Grand Square-Brussels’ pride and joy-is the biggest show-off move of the Belgian capital. Some say it's the most beautiful square in Europe. Others say the world. Either way, it’s hard to argue when you’re standing there, dwarfed by a 15th-century Gothic Town Hall that looks like it got dressed for the Met Gala... and the neo-Gothic King's House-also charmingly called the Bread House (because apparently even royal buildings get carb cravings).

This cobblestoned stunner has been in the spotlight since the 11th century. Back then, it was a humble marketplace. A few hundred years later, it had a front-row seat to history-picture Inquisition bonfires and a couple of unfortunate noble executions (some sort of “light afternoon entertainment” for the medieval crowd)...

As Brussels bloomed, so did the square’s bling. Surrounding it are guildhalls that practically scream, “We have money and good taste!” Each one was built by a different trade-from haberdashers to bakers to brewers-and while the jobs have changed, the beauty hasn’t. Take Number 10, for example-once a brewers’ headquarters, now home to the Brewers Museum, so yes, beer still lives there. Circle of life.

Now, not everything has been smooth sailing here. In 1695, the French decided Brussels needed a “makeover.” So they bombarded the square for 36 hours straight. Miraculously, several buildings were rebuilt after that even better. Like Number 3, once run by tallow merchants, and Number 5, home of the archers’ guild, proudly rocking a phoenix on its façade-a little "burn me once" statement piece.

Today, in addition to being a history lesson with a stunning backdrop, the Grand Square is a vibe. Alleyways nearby are filled with centuries-old bars serving the holy trinity: Belgian beer, chocolate, and gossip. Butchers Street is your go-to for mussels and souvenirs and maybe some stretchy pants.

And if you time it right, you’ll catch the square in full party mode. There’s the biennial Flower Carpet-a psychedelic begonia explosion, the medieval cosplay of Ommegang, Christmas lights that would make the North Pole jealous, and concerts that echo through time.

Tip:
Visit in daylight to admire every gold-leafed flourish, and come back after dark for the light show. Around 10:20 PM, this square doesn’t just sparkle-it sings.

The Brussels Town Hall-part municipal headquarters, part medieval masterpiece, and all-around showoff of the Grand Square. Built between 1401 and 1455, this beauty is the only medieval building still standing in the square. Rich in Brabantine Gothic flair, it was declared a protected monument in 1936 and added to UNESCO’s World Heritage Site list in 1998.

Despite its regal look, the building’s had its fair share of drama. In 1695, during the Nine Years' War, the French heavily bombarded the city. The Town Hall took a hit: fire gutted the interior, torched the archives, and turned priceless artworks into ashes. And yet, like a true diva, it survived.

Its present-day form-a tidy quadrilateral wrapped around a central courtyard-dates from the 18th century, when two extra wings were slapped on the back. Then came the 19th century, when restorers went full "Gothic revival" mode and added nearly 300 statues, gargoyles, and fancy flourishes-because subtlety is not the style for this kind of property. Each ornament nods to Brussels’ proud guild traditions and colorful past.

Speaking of drama, notice that the tower isn’t centered? Legend says that the architect, Jan van Ruysbroek, was so distraught over the lopsided design that he threw himself off the tower. Dark... But let’s be real-it was probably just a classic case of medieval planning chaos.

Crowning the 96-meter tower is a golden spire topped with Saint Michael giving a devil the boot. The current statue is a 1990s replica, but the original goes back to 1455. Inside, it’s all chandeliers, frescoes, and enough historic rooms to make your head spin. Check out the Gothic Room, the Prince’s Gallery, the Mayor’s Cabinet, and the crown jewel-the States of Brabant Room, with a ceiling that deserves its own fan club.

Tip:
You can visit the inside, but only with a guided tour-around 45 minutes long and available in French, English, Dutch, or Spanish. Spots are limited and sell out fast, so grab your ticket early in the day. Tours run on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. Just don’t show up on January 1, May 1, November 1 or 11, or December 25-because even grand old Town Halls need a day off.

The small bronze statue of a little boy faithfully relieving himself atop a fountain has paradoxically emerged as an unexpected symbol of Brussels.

The site has been a water fountain since the 13th century, but the statue in its current baroque form was crafted in 1619 to replace an earlier version. Throughout history, the Little Boy Peeing has been stolen and thrown into the canal multiple times. What we see today is a copy made in 1965. The original statue is safeguarded in the Brussels City Museum to protect it from any further mishaps.

This enduring sculpture exemplifies the typical Brussels sense of humor and its capacity to poke fun at its own image. Apart from its humor, however, the statue is renowned for various legends associated with it.

One story claims that it commemorates a brave young boy who urinated on a burning fuse, preventing an explosive charge from detonating and potentially destroying the city's fortification walls. In another account, a wealthy merchant, after an extensive citywide search for his missing son, who was eventually found joyfully urinating in a garden, presented the statue, as a token of his appreciation, to the townspeople who aided in the search. Yet another version of the tale suggests that a young boy woke up to find a fire in the king's castle and promptly used his urine to douse the flames, thus preventing it from burning to the ground.

For about one-third of the year, the statue is dressed up in various costumes by an official dresser who has been appointed by the city since 1755. The current dresser, Nicolas Edelman, is the 13th since the 18th century. In 2014, he volunteered for the job which implies dressing up the statue for about 130 events annually. The role demands flexibility, requiring early mornings or late evenings, regardless of weather or day.

The costumes, donated by various entities, must meet quality standards and not serve political, commercial, or religious agendas. To date, the peeing boy has donned over 500 different outfits, ranging from the earliest-known attire, a Louis XV-provided ensemble portraying him as an elegant 17th-century gentleman, to a samurai robe celebrating the friendship between Belgium and Japan.

Little Boy Peeing has two companion statues: Little Girl Peeing (depicting a urinating girl, installed in 1987 in an alleyway near the Grand Square) and Little Dog Peeing (portraying a urinating dog, erected in 1998 in Dansaert, modeled after a real dog owned by the sculptor). Both of them are located approximately 550 meters away from the Little Boy Peeing but in different directions.

This statue depicts King Albert I, who served as the King of the Belgians from 1909 to 1934. It was designed by Alfred Courtens and was inaugurated in 1951. Albert grew up in the Palace of Flanders. Interestingly, he was fourth in line of succession to the Belgian throne, but quickly moved closer as both his cousin and older brother died. By the time Albert was 16, he was second in line, after his father, to take the throne.

Albert took his future task of king very seriously. He was very studious and was particularly concerned about the welfare for the working class of Belgium. He made trips, incognito, to various working class districts to become acquainted with the living conditions of the working class. He also made a trip to the Belgian Congo to gain a better understanding of the situation in the colony. Moved by what he saw, he returned to Belgium and initiated reforms to protect the native populations and to increase progress in the Belgian Congo. King Albert I was also often referred to as a “soldier king”, due to his brave actions on the battlefield. This statue is located at the entrance of the Mont des Arts, which is dedicated to his memory. Fittingly, his statue stands across from one of his wife, Queen Elisabeth I.

This palace was named for Prince Charles Alexander of Lorraine, the governor-general of the Austrian Netherlands from 1744 to 1780. He served as one of the principal commanders in the Austrian military during the War of the Austrian Succession. The building started out as an old townhouse for the Counts of Nassau but was transformed into a neoclassical palace. Notable features of the building include a rotunda with a central rosette made from 28 different types of Belgian marble. The marble came from the Prince’s personal collection of minerals. The Prince was very interested in science and his personal collection of mineral pieces numbered over 5,000.

The palace has five halls, each decorated in stucco and silk. Each hall reflects a particular aspect of Charles de Lorraine’s life, including science, leisure, traveling, freemasonry and music. It is in these halls that guests were entertained and state affairs were handled. Today it serves as a museum for 18th-century items demonstrating the aristocratic and intellectual life at the time, including sedans, china, silverware, clocks, scientific instruments, and medals. The exhibited works are from the collections of the Royal Museum of Art and History and the Royal Library.

Why You Should Visit:
Architecturally attractive, in spite of being almost hidden from view (and tourists).

The Mount of the Arts is an urban complex and historic site, home to several important venues like the Royal Library of Belgium, the National Archives of Belgium, and the Square – Brussels Meeting Centre. It is also known for its beautiful public garden.

This part of the city has a long history, dating back to the Middle Ages. Originally, it hosted Jewish communities, who settled here until the 14th century. A remnant of that period is the old "Jewish Stairs", a series of four steep staircases still in place, leading to Brussels' upper town.

By the late 19th century, King Leopold II envisioned this district as a cultural hub. According to his plan, in 1899, the area underwent a significant transformation. In large part, this was spurred by the Brussels International Exposition of 1910. A temporary garden then established eventually became a permanent, cherished green space. The site underwent further changes in the 1950s and 60s, replacing older structures with modernist buildings like the Congress Palace.

Apart from these attractions, The Mount of the Arts offers one of Brussels' finest views. Though the glass-and-steel cube, that forms the new entrance to the Convention Centre, has altered the upper section of the complex, the perspective conceived by architects in the 1950s has largely been preserved. The iconic Town Hall tower in Grand Square is prominently visible from this elevated vantage point. On a sunny day, you can even catch a glimpse of the Sacred Heart Basilica and the Atomium.

Rising to the west is the bronze equestrian statue of Albert I, inaugurated in 1951. The king earned national hero status for his unwavering resistance against the Germans during World War I. His tragic death in a climbing accident near Namur, in southern Belgium, in 1934, elicited a genuine outpouring of grief. Across the square from the king's monument, stands a statue of his wife, Queen Elizabeth.

The place is also popular with fans of punk, hard rock, and other music, who meet here regularly.

The Musical Instruments Museum (MIM) is part of the Royal Museums of Art and History and is internationally renowned for one of the world's largest collections of musical artifacts, over 8,000. The museum highlights Belgian musical history, including Brussels’ significant role in developing early synthesizers like the Ondes Martenot and instruments by Belgian inventor and musician Adolphe Sax.

The MIM was founded in 1877, initially as part of the Royal Conservatory. The collection began with Indian instruments from Rajah Sourindro Mohun Tagore and a significant assembly from Belgian musicologist François-Joseph Fétis. By 1924, the number of exhibits had grown impressively to over 3,500.

Post-World War I, the collection growth slowed but then saw renewed vigor in the 1950s. A major turning point came in the 1990s with the MIM's move to the former Old England department store. This Art Nouveau venue, completed in 1899, featuring girded steel and glass, reopened to the public in 2000.

The museum’s layout includes mechanical instruments in the basement, traditional instruments on the ground floor, and orchestral, keyboard, and stringed instruments on the upper floors. Visitors can explore sounds via infrared headphones and view notable items like the Rottenburgh Alto recorder, a unique set of giant Chinese stone chimes, and the only existing copy of the luthéal, an instrument used by the French composer, pianist and conductor, Joseph Maurice Ravel.

Additionally, the museum hosts temporary exhibitions and concerts featuring modern musical innovators.

This imposing statue was erected in the Royal Square in 1843. It depicts Godfrey of Bouillon on a horse and was designed by Eugène Simonis. Known for being one of the leaders of the First Crusade, Bouillon was a Frankish knight born in the Brabant region of France (which is now part of Belgium). The First Crusade was called by Pope Urban II in 1096 and was meant to liberate Jerusalem and aid the Byzantine Empire. Both of these places were under attack from Muslim forces.

Godfrey felt compelled to participate in the Crusade and wanted to pull together a group of knights to fight in the Holy Land. By taking out loans or selling his land outright, he was able to gather thousands of knights. He died in Jerusalem in 1100. There are differing reports of the cause of his death, from getting shot with an arrow, to contracting an illness, to getting poisoned. Godfrey of Bouillon’s legacy continues on through his appearance in classic written texts. For example he was named the hero on Tasso’s Gerusalemme Liberata. In The Divine Comedy the spirit of Godfrey is seen by Dante in the Heavens of Mars. Mark Twain gives a mention of Godfrey’s sword in “Innocents Abroad.”

The Museum of Art & History may have a simple name, but it boasts an impressive and diverse collection from around the globe, spanning from Greece to modern-day Peru. Visitors are often drawn to the stunning Art Nouveau and Art Deco pieces, showcased in display cases designed by Victor Horta. Other galleries are dedicated to Romanesque, Renaissance, and Baroque art, as well as a rotating collection of tapestries. A whole gallery showcases clocks and astronomical instruments, and there's a charming collection of 35 painted sledges from the 1930s and '40s.

The extensive collection of antiquities encompasses ancient Egyptian treasures, including ten mummies and sarcophagi, along with a substantial assortment of Belgian artifacts dating back to the earliest human settlements in the region. However, the standout attraction is the Roman Syrian gallery, featuring a large and vivid mosaic from AD 415 depicting the hunting of tigers and lions being pursued by dogs.

The Non-European Civilizations section offers an even more impressive array, featuring pre-Columbian art, Native American headdresses, Jainist, Hindu, and Buddhist deities, Chinese ceramics, rare Islamic textiles, Byzantine art, and Coptic fabrics. One of the most striking exhibits is the Easter Island sculpture, a massive 6-tonne stone giant collected during a Franco-Belgian expedition in the 1930s, which seems somewhat out of place but adds to the museum's eclectic charm.

For fans of Tintin, the museum is a must-visit, as it inspired several elements in Hergé's famous comic series. Notably, a skeleton mummy served as inspiration for 'The Seven Crystal Balls', and 'The Broken Ear' drew from a wooden votive figure on display in the galleries.

Why You Should Visit:
Exceptional permanent collection that caters to history enthusiasts and art lovers alike, as well as an outstanding rotation of temporary exhibitions.
Good on-site restaurant with reasonable prices and a diverse menu of food & drinks, and the gift shop is quite spacious, offering a wide array of items to suit every taste and preference.

Tips:
To make the most of your visit, it's advisable to plan what you want to see in advance, as the museum's vast collection can be overwhelming.
If you're not fluent in French or Dutch, consider getting the English-language audioguide (available for an additional €3).
After your visit, you can enjoy a short stroll to Rue Balliard, where you'll find Grand Central, with its two floors of buffet-style dining open from morning until late at night.

A fascinating model of a molecule magnified 165 billion times, the Atomium structure was originally constructed for the 1958 World Fair in Brussels and has since become an iconic symbol of the city. Its enduring popularity is evident from the long queues on weekends and holidays for the lift to its observation deck and panoramic restaurant.

A visit here is divided into two parts: first, the lift swiftly transports you to the top sphere for fantastic views of the city, followed by an exploration of the other three spheres, accessible via a combination of escalators and stairs. The whole experience exudes retro charm, as the Atomium was a technological marvel of its time, boasting the world's fastest elevator and the world's longest escalator connecting the spheres. You can find reminders of its construction in scattered photographs throughout the structure, and the classy gift shop offers cool 1960s-era items for sale. Meanwhile, the spheres primarily serve as temporary exhibition spaces and house a café.

The Atomium is undeniably impressive when viewed from the ground, and the vistas from the top are as spectacular as you would imagine, with computer screens to help you identify landmarks. However, the truly civilized way to enjoy it is by reserving a prime spot in the top-floor restaurant, which is surprisingly affordable and offers a truly unique dining experience.

Why You Should Visit:
One of the few places where you can enjoy a panoramic view of the entire city, the Atomium offers a distinctive perspective.

Tip:
If you find the ticket line to be long, it's advisable to purchase tickets online. They can be scanned directly from your phone, saving you the hassle of waiting in an additional line.

Mini-Europe may not be everyone's cup of tea, but it's a hit with visitors, especially children. This attraction features meticulously crafted miniaturized versions of famous European landmarks, structures, and historical scenes, all built on a 1:25 scale. Among the 350 miniatures on display are iconic sights such as London's Big Ben, the picturesque canals of Venice with gondolas, and the majestic Eiffel Tower in Paris. What sets Mini-Europe apart is its ability to bring history to life, as some models incorporate moving parts, sound effects, and even captivating light displays. For instance, you can re-enact the eruption of Vesuvius or the fall of the Berlin Wall.

Situated at the base of the Atomium, another well-known attraction in Brussels located within Bruparck, Mini-Europe was officially opened in 1989 by Prince Philip of Belgium. It operates from March through October and draws in approximately 350,000 visitors annually. The creation of each individual model is a labor-intensive process, with some costing as much as €350,000 to produce, including a stunning replica of Brussels' Grand-Place. These miniatures are accompanied by informative plaques that offer historical and cultural insights, making the experience not only visually captivating but also educational.

The well-maintained gardens and landscaping enhance the overall atmosphere of the park, making it an inviting setting for leisurely strolls and exploration. Miniature trains crisscross the area, providing a scenic way to view the models from a unique perspective. Additionally, the park offers cafes where you can indulge in snacks, beverages, and meals, ensuring that visitors have a well-rounded and enjoyable experience.

Why You Should Visit:
Cool place to learn quick facts about different European countries, all in one spot.

Tips:
Grab a brochure as you enter to delve into the historical background of each miniature while exploring the models – it will enhance your appreciation of the views. Otherwise, for an extensive day of fun, consider pairing your visit to Mini-Europe with the additional attractions in Bruparck, including the Océade water park, the Kinepolis cinema, and the imposing Atomium, which overlooks Mini-Europe (you can purchase combination tickets for these attractions).

The Cathedral of Saint Michael and Saint Gudula on Treurenberg Hill, Brussels, traces its origins to a 9th-century chapel dedicated to Saint Michael. In 1047, Lambert II, the Duke of Brabant, brought the relics of Saint Gudula to this location, for which purpose a Romanesque-style church was built. Over the course of 300+ years, it had transformed into the striking Brabantine Gothic edifice seen today.

Recognized as Belgium's national church, this cathedral plays a pivotal role in the country's ceremonial life, hosting royal weddings and state funerals, as well as the Te Deum celebration during Belgian National Day. A historic monument since 1936, it underwent multiple restorations, including, most recently, in December 1999, just in time for the wedding of Belgian Crown Prince Philippe to Princess Mathilda. These efforts not only preserved but also uncovered parts of the original 11th-century church which are now visible through strategically placed viewing glass spots on the floor.

Architecturally, the cathedral showcases a French Gothic façade with distinctive twin towers standing 64 meters tall. Unlike traditional designs that feature a rose window, this cathedral’s façade is marked by a large ogival window, enhancing its Brabantine Gothic distinction. The robust structure is supported by double-span flying buttresses adorned with pinnacles and gargoyles.

Approaching the cathedral through a grand staircase, visitors are welcomed into the interior dominated by twelve cylindrical pillars and an array of statues crafted by renowned 17th-century sculptors. The Baroque pulpit, featuring 'Adam and Eve Banished from Paradise' by Flemish sculptor Hendrik Frans Verbruggen, dates back to 1699. The cathedral also contains intricate stained glass windows that chronicle biblical and royal narratives from the 16th to the 19th centuries. In the evening, the window at the nave's base, depicting The Last Judgment, is illuminated from within, creating a captivating spectacle.

Adding to its historic ambiance, the cathedral is also a hub for music, housing two significant pipe organs and a 49-bell carillon in the south tower, along with the bourdon bell named Salvator in the north tower. In recent years, it has also become a conservation site for peregrine falcons which made their nests in its towers. This was further highlighted by the "Falcons for everyone" project featuring live-streaming for public viewing, thus marrying natural history with cultural heritage.

Tips:
Upon entering, be sure to pick up a leaflet providing information about the cathedral's history and details. Access is free, but a small fee is charged if you want to see the archaeological site beneath the existing floors inside the building.