After the Bruges Marathon: Brussels
The Route: Brugge → Brussels-Central → Brussels Airport Logistics: SNCB train, about 1 hour to 1 hour 30 minutes depending on the service, with trains every 30 minutes or so. The Grand-Place is a few minutes' walk from Brussels-Central. Marathon Month: October Duration: 2 nights
Brugge ──(1-1.5 hrs, SNCB)──> Brussels-Central
│
Brussels Airport (BRU) <──(about 20 mins, SNCB)──┘
The Bruges Marathon finishes on the Grote Markt on a Sunday in October. Brussels is the best base for a longer stay, because it has the most museums, the most restaurants and a quick train to the airport.
October in Brussels: the average high is about 13°C and the days are short, with rain likely. Indoor museums carry the plan. Many close on Mondays, so use the first day for the Grand-Place and a slow walk, and keep the museums for Tuesday. Check opening hours.
Trains from Brugge reach Brussels-Central in about an hour and a half or less. Belgian rail has no advance fares, so there is nothing to book early. Choose a train that stops at Brussels-Central, which is nearest the old town.
Nights One and Two: Brussels
The Grand-Place is a cobbled square about 110 by 68 metres, with guild houses and the town hall. The cobbles are uneven and the cafés give frequent seats. The streets down toward the Bourse are gentler than the climb to the Mont des Arts.
The Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium and the Magritte Museum share a group of buildings, with lifts and a cloakroom, and a combined ticket costs around €15. The Musical Instruments Museum, in an Art Nouveau department store, has a lift and headphones that play the instruments; entry is around €12. The Horta Museum has steep stairs, so skip it. The Belgian Comic Strip Center, in a Horta-designed warehouse, costs around €14 and has lifts.
The Galeries Royales Saint-Hubert, a glass-roofed arcade, is level and dry. The Sablon, a district of antique shops and chocolatiers, is uphill from the Grand-Place, so take tram 92 or 94 instead of walking. The Parc du Cinquantenaire is a flat 30-hectare park reachable by metro line 1.
Maison Antoine on Place Jourdan is a frites stand that is the cheapest refuel. Fin de Siècle on Rue des Chartreux serves carbonnade and stoemp at long tables.
For a room, Hotel Amigo, just off the Grand-Place, is near Brussels-Central. Hotel Métropole on Place de Brouckère is a grand old hotel with a lift and a ground-floor café. Check the walk from the station for slopes.
On the second day, take the metro or a tram instead of walking between districts. The Cathedral of St Michael and St Gudula is a short level walk from Brussels-Central and is free to enter, though the treasury and the tower may charge. The Parc du Cinquantenaire has wide, level paths with the Autoworld museum and the Royal Museum of Art and History nearby. The Atomium is level once you reach it, but the exhibition spreads over spheres joined by escalators and tubes, so check access before buying a ticket.
Allow a long lunch. Brussels kitchens stay open through the afternoon, and a plate of stoemp with sausage or a bowl of waterzooi is a better recovery meal than a sandwich. Brussels also has a large number of pharmacies and supermarkets near the centre, which helps if you have forgotten anything for sore feet.
If the weather is dry, the Mont des Arts gardens are a flat, paved stop between the museums and the station, and the view from the steps shows the Hôtel de Ville spire across the roofs. The ascent from Brussels-Central is a gentle slope for about 300 metres. Use the lift in the Place Royale museum entrance if you want to avoid the steps.
Getting to Brussels Airport (BRU)
Brussels-Central to Brussels Airport takes about 20 minutes, with trains several times an hour. The airport station is under the terminal. Check the SNCB planner, because tickets to the airport station can carry a small supplement.