I got a nice fare to Rome in July, the catch being we spend a night in Brussels on the return. We get there at 2:30 pm, and depart at 11:00 am the next day.

We have never been there, so I'd appreciate any advice about whether to book a hotel near the airport or in town. We should have time to see a few sights, but is it easier to stay at the airport and take a cab in, and be set for departure, or be in town to walk around, and get a cab back to the airport?

Also, anyone know if there is a place to leave luggage overnight at the airport? Thanks.

This might not appeal to you, but I have a private single in Sleepwell Hostel. Good location (close to Grand Palace), newly renovated, private bathrooms, etc. I am going there next week and can report back. Website is sleepwell.be, I believe.

The private portion is separate from the rest of the hostel, so I don't think you have to deal with the hostel crowd if you don't want to ... I don't.

What's your budget? We stayed at Le Meridien the night before our flight left. The hotel is located across the street from the train station and it was very easy to get to the airport in the morning. The hotel is also well located...very short 5 minute walk to the Grand Place.

We spent six hours in Brussels a few years ago and brought home the BEST CHOCOLATE IN THE WORLD!! POUNDS & POUNDS of it! The Grand Place is the MOST BEAUTIFUL town square in all of Europe. There are hotels right near the station. It is the NATO headquarters and easy to find a night there.

The Meridien beanweb mentioned is a good choice...you are right next to the Gare Centrale in case you opt to take the airport train into town instead of a cab (although with two people, I would recommend the cab option) and it's a fairly short walk to either the Sablon or the Grand'Place.
If you opt to stay by the airport, the best place is the Sheraton. It takes two minutes at *most* to walk from the Sheraton entrance to the airport entrance. You could check in, leave your luggage in your room and then go into Brussels by airport train.
If you are flying back to the U.S. from Brussels, you need to be at the airport 90 minutes in advance, although two hours would be better.

Other hotel recs...The Sofitel Toison d'Or offers some excellent rates on its web site (www.sofitel.com). I go back to Brussels every 6 weeks or so to get my hair done (haven't found the right stylist in the UK since we moved from Brussels to Berkshire in December 04) and stay overnight there,usually for just over 100 euros a night for a comfortable spacious double. Very nice service and the hotel is far more attractive than it looks from the street (you go up a level to check in, etc.). It has a nice garden cafe. The location is in the heart of the prime Brussels shopping district and also is not far from the Sablon; a little farther from the Grand'Place (15 min. walk to the Sablon, 25 mins to the GP).

Whether you'd do better to stay in town or the airport is up to you. If you stay in town, you should leave the hotel by 8:30 am to make it to the airport in plenty of time (a little later if it's Sunday and there's no traffic). If you stay at the Sheraton, you can just stroll over with your luggage around 9:15 am.

http://www.hotelwelcome.com/

The Hotel Welcome was recommended to me although I've never stayed there. We had planned to visit one weekend from Germany but it never worked out.

The Welcome is terrific.

They will take you to the airport however early your flight is (Since it's not, just get the train. It's 2 minutes walk from the Welcome to the Metro, 5 minutes from the Metro part of Central station to the train part. The trains are at most 20 minutes or so apart)

Hi, Lyn

I must agree with BTilke should you decide to stay close to the airport.

We stayed at the Brussels airport Sheraton, which was extremely convenient for our early morning flight. (You literally cross the street from one of the airport entrances, and you are in the Sheraton.) Like you, we only had an afternoon to see Brussels. You should be able to check into the hotel upon your arrival from Rome, and be on the train into Brussels within the hour.

It is a quick train ride into Brussels Central Station. On our trip, we picked up the hop-on, hop-off tour bus from right in front of the train station, and we were able to get a quick overview of Brussels by staying on the bus and making a complete circuit. As it will be summer on your trip, sites may be open later, so you may be able to actually visit a few places within your short time frame. We traveled back to the airport via train at about 10:00 pm, and felt safe.

Also, the morning of our departure, we checked in early for our flight back to NYC, and then returned to our room for another hour before boarding.

I am not a great fan of airport hotels, but this one exceeded my expectations, both for quality and convenience. For a longer stay, I would stay in Brussels proper; however, with the early flight this would be my definite option.

Wherever you stay, have a fun trip!

Chels