Belgian travel advice

[mikeg]

Hi, I just need some practical advice on how fares work in Belgium. It'll be my first time in Belgium other than passing through on the way to somewhere else, so be gentle.
For the railways it all seems to be point to point, am I correct? But there also seems to be a zonal structure of sorts, can anyone explain more effectively than the SNCB website how this works?
Also, for buses: There's a bus journey I need to take, with De Lijn, from Leuven (where I'm staying) to Lichtaart, for Bobbejaanland. I notice the bus changes number at Herentals. Does that mean I need to tap on twice or just once? Also if the former I suppose I may as well alight at Herentals and get the shuttle bus which goes right to the park entrance.
Any routes recommended for rolling stock or scenery? I'm only there a few days, and despite its distance from Leuven have been trying to figure out if the coastal tram is worth it?

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

Oh, and a further point: I notice I can get a single ticket from Charleroi airport to Leuven, including the bus transfer, but it seems slightly cheaper to buy separate bus and rail tickets? Does the through ticket have any advantage? Or have I just done my maths wrong?

 

[AlastairFraser]

Hi, I just need some practical advice on how fares work in Belgium. It'll be my first time in Belgium other than passing through on the way to somewhere else, so be gentle.
For the railways it all seems to be point to point, am I correct? But there also seems to be a zonal structure of sorts, can anyone explain more effectively than the SNCB website how this works?
Also, for buses: There's a bus journey I need to take, with De Lijn, from Leuven (where I'm staying) to Lichtaart, for Bobbejaanland. I notice the bus changes number at Herentals. Does that mean I need to tap on twice or just once? Also if the former I suppose I may as well alight at Herentals and get the shuttle bus which goes right to the park entrance.
Any routes recommended for rolling stock or scenery? I'm only there a few days, and despite its distance from Leuven have been trying to figure out if the coastal tram is worth it?

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

Oh, and a further point: I notice I can get a single ticket from Charleroi airport to Leuven, including the bus transfer, but it seems slightly cheaper to buy separate bus and rail tickets? Does the through ticket have any advantage? Or have I just done my maths wrong?

For longer Belgian railway journeys, I'd recommend SNCB's carnet tickets, detailed here. They are by far the cheapest way to do longer journeys (especially if you have concessions based on your age) and are very easy to use.

Link to info on them here: https://www.belgiantrain.be/en/tickets-and-railcards/railpass.

As for DeLijn, the day ticket is only €7.50 for all services operated by them (nearly all buses or trams in Flanders) , and the Coast Tram, plus Ghent/Antwerp's system are definitely worth exploring. You can do all of these in one day with planning (including a combination of DeLijn buses between Ghent and Antwerp to bridge the gap between tram systems).

As for Charleroi Airport to Leuven, I'd need to see the through and single tickets you were comparing to advise, because the TEC bus ticket structure is complex and some cheaper tickets are not valid on the Charleroi airport express buses (there are non-express buses, but I don't think they enter the airport proper and are infrequent.)

 

[rvdborgt]

With De Lijn, you tap in on every bus. Any subsequent tap-in that is within 1 hour of the first is registered as a change and not charged again. After one hour has passed, you can finish your journey in the vehicle you're in, but a new tap-in will charge a new ticket.
Belgian railways charge per km. Stations in cities may be grouped together in zones, to/from which the fare is the same. There are some age discounts, and there's weekend return ticket with almost 50% discount. Check the tickets page on the NMBS/SNCB website.
The TEC bus lines from/to the airport have a separate fare, so just buy a single. There are 3 such bus lines, so which one are you planning to take?
The coastal tram is certainly worthwhile. I like the part between Oostende and De Panne most (partly on the seaside of the dunes), although the village I like most, De Haan, is between Oostende and Blankenberge.
Scenery is good on all lines through the Ardennes: Liège-Gouvy, Namur-Arlon, Liège-Marloie, Namur-Bertrix-Rodange.

 

[AlastairFraser]

Scenery is good on all lines through the Ardennes: Liège-Gouvy, Namur-Arlon, Liège-Marloie, Namur-Bertrix-Rodange.

I'd also mention Charleroi to Couvin if the OP can spare the time to get to deepest Wallonia! Very good railway museum at Mariembourg (check opening times beforehand, of course).

 

[JRT]

Mariembourg – Treignes railway service is sometimes steam (there's a larger railway museum at Treignes)

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 1 Aug 2024 ==

If you're 65+ there's an € 8.30 cheap day return ticket (after 9 am) for any return trip in Belgium. Used it a few times, even when making a single journey.

 

[mikeg]

Hi, thanks all for your replies so far.

The TEC bus lines from/to the airport have a separate fare, so just buy a single. There are 3 such bus lines, so which one are you planning to take?

I was planning of going on the A2 to Fleurus and picking up the train to Leuven from there. I note that a single on the TEC bus A2 is according to the website €6, but a train ticket costs €9.80 from Fleurus to Leuven. I now see why it is that the combined ticket is more expensive at over €17: It's a Charleoi Airport ticket and valid to anywhere in Belgium. It's actually very good value in that case, but in my case it makes sense to buy separate tickets from the Airport to Fleurus and Fleurus to Leuven.
Seems like I'd misread that, you can buy a Charleroi ticket to anywhere in Belgium, but it's location specific and the price varies. Also the TEC website says €6 for the Airport buses yet SNCB is quoting €9.80 from Charleroi Airport to Fleurus. Which is right? Or is there a different rate for the A2?

The €7.50 day ticket for De Lijn sounds good value too.

By the way, I looked at carnets and have seriously considered them, but I don't think I'll make quite enough long mainline journeys to make it worthwhile. If I was going for longer than 4 nights this would probably have been my first port of call.

 

[rvdborgt]

Each of the airport bus lines is €6 for a single. NMBS/SNCB also sell it for that price:

The combined bus + train ticket looks to be priced via Charleroi station, so that's probably why it's more expensive than bus plus Fleurus-Leuven.
The €9.30 fare for Charleroi Airport to Fleurus is the €6 bus fare plus a train ticket Charleroi-Fleurus, which is indeed €3.30.
The bus lines from the airport to Fleurus and Luttre are relatively new; with the one bus to Charleroi it all fit nicely. I doubt however that they're going to review the combined fares via Fleurus and Luttre :/

 

[mikeg]

Thanks for the info @rvdborgt . Just to check, what is the best way to buy the TEC A2 bus ticket? Are there ticket machines or do you buy on board? From what I see there are ticket machines but it mentions some sort of smartcard on the TEC website? Obviously I'd want a paper ticket.

 

[rvdborgt]

You can also buy onboard the bus:

https://www.letec.be/View/Connection_with_Brussels_South_Charleroi_Airport/459

I'm not sure if they still accept cash though.

 

[AlastairFraser]

Thanks for the info @rvdborgt . Just to check, what is the best way to buy the TEC A2 bus ticket? Are there ticket machines or do you buy on board? From what I see there are ticket machines but it mentions some sort of smartcard on the TEC website? Obviously I'd want a paper ticket.

I think you can pay on board with a card, but there was a TEC ticket machine outside Luttre for the airport bus as well - just checked on the very good TEC app (where ticket machines are labelled as SELF - Point TEC is their Oyster ticket stop equivalent) and unfortunately no ticket machine outside Fleurus. Best bet is to buy on bus.

DeLijn day tickets are easier to buy at machines, as long as you have a card (cash accepted, but at ticket offices only I think). The location of "sales points", as they put it, is searchable here.

https://www.delijn.be/en/content/vervoerbewijzen/verkooppunten/

 

[johncrossley]

It was mentioned on here a while back that De Lijn contactless does not cap at 7.50 per day, so if you are travelling on more than 3 buses or trams in a day (allowing for free interchange within one hour) then you are better off getting a day ticket from a machine, ticket office or from the app. The day ticket is valid for 24 hours, not just the same day.

 

[ricohallo]

Thanks for the info @rvdborgt . Just to check, what is the best way to buy the TEC A2 bus ticket? Are there ticket machines or do you buy on board? From what I see there are ticket machines but it mentions some sort of smartcard on the TEC website? Obviously I'd want a paper ticket.

I managed to buy the ticket for the bus to Charleroi Central at one of the SNCB machines at Charleroi Aiport (located at the bus station), providing me with a proper paper ticket. You can also buy it on board the bus for the same price, but it will look like a pretty ordinary receipt.

 

[tel]

I'm going travelling by train around Belgium in September for 3 days, was wondering if I should be buying an Interrail Benelux ticket or singles. Getting the Eurostar to Brussels, then hoping to go to Liege, Luxembourg, Namur, overnight in Antwerp, then out to Bruges and the costal tramway with a overnight in Bruges then to Namur and Charleroi and back to Brussels for the Eurostar home.

Tel

 

[AlastairFraser]

I'm going travelling by train around Belgium in September for 3 days, was wondering if I should be buying an Interrail Benelux ticket or singles. Getting the Eurostar to Brussels, then hoping to go to Liege, Luxembourg, Namur, overnight in Antwerp, then out to Bruges and the costal tramway with a overnight in Bruges then to Namur and Charleroi and back to Brussels for the Eurostar home.

Tel

I'd go with the Belgian carnet ticket (it's officially called the SNCB Standard Multi). It's 102 euro for 10 singles on paper (or 3 euro cheaper if bought through the app), which will probably satisfy your journey plans. Then it's 7.50 euro each for 2 De Lijn 24hr tickets (you may only need one depending on your timings, whether you want to ride a bit of the Antwerp tram/premetro thing), but 2 is the max you'll need.

That comes to 114-117 euro, the Interrail 3 day Benelux seems to be 119 euro and doesn't include De Lijn trams/buses AFAIK. It depends if you want the flexibility to do more than 10 journeys (I doubt you will do more than 10 - especially as the CFL bit in Luxembourg is free, of course).

 

[tel]

I'd go with the Belgian carnet ticket (it's officially called the SNCB Standard Multi). It's 102 euro for 10 singles on paper (or 3 euro cheaper if bought through the app), which will probably satisfy your journey plans. Then it's 7.50 euro each for 2 De Lijn 24hr tickets (you may only need one depending on your timings, whether you want to ride a bit of the Antwerp tram/premetro thing), but 2 is the max you'll need.

That comes to 114-117 euro, the Interrail 3 day Benelux seems to be 119 euro and doesn't include De Lijn trams/buses AFAIK. It depends if you want the flexibility to do more than 10 journeys (I doubt you will do more than 10 - especially as the CFL bit in Luxembourg is free, of course).

Thanks very much .

 

[AlastairFraser]

Thanks very much .

No worries. Any more questions, feel free to ask away!

 

[tel]

No worries. Any more questions, feel free to ask away!

Thanks. As I'm 65 would I be better buying the senior ticket, and how does that work? Thanks again.
Just done some looking about on the Belgian website. With the senior ticket would I be correct that I would just buy a ticket when I need it say from Midi to Liege and that would be E8.30?

 

[AlastairFraser]

Thanks. As I'm 65 would I be better buying the senior ticket, and how does that work? Thanks again.

I wouldn't bother. It's a good deal for those making point-to-point returns, but you're not planning that.

According to the page on SNCB's website, you'd also have to pay more to get to border points (say Gouvy on the route from Liege, across the border to Troisvierges in Luxembourg), and you can't travel till 9am on a weekday (irritating if you're doing Namur/Charleroi from Bruges as there's a lot to explore in both cities including the intriguing Charleroi premetro, so the earlier you are able to leave, the better).

Best ticket for the TEC (Wallonian trams/premetro/buses) is the Multiflex at 14.10 Euro.
Explanation of different TEC ticket types is detailed here: https://www.letec.be/View/Multi-journey_tickets/259

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 13 Aug 2024 ==

With the senior ticket would I be correct that I would just buy a ticket when I need it say from Midi to Liege and that would be E8.30?

Yes, but it's a return and you're not returning from the same points. You'd need to buy separate for every journey and it just seems like a lot of effort, compared to the Standard Multi (which is just one large ticket that you write the day, date, journey origin and terminus for each journey on).

I meant to mention that you need to buy a small ticket from the last Belgian station (Gouvy on the way there) to the Lux border and vice versa (ticket Luxembourg to Arlon) with the Standard Multi, which is 2.50 euro each in standard class. So add 5 euro to my earlier calculations (sorry!).

Standard Multi + TEC ticket + De Lijn ticket + border crossing tickets still works out cheaper than Interrail Benelux 3 day + DeLijn + TEC ticket (Interrail option is 12 euro more expensive).

 

[parkender102]

I think you can pay on board with a card, but there was a TEC ticket machine outside Luttre for the airport bus as well - just checked on the very good TEC app (where ticket machines are labelled as SELF - Point TEC is their Oyster ticket stop equivalent) and unfortunately no ticket machine outside Fleurus. Best bet is to buy on bus.

DeLijn day tickets are easier to buy at machines, as long as you have a card (cash accepted, but at ticket offices only I think). The location of "sales points", as they put it, is searchable here.

https://www.delijn.be/en/content/vervoerbewijzen/verkooppunten/

I travelled on Sunday Afternoon from Brussels Midi to Charleroi Airport via the train with a quick change at Ottignies to Fleurus and then took Bus A2 right outside the station (every 20 mins). The driver pointed me at a Ticket Machine next to the Bus Stop at Fleurus which I paid for the ticket with Credit Card. So strictly you can't buy on the Bus at Fleurus - just get one from the machine - 6 Euros. So Brussels to Charleroi Airport around 15 Euros including the train. I was going to get the Flibco Bus and although quicker it was coming in at 20 Euros and as soon as I saw the queue outside Brussels Midi for the Flibco Bus I lost the will to live! The train journey was very scenic through some picturesque small villages and what looked an ancient ruined castle (Possibly Villers Abbey?).

 

[AlastairFraser]

I travelled on Sunday Afternoon from Brussels Midi to Charleroi Airport via the train with a quick change at Ottignies to Fleurus and then took Bus A2 right outside the station (every 20 mins). The driver pointed me at a Ticket Machine next to the Bus Stop at Fleurus which I paid for the ticket with Credit Card. So strictly you can't buy on the Bus at Fleurus - just get one from the machine - 6 Euros. So Brussels to Charleroi Airport around 15 Euros including the train. I was going to get the Flibco Bus and although quicker it was coming in at 20 Euros and as soon as I saw the queue outside Brussels Midi for the Flibco Bus I lost the will to live! The train journey was very scenic through some picturesque small villages and what looked an ancient ruined castle.

Ah, so there is a machine! Great news. That's what I used at Luttre to pay for the bus ticket. Yes, I agree that the bus and train combo is way better than Flibco.

 

[parkender102]

Ah, so there is a machine! Great news. That's what I used at Luttre to pay for the bus ticket. Yes, I agree that the bus and train combo is way better than Flibco.

Very quick journey from Fleurus on the Bus to Brussels Charleroi also - maybe 10-15 Minutes.

 

[AlastairFraser]

Very quick journey from Fleurus on the Bus to Brussels Charleroi also - maybe 10-15 Minutes.

Indeed, the comprehensive network of quite lightly used motorways in the Charleroi area makes this an easy journey. Even better would be the extension of the M3 premetro line from Gosselies to the Airport, for more options.

 

[tel]

I think it's going to be better to get the Benelux ticket, sounds hassle free, bit more expensive but easier. Trying to delete this message can't seem to able to do so.

 

[AlastairFraser]

I think it's going to be better to get the Benelux ticket, sounds hassle free, bit more expensive but easier.

Fair enough. De Lijn is also pretty easy for when you are on the trams and buses in Flanders - just get a 24hr ticket from the machine, and tap on the smart reader, which kicks off the 24hr period. Pretty much all buses or trams that you'll use in Flanders are run by them, so it's no bother at all.

 

[tel]

Fair enough. De Lijn is also pretty easy for when you are on the trams and buses in Flanders - just get a 24hr ticket from the machine, and tap on the smart reader, which kicks off the 24hr period. Pretty much all buses or trams that you'll use in Flanders are run by them, so it's no bother at all.

Thanks very much for your great help.

 

[AlastairFraser]

Thanks very much for your great help.

No worries. Enjoy! The Belgian railway system is one of the best in Europe IMHO!

 

[tel]

Hi again Alistair, with the standard Multi ticket is it only on your smartphone, and if its one station to another can i say fill Brussels to Liege and alight at Leuven then continue to Liege, or is that two separate singles?

 

[AlastairFraser]

Hi again Alistair, with the standard Multi ticket is it only on your smartphone, and if its one station to another can i say fill Brussels to Liege and alight at Leuven then continue to Liege, or is that two separate singles?

Hiya, I'll split my response into 2 points to make it clearer.
1) No, a paper one can be purchased from any railway ticket machine or office in Belgium I believe, it's 3 euros more expensive (99 euro via the app, 102 euro via the ticket).
2) Those would be 2 separate journeys, since you exited the station in between.

 

[tel]

Hiya, I'll split my response into 2 points to make it clearer.
1) No, a paper one can be purchased from any railway ticket machine or office in Belgium I believe, it's 3 euros more expensive (99 euro via the app, 102 euro via the ticket).
2) Those would be 2 separate journeys, since you exited the station in between.

Thanks, sorry for being a bit thick

 

[AlastairFraser]

Thanks, sorry for being a bit thick

No, you're not thick at all. Belgian transport, due to the complex federal system, can be incredibly complicated!