Despite its reputation for being boring, there is something to do in Brussels for every single taste and style of traveller. In fact, we firmly believe only boring people are bored in Brussels. Year-round, you’ll find concerts, exhibitions, festivals, and events, in addition to the permanent attractions. With all of this choice, it’s hard to know where to begin. Below, we’ve listed what to do in Brussels if you only have a few days in the city.

1. Take a Brussels City Tour – Without a doubt, the first thing you should do on your first visit to Brussels is take a tour of the city. You can choose to visit Brussels on foot, by bike, on a bus, or even in a vintage car. There are self-guided tours on countless themes, or you can learn the cities secrets from a local expert. There are family-friendly tours, luxury private tours, and even free tours for those on a tight budget. You can read about all the options for Brussels city tours here.

2. Visit a Museum or Art Gallery – You may have heard it rains in Brussels, um, a lot. Luckily there are countless museums to enjoy, safe from the weather outside. Also, fortunately, most of the best ones are grouped closely together in the appropriately named Mont des Arts area. (Incidentally, Mont des Arts also offers a great photo op of the skyline, including Grand Place, over the formal gardens.)

Rumour has it; you can visit a different museum in Brussels every day for a year. While that’s not entirely true, there are loads from which to choose. We share our 12 top museums in Brussels in this article. In the list, you’ll find everything from musical instruments to automobiles to history to Belgian beer.

Art-lovers will be in heaven in Brussels. There are so many galleries and art museums in the city; they required an article all to themselves. Read about our 12 top art galleries, museums, and art events in this article.

3. Free Things to do in Brussels – We know travelling can be expensive, but there are plenty of budget activities in Brussels. We’ve put together a guide to the top 10 free things to do in Brussels so you can save your pennies. This guide also includes all of the free days at Brussels top museums so you can plan ahead and save a bundle!

4. Things to do with kids in Brussels – We also know (not from our own experience mind you) it can be hard to keep the kids entertained. We asked fellow expats, who are parents, to help us create a guide for Activities for Children in Brussels as well as a list of Five Teen-Friendly Activities in Brussels.

5. Enjoy a Belgian Beer – Enjoying a Belgian beer is on most people’s Brussels Bucket list. There’s more to beer in Belgium than just a refreshing drink. Belgian beer culture is so integral to the country it’s been recognised by UNESCO. While you can get a beer just about anywhere in Brussels, we share our 5 top Belgian Beer Bars, for an exceptional experience. If you want to learn more about this vital beverage, we also wrote about the top 7 beer-themed things to do in Brussels for beer-lovers.

6. Discover Art Nouveau in Brussels – Belgium is the birthplace of Art Nouveau, and you can see examples of this stunning architectural style dotted around the city. Here are the best ways to experience Art Nouveau in Brussels.

7. Visit a Belgian Spa – After all of the sightseeing, you need to relax. Do it the Belgian way, by hitting the spa. Two of our three favourite spas in Belgium are located just outside the centre of Brussels. Thermae Boetfort and Grimbergen Spa are both run by the same company. Both offer nudist and clothed sections, hammams, saunas, Jacuzzis, and relaxation areas, as well as excellent restaurants and a wide variety of treatments.

Just like Amsterdam isn’t indicative of the rest of the Netherlands, Brussels isn’t indicative of the rest of Belgium. If you’re spending any amount of time in the capital, we encourage you to get out and see some of the surrounding areas. Whether you rent a car, train, or public transportation, Belgium is relatively easy to get around. Here are a few places within easy reach of the big city.

If you enjoy nature and flowers, the National Botanic Garden, in Meise, is not to be missed. This garden, close to Brussels, has the largest greenhouse in Belgium. It is situated in a 92-hectare park, with 18000 varieties of plants. There are roses, rhododendrons, magnolias, an Iris garden, hydrangeas among many other favourites (see even more garden photos here). You can also visit the Orangery, medicinal plant garden, and various greenhouses. In the centre of the garden sits Bouchout Castle which is often open to the public for special exhibitions.

For a taste of small-town Flanders, consider a visit to Beersel. The town boasts a castle, a Michelin-starred restaurant, a beer museum, a stunning park and playground complex and more. Check out our post on 6 Things to do in Beersel.

Of course, the great thing about Brussels’ central location, and Belgium’s small size is it’s easy to get virtually anywhere in the country for a day or overnight trip. If you need more inspiration for short trips from Brussels, check out our list of the top 15 weekend getaways in Belgium. Or, if you’re looking to incorporate Brussels into a more extensive holiday in Belgium, don’t miss our Ultimate 10-Day Luxembourg & Belgium Itinerary.

1. Walking in Brussels – If you’re visiting Brussels for the first time, the best way to get around is on your own two feet. The historic core is mostly pedestrianised now, and many of Brussels tourist attractions are close together. There are plenty of walking tours, both self-guided and with professional guides, to help you get your bearings.

2. Cycling in Brussels – Although Brussels isn’t the most cycle-friendly of cities, it is getting better for visitors on two wheels. Belgians are aggressive drivers, however, and it’s best to keep to the smaller streets and designated bike paths. Brussels has a good bike sharing system we’ve explained in detail in this article. There are also some bike rental companies in the city who offer guided and self-guided cycle tours of Brussels. We loved our bike tour with Pro Velo.

3. Public Transport in Brussels – Complaining about public transport in Belgium is one of the national pastimes. In reality, Brussels’ public transportation system is cheap, efficient, and reliable (except when they go on strike; another Belgian national pastime.) It is by far the best budget option for getting around Brussels as a tourist when walking is not a possibility.

Brussels’ public transit network is called STIB (MIVB in Dutch) and primarily consists of buses, trams, and the metro (or underground) system. (There is also something known as pre-metro which is a cross between a tram and a metro, but the naming is irrelevant). What you need to know is it all works on the same ticket system. A single ride ticket allows you to use any form of transportation in the network for one hour with as many transfers as you need.

This means if you validate your ticket on a metro at 7:45 you can transfer to any other metro, tram, or bus, in the system until 8:45. Note: You must validate your ticket every time you transfer.

While tickets aren’t checked every time you enter and exit the system, like in some cities, conductors spot-check fairly regularly. (That said, the entire time I lived in Brussels, I was never spot-checked on a tram). If you don’t have a valid ticket, you will be fined.

To use the public transportation network, you need to purchase a MOBIB card. For travellers, the easiest option is the MOBIB Basic card which is anonymous and allows a variety of different ticket options. It costs €5 and is valid for five years. You can buy a MOBIB Basic card at a KIOSK or in a BOOTIK which are found at the main metro stops.

Once you have your card, you can reload it at the machines found at all of the public transportation stops or online. (If you pay on the mode of transport itself, it is more expensive) You can use the following fare options (prices are accurate at the time of publication but check online for current fares):

• 1 Journey – €2.10 – a single fare with unlimited transfers in one hour. This is the most expensive option for travel, and you should only use it if you really only need one trip. There is also a return trip option, but there is no financial saving.
• 5 Journeys – €8.00 – This allows for five different single trips up to one hour with unlimited transfers.
• 10 Journeys – €14.00 – This allows for ten different single trips up to one hour with unlimited transfers.
• JUMP 24H – €7.50 – Unlimited travel within a 24-hour period
• JUMP 48H – €14.00 – Unlimited travel within a 48-hour period
• JUMP 72H – €18.00 – Unlimited travel within a 72-hour period

Some things to note about Brussels Public Transportation tickets:

• Travel to Brussels International Airport is an additional charge as it is outside the city limits.
• Tickets do allow you to use the rail line but only within Brussels. Example: you can use your MOBIB to take the train from Brussels South Station to Brussels North Station. If you go beyond Brussels North Station, you will need to purchase a train ticket.
• Similarly, you can use your MOBIB to travel on TEC (Wallonia) and De Lijn (Flanders) buses but only within the Brussels city limits.

4. Driving in Brussels – Driving in central Brussels is not something we recommend for visitors. As mentioned above, drivers can be aggressive, the traffic is often insane, and parking is limited and expensive. Honestly, the public transportation is efficient and affordable enough driving in the city just doesn’t make a lot of sense.

There are hundreds (maybe even thousands) of hotels in the Capital Region so it can be overwhelming deciding where to stay in Brussels. We’ve done an in-depth article about Brussels top hotels for business, luxury, families, sustainability, and the all-important factor, location. We’ve listed hotels for every budget and travel-style, so head on over to our Brussels Hotel Guide.

If you are in a hurry and need to book something right now, Booking.com is the reservation service we use to get the best deals on hotels. We’ll get a small commission if you use the link below at no extra cost to you and you’ll be helping CheeseWeb keep running.

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If you’ve spent any time on CheeseWeb, you’ll know we love to write about food in Brussels. In fact, I literally wrote the book on it. If you want to know all the ins and outs of the Brussels food scene, check out The Foodie Guide to Brussels.

Everyone knows Belgium is famous for chocolate, waffles, and beer – and that’s a great starting point.

• We’ve rounded up the best chocolate shops in Brussels
• We tell you where (and how) to eat Brussels best waffles
• And Andrew has written an entire series about Belgian Beer, including a round-up of the best Belgian beer bars in Brussels.

But there’s so much more to food in Belgium, and particularly in Brussels. Read our article 5 Reasons Brussels Must be on your Foodie Bucket List and get ready to be hungry!

Because we know typical Belgian cuisine can be a mine-field for those with special diets, we created a resource for Celiac and Gluten-Free food in Brussels.

Food trucks are still relatively new additions to the Brussels food scene, but there are already some excellent ones you must check out.

Brussels also has dozens of tasty food and drink festivals throughout the year. Here are our favourites.

While typical souvenir shops abound around the Brussels, especially in the heavily touristed areas around Grand Place, we’ve always preferred to ‘shop local’ by supporting artisans and producers when we travel. Luckily there are some good options both of the edible (our favourite) and non-edible varieties. Here are a few of our personal favourites:

• If you’re looking for excellent edible souvenirs, make your way to Le Fraysse. This ‘responsible’ grocery store features bio-organic products and their selection of cheeses, preserves, meat, and even beer and spirits all come from Belgium and its neighbouring countries.
• The ultimate edible gift from Belgium is chocolate so be sure to check out our favourite Belgian chocolate shops in Brussels.
• For something slightly less melty but just as yummy, pick up a box of Maison Dandoy’s Belgian biscuits. You can’t go wrong with traditional speculoos (a spicy ginger-snap-style cookie) or try a variety box with more exotic flavours.
• Tacky t-shirts abound around Grand Place but for some clever (and local) Belgian clothing, visit Brussels Corner.
• For fashion with a Belgian sense of humour, The United States of Belgium is another excellent
• If you forgot to shop for someone while you were in Brussels (or you ran out of the fantastic chocolate) check out our guide to Belgian gifts on Amazon.