By Train in Brussels

By Train

Brussels is one of the hubs for the Belgian National Railways (SNCB/NMBS). Passenger trains are clean and efficient. Domestic trains use the capital's three stations: Gare du Midi, Gare Centrale, and Gare du Nord. National service is extensive and frequent. For example, four to five trains an hour link Antwerp with Brussels; the trip takes about 45 minutes.

An expanding network of high-speed trains puts Brussels within commuting distance of many European cities. Eurostar and Thalys trains run from the Gare du Midi, a large, grubby station in a run-down but central area. There is a taxi rank outside the station, but the station is well served by the metro and trams, so it can be quicker to take public transportation to the city center. Eurostar trains to Waterloo station in London take 2 hours, 20 minutes. Trains stop at Ashford (Kent) and Lille (France). There are 10 daily services; a one-way trip starts at EUR 172.50. Rail-pass holders qualify for 50% discounts. Reservations are required and you must check in 30 minutes before departure. Promotional fares with good discounts are available but must be booked two weeks in advance.

Thayls high-speed trains to Paris, Bordeaux, Avignon, Marseille, Liège, Cologne, Aachen, Amsterdam, Rotterdam, and The Hague leave from the Gare du Midi. It takes under an hour and a half to get to Paris, and trains leave every half hour between 6 AM and 7 PM. The trip to Amsterdam takes 2 hours and 38 minutes. (New tracks are being laid for high-speed rail service in the Netherlands; this project should be completed in 2006.) One-way fares start at EUR 50. TGV trains travel to Bordeaux (six hours), Nice (eight hours) and Aix (five hours), as well as other French destinations. During the winter and summer holiday seasons, there are night trains to seaside and ski resorts around Europe.

Conventional train services from London connect with the Ramsgate-Oostende ferry, hovercraft, or catamaran, and from Oostende the train takes you to Brussels' Gare du Midi. The whole journey, using hovercraft or catamaran, takes about 6 1/2 hours; by ferry, about 9 hours. For more information, contact the Connex South-Eastern train line.

Stations

Gare Centrale (carrefour de l'Europe 2, Upper Town. 02/555-2555). Gare du Midi (rue de France, Lower Town. 02/555-2555). Gare du Nord (rue du Progres 76, St-Josse. 02/555-2555).

Lines

Connex South-Eastern (870/603-0405). Eurostar (02/528-2828. www.eurostar.com). SNCB/NMBS (02/555-2525. www.b-rail.be). Thalys (070/66-77-88. www.thalys.be).