After a business trip to Brussels the first week in December, we want to spend another week just for fun and take in the sights. The plan is to get a rental car and also travel to the Netherlands because of the close location, but we are open for other agenda suggestions. We must fly in and out of Brussels. Any suggestions for great places to stay?

Make that Belgium! Also, any thoughts on taking the trains instead of a car?

Hello.

You will get enough of a taste of Brussels during your week there on business. Take the train to Paris.

It's Sinterklaas in Belgium and Holland the first week of December. This is when children traditionally receive their gifts (not at Christmas). Its a nice time of the year. Its impossible to suggest what you should do; do you like cities (try Brugge, Antwerp, Amsterdam, Maastricht) - all easily reached by train. You can also take the Thalys train from Brussels to Cologne in Germany and go to one of the famous Christmas markets. If you like the countryside, the Ardennen are beautiful (in which case do rent a car).

Thank you for the great info. I need to clarify...the plan is that Ben will spend five days in Brussels on business. My plane arrives on 5 Dec. at 0900 and we will return to the states from Brussels on 13 Dec. I figure we will spend the first day and night in Brussels. From Sat. to Sat. we will be free agents to travel. We do like cities and we love the museums and shopping.

Brugge for 2 days
Antwerp and Gent, each 1 day
Brussels 1 or 2 days,... that 'll make the count.
In fact you could all do this by train. Brugge, which is the farthest destination from Brussels, takes 50 minutes by train.

Anyone know how long it takes to take a train from Brussels to Amsterdam? Or how about Brussels to Prague?

I think it may have been 4 hours from Brussels to Amsterdam and very long from Brussels to Prague-I took the train from Prague to Paris and it was about 16 hours and Brussels is even further. Try mapquest.com for more exact times.

It's about 2 hrs. 45 min. from Brussels to Amsterdam, and about 12-and-a-half hours from Brussels to Prague. You can also take the night train, which is a few hours more.

a lot of Flemish speaking Belgians on these postings... pls do not forget there are lovely cities in the Southern part, as well. I would only name Liege, a rather historical city within the European history and also think of the Ardennes which are pretty nice for walking, e.g. in the Fagnes area (a national park).
This said, Brugge and Antwerp are definitely worth the visit.
In Brussels, do not omit the Belgian Cartoon Strip museum in a lovely art deco house from a very famous... Belgian... architect, Horta. This museum reflects one of Belgium's greatest heritage, including our very famous hero Tintin.
signed - a true Belgian citizen (neither Flemish nor Walloon) but proud of the country's achievements.

Hi tgnych,

That's one thing we really took note of when we lived in Belgium: The distinct separation between Walloon and Flemish Belgians.

Very rarely did we ever hear people expressing any kind of overall 'national' sentiment. I never quite understood why.

Hi BrimhamRocks - you are absolutely right and I feel this is a pity. Anyway... the country remains pretty nice for people with goodwill and is very much appreciated by expats. This small country has a very high standard of living, fantastic cook and choice of cuisine and even a few Nobel prices. So it's not all that bad
;-)

I enjoyed my time in Maastricht, just over the border. You might also enjoy a trip to Aachen, Germany - not too far away from Leige. Both are very cosmopolitan cities with some interesting history. Aachen will have their Christmas markets going at that time, and despite what others might tell you are superior to the Christmas markets in Belgium or the Netherlands.

The only time I ever went to Maastricht was when the Snufflmarkt (sp) was in town. That was the best flea market!! I got soo many cool things there. My friends and I would say we were going 'Snuffling', lol.

Sorry, I disagree. The Brussels Christmas market is MUCH better than Aachen's. Aachen's is packed with people swilling down as much gluhwein as possible. A lot of the stuff being sold is mass produced and marginal quality. The stalls are jammed together with little room to maneuver.
The Brussels Christmas market is spread around the Grand'Place and feels less crowded. You can find a variety of handmade items--a handblown glass vase from the 2001 Brussels Christmas market is sitting on our dining room table right now. Plus--this is a big difference from Aachen--many of the booths selling quality merchandise at the Brussels Christmas market are run by local clubs and associations to raise money for charity. We volunteered for two years at the booth run by the Canadian Women's Club and raised a good sum of money for a shelter for battered women.
Germany does have many wonderful Christmas markets that are superior to the one in Brussels. But Aachen's isn't one of them!

I don't know if it's too late to help you, but here are my recommendations. Driving a car in Brussels is a very trying experience. All street signs have the name in two languages which makes it very difficult to decipher while driving. It's do able - but be warned! My husband and I try to see as much as possible in a short time so last year around the holidays we spent 2 days in Brussels, 1 in Amsterdam, 1 in Brugge and 1 in Antwerp all using Brussels as our base. It was alot of driving, but well worth it. Amsterdam took about 3 hours to get to, but was incredible - we plan to go back soon! Also beautiful was Brugge - an old village with lots of charm 1 full day is plenty either on your own (2 1/2 - 3 hour drive) or with a tour. Antwerp was o.k. - great for diamond shopping and diamond museums, but would be fine if you missed it. As far as all the xmas shops go - they are different from anything you find here in the U.S. - not necessarily great deals, but if you feel the holiday spirit and want to make a day trip out of it head to Germany. On a side note - a whimsy thing to do in Brussels is head out to Mini Europe next to the atomium. It is a park with minuature models done to scale of all the great buildings in the world. Just some kid like fun!!