Brussels city transport advice and transport museums etc

[Vespa]

Hello all, I'm going to Brussels soon, Eurostar and hotels booked staying for 6 days, last time I rode on an Eurostar train was from Waterloo so that's going back some years

As I'm interested in rail transport obviously

What's the best tram route to cover as much ground as possible within the city, same for urban railways, is there a travel pass that can cover both transport options as well as the buses, noticed there's no trolleybus in the city unfortunately.

Is there a historical tramcar tour you can take round the city ? Transport museum to visit ?

I can speak French fairly well and Dutch not so much, I would imagine language could be a minefield in the city, is English a widely understood neutral language in the city ?


I'm also interested in history, Belgium is a fairly young country so there should be some good museums about the country and city, can you get free entry with a tourist pass or similar.

Thanks in advance

 

[James H]

The Brussels railway museum is called Train World. It'd worth a visit but is not as good as the Dutch museum in Utrecht.

If you register for Eurostar's loyalty scheme, you can show your card (on your phone) at Train World for a 5 euro discount.

There are also Club Eurostar discounts at the Atomium and the Design Museum

 

[rvdborgt]

I can speak French fairly well and Dutch not so much, I would imagine language could be a minefield in the city, is English a widely understood neutral language in the city ?

Using French in Brussels shouldn't be a problem.

 

[StephenHunter]

The Brussels railway museum is called Train World. It'd worth a visit but is not as good as the Dutch museum in Utrecht.

Literally a couple of stops up the line at a place called Schaerbeek in the suburbs; the old station building is part of the museum.

 

[Segedunum]

In terms of railway interest the AM66 units are pretty much on their last legs. They're used on a smattering of Binche-Schaerbeek services on Saturdays (study this link carefully: https://beluxtrains.net/en/index.php?page=listing&action=3&number=&category=&station=&company=&vehicle=AM66/74&country=BE&days=R67&year=2024&period=)

They do see further use but far from Brussels. The link provided is also useful for checking other compositions - Series 21/27 locos are also a dying breed and the AM86 units only come out to play on weekdays.

 

[dvboy]

I posted in the other thread you created but in terms of ticketing, just use contactless across buses trams and metro, there is a daily cap.

 

[nwales58]

Tram museum is at Woluwe, look it up on t'internet.

Edit: irrelevant stuff deleted

For industrial history, look at erih.net if you don't already know of it.

 

[boiledbeans2]

See these 2 threads I previously started

Train bashing in Brussels advice

Hi everyone, I have roughly 1.5 days in Brussels and would like to do some train/tram bashing. It will be my second time in Brussels. The first time I was there, I mainly visited the touristy attractions, though I enjoyed the train rides there. I visited both the Tram museum and Train World. I...

www.railforums.co.uk

Brussels trip in December

Hi everyone I'm planning a Brussels trip, say 30 Nov to 4 Dec. It will be my first time there. I'm looking at the hotel prices and they are shockingly expensive within the area served by the Brussels Metro! At least £600 (£150 per night). So I'm deciding to stay somewhere further out. On...

www.railforums.co.uk

The tram museum is more exciting than Train World, because the tram museum has a "live" part, with heritage trams parked but ready to go (e.g. for charter trips). The tram museum ticket also includes a ride on a heritage tram, which runs on the main tram lines outside the museum, following route 44. In contrast, Train World consists of static displays.

 

[AlastairFraser]

Hello all, I'm going to Brussels soon, Eurostar and hotels booked staying for 6 days, last time I rode on an Eurostar train was from Waterloo so that's going back some years

As I'm interested in rail transport obviously

What's the best tram route to cover as much ground as possible within the city, same for urban railways, is there a travel pass that can cover both transport options as well as the buses, noticed there's no trolleybus in the city unfortunately.

Is there a historical tramcar tour you can take round the city ? Transport museum to visit ?

I can speak French fairly well and Dutch not so much, I would imagine language could be a minefield in the city, is English a widely understood neutral language in the city ?


I'm also interested in history, Belgium is a fairly young country so there should be some good museums about the country and city, can you get free entry with a tourist pass or similar.

Thanks in advance

Charleroi is worth a train out for the interesting premetro system and industrial museum, if you have the time.
Brussels Tram 44 is a kind of historical tram route that dives into the countryside like an old interurban from the city centre, so quite interesting.
I'd also recommend Route 82 northbound out of Midi station, for the weird way it passes through the station on a 3-way junction at (Boulevard) Lemonnier, and then up to the canal for a nice stretch along that.

 

[BahrainLad]

Outside of trains, over the years I've been to the following

- Royal Museum of Central Africa (i.e. the Congo)
- Autoworld
- Army / Navy / Air Force museum (across the road from Autoworld in the Parc du Cinquantenaire)
- Natural History Museum

All are worth a visit and easily reachable by public transport!

 

[Thames99]

The museum quarter up by the palace may be of interest. The main art gallery and the adjoining Magritte gallery for surrealist paintings and round the corner the musical instruments museum which is very well done in a historic building - the former Old England department store - are all worth visiting. Architects such as Horta designed many extraordinary buildings around 1900 which are worthy of a look.

 

[eastwestdivide]

musical instruments museum which is very well done in a historic building - the former Old England department store

definitely worth a visit if you’re at all interested in musical instruments. Make sure you get the headphones.

 

[MarcVD]

You might just want to spend an hour or two - during rush hour, say between16 and 18 - on the platforms of Brussels North or South Stations and enjoy the constant parade of trains traveling through the 6 tracks that link those two stations, some 1200 of them every weekday.

For tram/metro/bus, there are day cards. If you want to sample some train travel, there is a card you can buy which is valid for 10 trips between any two belgian stations.

Be aware that tram line 44 is partially interrupted for track renewal works.

 

[Recessio]

Charleroi is worth a train out for the interesting premetro system and industrial museum, if you have the time.

I second the Charleroi pre-metro, worth the trip. Lots of greats 80s stations and an abandoned line. Good write up here https://www.londonreconnections.com/2022/the-surreal-metro-of-charleroi/

 

[MarcVD]

I second the Charleroi pre-metro, worth the trip. Lots of greats 80s stations and an abandoned line.

The abandoned line will finally be opened in 2026.

 

[Gag Halfrunt]

The Tim Traveller has two videos about Charleroi.

 

[AlastairFraser]

I second the Charleroi pre-metro, worth the trip. Lots of greats 80s stations and an abandoned line. Good write up here https://www.londonreconnections.com/2022/the-surreal-metro-of-charleroi/

Yes, and also very interesting for the refurbished trams used on it too!

 

[Vespa]

On my way to St Pancras today.

Thanks for all your info, very interesting list of things to see and do.

 

[eastwestdivide]

Trip report afterwards?

 

[Vespa]

Trip report afterwards?

That's the plan hopefully

 

[Recessio]

Also, you'll be fine with French and English. I don't speak French and I got around fine. It's a very international city due to the EU etc so you'll be understood fine.

 

[StephenHunter]

Outside of trains, over the years I've been to the following

- Royal Museum of Central Africa (i.e. the Congo)

Now renamed to AfricaMuseum after a major renovation to attempt to "decolonise" it; it was rather controversial in its former version.

 

[Gerald Fiennes]

Brussel/Bruxelles, officially, is a bilingual city of course but the main language is French. However, English is very widely spoken. You might be OK using Dutch in places that are obviously Dutch speaking or in some of the communes (esp to the NE) where there is a higher Flemish population but otherwise it's best to use French/English in my experience..