have the best gastronomic experience in the city, we recommend following this list of restaurants to eat in Brussels.
- The price of the public transport ticket is 2.10 euros, the day ticket 7.5 euros and 10 tickets cost 14 euros, all are valid for the bus, subway and tram.
- If you are going to visit a nearby city by train it is advisable to do it on the weekend, when there is a 50% discount on trains. Keep it in mind to save money in Brussels.
- If you are under 26 years of age, we recommend buying the Go Pass 10, a voucher for 10 train trips to any city in Belgium that costs a little more than 50 euros. If you are over 26 years old you have the Rail Pass that costs more than 80 euros. The same subscription can be used by several people.
- A good option to save time is to book the tourist bus that stops at all tourist attractions in the city.
For more recommendations you can consult this post of tips to travel to Brussels essential.
First day in Brussels
The Brussels in 3 days It starts early in the morning arriving at La Grand Place, one of the great jewels of Belgium. This square, surrounded by beautiful historic buildings and old guild houses, is considered one of the most beautiful in the world and how could it be otherwise, it is the perfect place to start getting to know the city.
When you leave the Great Place, you will head to Manneken Pis, passing through the impressive building of La Bolsa. After seeing the sculpture of the Manneken Pis boy and having a delicious waffle breakfast, you can follow the route until you reach Le Sablon neighborhood, an elegant neighborhood full of chocolate shops and antique dealers, which we also recommend visiting inside the Palace of Justice, Enter the beautiful Notre-Dame du Sablon church and enjoy the atmosphere of the Place du Petit Sablon and the Place du Grand Sablon.
Once all the visits to the neighborhood are finished, you can recover energy by eating some of the delicious local dishes at the C'est Bon C'est Belge restaurant.
In the afternoon, with the route of Brussels in three days You will pass in front of the Art Nouveau building of the Old England, on the way to the Brussels Park, where we recommend you stop for a few minutes to enjoy its architecture.
In addition to walking through nature, in this park we suggest you visit the halls of the great Royal Palace, another of the essential places to visit in Brussels.
Brussels Royal Park
When you leave the palace, you can walk to the Cathedral of San Miguel and Santa Gúdula, the most important church in the city, which you cannot miss.
After visiting the interior of the cathedral you will return to the center to see the shops of the famous Saint Hubert Galleries as well as some of the most popular stores in this area, located around the Grand Place, where you can find some Belgian chocolate shops such as the Famous Godiva
A good opportunity for sweet lovers is to book this chocolate tour with a guide in Spanish.
A few meters from the galleries is Delirium Café, one of the most recommended breweries in Brussels, which we hope you will know first hand. And if you are one of those who like beer very much, nothing better than booking this beer tour with a guide in Spanish that includes tasting various types of Belgian craft beer.
Do not miss the Jeanneke Pis, the girl version of the Manneken Pis, next to the Delirium Café, which you can not miss taking a picture and a visit.
To finish the Brussels in 3 days You can take a walk through the acclaimed Rue des Bouchers and the illuminated Grand Place, one of the best things to do in Brussels.
In this area you can dine some good mussels and chips at Le Marmiton, one of the most popular restaurants in the city.
(Extended information of the first day in Brussels here)
Map of the first day of Brussels in three days
Second day in Brussels
The second day of Brussels in 3 days It begins with a route through the murals of the most famous Belgian comics such as Tintin and Lucky Luke. To find these murals painted on house facades you can buy a map at the tourist office or book this interesting guided tour in Spanish, which we are sure, will not leave you indifferent.
To complete this route you can visit the Comic Museum, which exposes several mythical objects of these comics. Remember that admission to this museum and others in the city is free if you buy the Brussels Card.
To get to the next stop of the day you will have to take bus 71 at the Arenberg stop, which will take you to the European Quarter where the European Parliament is located, which can be visited for free, the headquarters of the Council of the European Union, the Official headquarters of the European Commission and the quiet Leopold Park.
A good way to know the history of this neighborhood and not miss anything is to book this free tour with a guide in Spanish Free !.
Visit the European Quarter in Brussels in 3 days
If you have finished the route through the neighborhood in Leopold Park, you will be within walking distance of the Cinquantenaire Park, the next stop of the Brussels in three days. This popular park has several interesting places such as the Arc de Triomphe, the Autoworld Museum and the Museum of Military History.
Near this area and if you are tired From Belgian food, you can eat good Italian food at the Costa D'Amalfi, one of the most recommended restaurants in the city.
In the afternoon the Brussels in 3 days continue taking the subway to reach the Basilica of the Sacred Heart, which has excellent views from its terrace and then take the subway line 6 to reach the Atomium, another of the city's icons. A few meters from this monument is the fun Mini Europe park, perfect for children and adults if you have extra time in the area.
As sunset approaches we recommend you return to the center by subway to make the last purchases in the Rue Neuve shopping street and enjoy the atmosphere at this time of day.
To finish in the best way this second day of Brussels in 3 days You can dine at the Grimbergen Cafe, located in the setting Place Ste. Catherine.
(Extended information of the second day in Brussels here)
Second day map
What to see in Brussels in 3 days
The third day of what to see in Brussels in 3 days We propose an excursion to one of the most incredible places to see in Belgium such as Ghent, Bruges or Antwerp.
The first recommendation for the last day of Brussels in three days It is Bruges, a World Heritage Site and one of the most beautiful medieval cities in the world. There are numerous places to visit in Bruges such as the Grote Mark or the Muelle del Rosario, although for us the best way to get to know the city is to follow this route from Bruges on a day that will take you through all the charming corners.
To get to Bruges from Brussels you can take one of the trains that leave every half hour from the Midi, Central or North stations, in the direction of Ostend. In an hour you will arrive at the Bruges station which is about 20 minutes walk from the historic center. If you don't want to walk you can take a bus that has the exit right in front of the station.
Another more comfortable way to get to Bruges and not miss anything important is to book this bus tour from Brussels with a guide in Spanish.
Witches
The second city that we propose to visit in the Brussels in 3 days It is Ghent, another of Belgium's medieval jewels. Among the most beautiful places to visit in Ghent are the Graslei and Korenlei docks surrounded by old guild houses, the San Miguel Bridge, the San Bavón Cathedral, the Castle of the Counts of Flanders and the views from the Belfort bell tower. Although for us, as happened in Bruges, it is best to follow this route from Ghent on a day in which you will know all the points of interest and experiences offered by the city.
To go from Brussels to Ghent you can take a train towards Ostend, from one of the 3 main stations in Brussels, which will take you to St-Pieters station in half an hour. If you do not want to walk half an hour to get to the old part, you can take tram 1 that will leave you in the center.
Another option to learn more about the history of the city and its curiosities is to book this excursion to Ghent with a guide in Spanish from Brussels.
If you only have one day and want to see Ghent and Bruges you can book this excursion to the two cities from Brussels with a guide in Spanish.
Ghent
The third proposal of the Brussels in three days It is Antwerp, another of the most beautiful and easy-to-visit cities from Brussels. The impressive train station, the Cathedral, the Grote Markt, the Vlaeykensgang Alley or the House of Rubens, are just some of the most essential places to visit in Antwerp.
You can meet all these places by following this itinerary in Antwerp in one day.
To get to Antwerpen-Centraal station in Antwerp you can take a train from Brussels Midi, North or Central, which takes 40 minutes and then walk to the city center, in about 20 minutes, passing through the diamond district which is located a few meters from the station.
If you want a more comfortable alternative and better know the history of the city you can book this excursion to Antwerp or this one that includes the city of Ghent. Both leave from Brussels and have a guide in Spanish.
For more information you can read this post on how to go from Brussels to Antwerp.
Antwerp
Remember that the price of the train ticket to know these three cities is around 15 euros the journey and a good way to save is to buy the weekend ticket at half price.
If you already know these 3 cities, other of the best excursions in Brussels with a guide in Spanish are:
- Excursion to Amsterdam, located 3 hours by bus and two hours by high-speed train from Brussels.
- Excursion to Leuven, a beautiful university city located half an hour by train from Brussels.
