Archive for the Brussels category
Thursday, Aug 24th, 2006
Categories: Brussels
Feeling increasingly ropey from too much beer and too little sleep, we started our day with a fry up courtesy of Bridie!
Suitably refuelled, we headed to Brussels@Heart Hostel – a self contained 1 bed ground floor apartment that sleeps 4. Great location 10 minute walk from Grand Place, 2 minutes to closest metro on a quiet residential street. High on the contemporary design features, clean with modern décor and art on the walls. Small private patio area to enjoy your breakfast. Almost like having your own apartment in Brussels – great if you want independence, and not relying on your accommodation for meeting people. Carmelo the host seems like a top fella.
With a brief gap in the schedule we’d been tipped off that the Royal Palace was open to the public. Apparently it’s open access for a fortnight each year when the King decides to take his summer holiday. Loads of very similar looking rooms differentiated only by the colour of the tables and chairs in each….except the main ballroom which was bling-tastic, painted gold and covered in mirrors and chandeliers. Definitely worth the detour!
Next up was Hotel Royotel to say hello to Sohail. The property’s a one star hotel near the botanical gardens and financial district. Sohail was manning the small reception area, and was eager to have a chat with us. After a quick refreshment we went upstairs to check out the rooms. All would meet your basic needs – bed, tv, bathroom en-suite, sleeping any number from 2 to 6 people per room.
Our penultimate appointment for the day was Monty Design Hotel. In a well manicured part of town, 2 minutes from the metro and a decent stroll to the centre of town. The building’s a large old end-of-terrace house that juxtaposes with the ultra-modern design interior. Grey and red rule from the moment you step into the front garden to be greeted by a full size shiny red cow. Plenty of attention to detail in this boutique hotel – from Campari bottle lamps over the dining table to replica microwave televisions in each bedroom. All en-suite with mini bars perfect for backpackers looking to treat themselves to something a little different for a night or two. The surrounding area has plenty of life – supermarkets, bars and restaurants abound. Nice communal breakfast/dining room and lounge area to meet others.
Back to Bridies Bed & Breakfast to pick up our bags and have a chat with Bridie. The place is run single-handedly by Bridie – a number of rooms spread over 2 floors. From self catering apartment to themed rooms, she seems to have the lot (the Irish look in the James Joyce room and a pure state-side feel in Ralph Lauren). A comfortable lounge/breakfast area with lots of character and oodles of charm…a definite home from home. 1 minute from Simonis Metro, 2 minutes from the Brussels Basilica, and strolling distance from the centre of town, this place is ideal to get away from the hustle bustle of city life and enjoy some rest and relaxation. Bridie, goes out of her way to make sure you enjoy your stay in Brussels!
After a Eu10 menu near ther Gare Du Midi (we’re budget traveller after all!) and a quick Duvel stop at the local off license, it was back on the Eurostar….which we found out still let you on if you arrive 5 minutes before departure!!
Comprehensive list of Brussels Hostels
For more information on getting around Brussels go to Planitram Brussels
Thursday, Aug 24th, 2006
Categories: Brussels
Up early on day two to head to Hotel Mirabeau at 10.30. We turned up and met Jean Claude, chilling behind the desk. He runs the place alone with 2 maids, and couldn’t show us round –rooms not clean yet and no one else to look after the desk. Nice big reception area, doubling as a lounge and breakfast bar – there was a big spread on at the time.
On to Hotel Opera Brussels, situated near Place Du Opera, and just around the corner from a maze of narrow touristy streets with a million and one great looking seafood restaurants. Ben met us and took us on a tour of this budget two star hotel. The entrance was narrow, but we got out of the lift on the first floor by the breakfast room and the place opened out a bit. Doubles, triples and quads were all extremely clean and airy, each room having a good bathroom ensuite, large windows with street scenes and tvs.
Back up towards the other end of Rue de Brouchier we found our next stop – Hotel Moon. A family run budget hotel – one of 2 in Brussels owned by 2 brothers, and a third on the cards soon. We had a chat with Shaquil, who then showed us round the place. A clean and tidy hotel with a consistently decent standard of rooms – doubles and triples. Most seem to have small balconies looking over the Place Agora Plein, where there’s a small market selling various tourist trinkets…all very pleasant. Great location if you want to stay somewhere central with a view.
The last stop of the day was the Hotel Arlequin. Our contact there, Kalid, was on holiday, so we had the pleasure of being entertained by Eric who’d just started a couple of weeks ago. Great hospitality and some seriously indepth knowledge of the hotel industry. The property is undergoing some renovation at the minute, but remaining open in the meantime – by Christmas they’re hoping to be upgraded to a 4* hotel. A comfortable and spacious hotel, very central. 7 floors of en-suite double rooms, the top 3 floors being “Executive”.
After the hard day’s graft it was back to Bridies for a quick siesta…then back on to our appreciation of Brussles in the form of a bier rollercoaster. Having sampled a mighty pizza from one of Brussels’ many eateries, we spent a good while finding a cash machine (they are few and far between so if you find one make a mental note). From there we continued to the splendid Delirium Bar, minutes from the Grand Place. Once inside you are greeted by an award from the Guinness Book of records for being the bar with the most types of beer in the world, notching up a phenomenal 2004. Prepare to be flabbergasted by the Bible-sized menu! Adding to that, live bands every night and continuing the bizarre Belgian tradition of sticking the contents of a car boot sale to the walls and ceilings, again, very kitsch.
Comprehensive list of Brussels Hostels
For more information on getting around Brussels go to Planitram Brussels
Thursday, Aug 24th, 2006
Categories: Brussels
The land of beer, chips and chocolate seemed as good a place as any on the list to volunteer our services.
Andy and I set off towards Waterloo after a long Monday at work to jump on the Eurostar. 2.5 hours and a security scare later (Andy was left stranded on a train platform after nipping out for a fag, only to be dragged back in the terminal by a rather burly French Eurostar employee!) we were in the heart of Brussels. We made it to our accommodation – Bridies B&B, to be greeted by our smiling host.
By the time we’d settled in it was getting on a bit, but we thought we’d head into the centre to see if anything was going on. Sure enough, after a quick stroll round the Grand Place (Brussels’ main square and the centre of the historic district) we took a back street and stumbled across a gem of a drinking establishment – Goupil Le Fol. Described as abracadabrament by the locals, a shrine to all things cabaret and kitsch.
This place has been running since 1900, and is jammed full of theatre paraphernalia from floor to ceiling over a labyrinth of 3 floors. We enjoyed our first beer in Brussels sat between a full on 1950’s Wurlitzer blasting out old Edith Piaf numbers and a 3 foot bird cage, containing a statue of Virgin Mary and bust of Mozart peeping through the bars. An hour here was plenty, so we cracked on to find somewhere a bit more lively…..a trawl of the streets at 2 am inevitably brought us to one of Brussels 2 Irish Bars – Celtica. Rammed to the rafters with backpacker types, stag do-ers and locals alike, the dance floor was heaving, with barely enough room to raise a beer glass to your lips. This didn’t stop us having a boogie as the DJ worked his way through a latino, cheesy pop, disco set, finishing up with some classic old school house. 3am and we were starting to feel it….jumped in a Eu7 taxi back to Bridies to get some well earned rest.
Comprehensive list of Brussels Hostels
For more information on getting around Brussels go to Planitram Brussels
