Ghent Festival
Festival de Gante
Ghent Festival (Gentse Feesten) (Ghent) – in late July, the town of Ghent holds a multi-day series of outdoor festivities (which starts the Saturday before July 21 (Belgium’s national holiday) and lasts ten days). A dizzying array of musical events is part of the Ghent Festival, such as the Gent Jazz Festival, Comedy Festival Gent, International Puppetbuskerfestival, International Street Theater Festival, Ten Days Off (electronic dance music), Boomtown (alternative rock music), and the Belgian Summer Sing (international choral festival). See the event website for more details: http://gentsefeesten.be
Flower Carpet
Flower Carpet
Flower Carpet (Brussels) — A million begonias for one single carpet? This is certainly an extraordinary achievement. The famous Carpet of Flowers covers almost 20,000 square foot right in the center of the Grand Place. This event is held every two years. Check the Flower Carpet’s website for its next scheduled event: www.flowercarpet.be
Christmas Markets
Mercados de Navidad
Christmas Markets (Brussels) — During the month of December Brussels’ Grand Place is magically transformed into a winter wonderland of holiday delights with an enormous Christmas tree and nightly sound & light shows. Nearby on Place Sainte Catherine resides a European Christmas Market village made up of wooden cottages filled with Christmas goodies, European food specialties and handicrafts.
Chateau de Sept Fontaines
Chateau de Sept Fontaines
Chateau de Sept Fontaines (Braine-l’Alleud) – located 30 minutes south of Brussels, this club nestles in a private 250 acre park consisting of woods and rolling meadows where players often see deers, hares and birds that roam and fly about freely here. The fairways of the various courses are laid out around the welcoming and comfortable clubhouse, formerly a castle.
This complex just outside Brussels has two different 18 hole courses: Le chateau and La Foret, plus a 9 hole course known as Le Parc. At Le chateau on plays among the trees or in open areas, where as La Foret is much more ondulating. Le Parc, as its name suggests, will lead you to discover every nook and cranny of the castle’s park. The 7 Fontaines Golf Club has a heated swimming pool and a gourmet restaurant in its clubhouse located in the Chateau de l’Hermitte.
Chateau de Beloeil
Chateau de Beloeil
Chateau de Beloeil (Rue Du Château 11, Beloeil 7970 Hainaut) — the Castle of Beloeil has been the residence of the Princes de Ligne since the 14th century. It houses an art collection, with paintings from the 15th to the 19th century and an outstanding library with 20,000 books. The castle has large French-style gardens offering a harmonious balance of water and green, of shadow and light. Admission: Adult (€8), Seniors, Students & Children (6-12 years) (€4), Children under 6 years: free.
Château d’Attre
Château d’Attre
Château d’Attre (Avenue du Château 9, Attre) — built in 1752, it is the only castle in Belgium that has preserved the original decoration and furniture of that period. The romantic gardens with mysterious rocks and other formations reflect the 18th century. Behind the castle are grounds that stretch over 42 acres.
Admission: Adult (€4.50), Children (ages 6-12) (€3.50). Hours: 2 pm – 6 pm (Sundays & holidays only/April – October); 1 pm – 6 pm (Saturdays, Sundays & holidays only/ July & August). See the Chateau’s website for more details: www.chateauxduhainaut.be
Botanical Gardens
Jardín Botánico
Botanical Gardens (Bouchout Domain, Nieuwelaan 38, Meise) — located in Meise, a smaller village situated at about 12 km north of the center of Brussels, this paradise for nature lovers is an historic royal domain. Endless promenade walks lead through open-air collections of medicinal plants, herbaceous plants, trees, and conifers. Another world is revealed in the Plant Palace, an enormous glasshouse with more than 10,000 plant species including unusual plants from America, Africa, Asia, New Zealand and Australia. Admission: Adult (€ 6), Senior & Disabled (€5), Students (€ 3), Children under 18: free. Hours: 9:30 am – 5:00 pm (15th October – 14th March); 9:30 am – 6:30 pm (15th March – 14th October).
Bellewaerde Theme Park
Parque temático Bellewaerde
Bellewaerde Theme Park (Meenseweg 497, Ieper, West-Vlaanderen) – this is a theme park launched in 1954 and located at the former site of the World War I Battle of Bellewaerde. Originally a zoo and safari, this park was expanded into its present form (as a full-fledged amusement theme park) in the 1980s. Major rides include the first Boomerang coaster in Europe (1984), a dark ride with a pirate theme (Los Piratas), a Vekoma Mad House (Houdini’s Magical House), several water rides including a log flume, a river rapids ride and a spillwater ride, the Screaming Eagle vertical drop tower, a large number of stock rides such as a pirate ship, a swing carousel, a monorail, an original Zierer beetle coaster, old-timers, carousels, an octopus, tea-cups and a Jungle Cruise-like boat ride. Admission: Adult (€30), Children (€26). Note: €6 discount per ticket for groups of 6 or more. Hours vary. Check Bellewaerde’s website for its schedule and other details: www.bellewaerdepark.be
Belgian Grand Prix
Gran Premio de Bélgica
Belgian Grand Prix (Spa) — The Spa-Francorchamps race is one of the world’s most popular among both race car drivers and fans. The race was completely redesigned in 1979 to correspond to the safety standards of the world’s other great automobile races, in particular, the Formula One. The present track is 6.973 km long. See the event website for more info: www.spagrandprix.com
Wijnegem Shopping Center
Centro comercial Wijnegem
Wijnegem Shopping Center (Turnhoutsebaan 5/400, Wijnegem) — located 50 km. north of Brussels (and just outside of Antwerp), this is the largest shopping mall in Belgium, with 57.000 square meters of retail space and 250 shops (consisting of both regional stores, and international brands, such as H&M, Esprit, Hollister, Hugo Boss, Levi’s, Mexx, Pepe Jeans, Benetton, Timberland, Tommy Hilfiger, Marc Jacobs, FNAC, Footlocker, Geox, Guess, Puma, Superdry, and others.
