Belgium advice

Old Feb 11th, 2016, 04:24 AM
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Belgium advice

Hello all,

While I may be asking for advice on other parts of our trip, I will start with Belgium. We (2 boys, 6 and 8, and I) are flying into and out of Brussels and then onto Germany and Austria for a month.

We arrive late afternoon in Brussels, so will spend our first night there. I'd like to spend a few days in Belgium....either all up front or at the end or split up into two short "weekends".

I've done early research and see that Belgium with kids could be done in a few days. While I'd like to see the beach, we do have amazing beaches here in SD. And people seem to be completely split between Ghent or Bruges and also whether Antwerp is worth the visit.

I'd appreciate your two cents on what to see. Any must-see museums that are kid friendly? Any budget family friendly hotels or bed and breakfasts? We will be renting a car in Brussels once we leave, so we will have access to a car. I will begin looking at airbnb for places to stay as well.

These boys LOVE living history, like outdoor museums, natural museums, etc, but I will no doubt avoid an art museum with the 6 year old.

Any must do things in Belgium even if they are touristy or cheesy? Little ones eat that up!

I know there is lots of info out there, but was hoping to hear from someone who has been recently or had experience there entertaining kids.

Thanks in advance!
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Old Feb 11th, 2016, 04:36 AM
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I forgot the most important question which is, am I better off renting a car once I am in Brussels for ease of travel within Belgium or stay in Brussels and just do day trips on the train to most of these places. Not sure if having a base in one spot is better or having access to a car to get around is better.

I am on 3 hours of sleep...there should be rules about posting questions on too little sleep!
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Old Feb 11th, 2016, 04:39 AM
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You should look at the what to do with kids section of guide books for all of these countries. There are many children's museums and amusement parks that are local and low key and that kids might love - as well as the usual carousels, boat rides, visits to castles and just visiting local playgrounds for kids to run around.

I've never traveled with little ones there - we took ours the first time at 11 and 14 - so their interests were very different. But we did see Madurodam, a miniature interactive village in den Haag Netherlands that both kids and adults seem to love. I'm sure there are many similar options in the countries you would visit.
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Old Feb 11th, 2016, 04:55 AM
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Hi
When do you come ? Weather is unpredictable in Belgium but still ...

I would
Spend first day in Bxl min is grand place place du sablon saint Michel cathedral quartier des marolles.
Atomium maybe for the kids as well as mini world (check as there were rumors of it moving somewhere).

Go to Gent by train (superb)
Go to Brugge by train (superb)
Then go to otherFlemish cities or go to
Les grottes de Han sur Lesse (superb grottoes) and some animals (wolves...) and maybe same day Bouillon (a very medieval castle complete with a torture chamber)
Planckendael close to Mechelen is also a very nice zoo / animal park.
Antwerpen retained an old zoo close to the train station - easy to reach.

In Bxl my kids also love(d) musee de l armee (with a good air section) and auto world showings a lot of old cars.

Eat some mussels at chez Léon close to grand place or go to 'chez vincent' for a waterzooi.
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Old Feb 11th, 2016, 05:28 AM
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If you go to Antwerpen, you can do a harbor cruise of the 2nd largest cargo port of Europe. But since it's a really huge port, it can also be a bit too long for the boys.. so not sure
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Old Feb 11th, 2016, 05:42 AM
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I have never been to Fort Lillo just outside of Antwerpen, but were I traveling with younger kids who have the interests that yours do, I might be very tempted on a nice day to do a docks tour by boat that included Fort Lillo.

Surely there is no more cheesy sight in Brussels than the Mannekin Pis, so that would be on my itinerary with younger kids. And while much of Brugge is too cheesy for me, I can imagine kids loving it, including (if they don't mind the extra walking), seeing the windmills along the riverbank.

I don't think what makes the beaches of Belgium "amazing" is the scenery or the sand, but the land yachting, bicycling and other amusements (too cold to swim) -- so read up and see what you think (can't offer any personal recommendations.

My list of "must do" in Belgium tend to revolve around chocolate, waffles, mussels, fries... Food is very kid friendly.
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Old Feb 11th, 2016, 05:43 AM
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meant to give you this link

http://antwerpporttours.com
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Old Feb 11th, 2016, 08:09 AM
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Thank you all for the advice. I will check out the dock tour and caves. We are coming end of June and I agree that food is always kid friendly, especially if there is chocolate involved.
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Old Feb 11th, 2016, 08:17 AM
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Belgium advice
Posted by: wendy17 on Feb 11, 16 at 8:24am


It looks like you found the best ticket price into Brussels and want to unwind there for a few days. I suggest that you go over to Antwerp instead. The former nautical museum at Het Steen was fantastic and the displays have been moved to the MAS http://www.mas.be/en.

For real kid friendly venues I suggest going up to the Hague. In the city visit Holland in miniature at Madurodam http://www.madurodam.nl/en/. Just north of The Hague in Wassenaar is the great water park Duinrell http://www.duinrell.com/. My daughter at 10 loved both.

I think your kids, and you, will appreciate traveling by train much more than by car. Your boys won't be asking "are we there yet?" from the back seat all day long, for one thing. On the train they can move around and explore, and meet other kids. For an illustrated introduction to trains in Europe see http://www.enjoy-europe.com/hte/chap17/rail.htm. You go city center to city center with no hassles on the road or parking problems.

The Antwerp train station is still a classic, one of a dying breed in Europe. Here is a glimpse via the legendary flash mob production https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQLCZOG202k. For you, the mussels, frites, and beer in Antwerp are just as good as in Brussels, maybe better. I'm sure the boys will enjoy a different version of "French" fries, with mayo.
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Old Feb 11th, 2016, 08:29 AM
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If you take the advice to go to Den Haag, then consider including the Panorama Mesdag would likely be very fun for the kids and an interesting artwork for the adults.
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Old Feb 11th, 2016, 09:01 AM
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Definitely take the train to get around.
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Old Feb 11th, 2016, 09:30 AM
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Do visit the open air museum in Bokrijk. Your kids will love it!
http://www.bokrijk.be/en

@sandralist
Fort Lillo? It's not so far from where I live but there's really nothing to see there. The small village has a few houses and a micro museum that isn't interesting at all.
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Old Feb 11th, 2016, 12:33 PM
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Yay! Thanks all for the even more great info! Yes, reasonable flights into Brussels, so here we are having this conversation.

We will be visiting Freiburg, a small little place near Stuttgart (whose name I've forgotten), friends near the Chiemsee, and an as of yet unnamed place in Austria I think. My boys speak German and this is their second trip, so it will be nice to show them another country or two. This is my 13th trip to Europe, so I have seen much of the cultural spots and can just enjoy the scenery.

I personally prefer the train, but it seemed cheaper to get a compact car and be able to get to our little hole in the wall accommodations cheaper.

But Belgian's rail pass seems to cheap to pass up and it appears that the kids will be free with my adult pass (?)

Thanks again all. I was less than thrilled to be flying into Brussels, but you've all given me the pep talk I need.
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Old Feb 11th, 2016, 12:38 PM
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I have been to Lillo twice when I was working in the inudustrial zone that is all around. For a quick lunch.
I would never do a detour of more than 10 min to bring my family there.

As for Den Haag last I checked it is not exactly in Belgium and have no idea how easy it is to go there via trains.

Mvg.
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Old Feb 11th, 2016, 10:16 PM
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Good those of you who know Fort Lillo chimed in with eyewitness accounts. From pictures, it looked tempting (reminded me of Palmanova in Italy) and it was included as one stop in a docks tour. The huge docks of Antwerpen made a great impression on me when I was there, but I tend to be interested in ports, old and now, and often find kids are interested too if they've never seen a modern working port.
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