stop over in brussels
 

going home from italy we have to spend the nite in brussels with a 10AM flt the next day
how far is town from the airport? should we stay at a place near the airport or is it safe to stay in town?

Hi,
The airport is very close to the town. There is a train station in the airport, and it's about a 20 minute ride direct to Central station in the centre of Brussels. If you'd rather take a taxi, the journey shouldn't take longer than 30 minutes (often less, depending on traffic) and would cost 30-40 euros, I would think. There is also an airport shuttle bus which costs 3 euros and departs from Place Luxembourg, near the European Parliament building in the EU district. (if your morning flight from Brussels is on a weekday, I'd recommend getting the train out to the airport so as to avoid rush-hour traffic).

So I think it would certainly be worth spending the night in town, unless your flight from Italy gets in really late.

There are lots of hotels near Central station which is near Grand Place,restaraunts and a big market. as the other emailer says it is a 20 min ride from the city centre to the airport and the train goes practically into the terminal.

Depends which airport.

Some budget airlines fly to Charleroi - no train, coach takes 50 mins, hourly I think.

If you're flying into Zaventem (BRU) and not into Charleroi, which is not "Brussels South" no matter how Ryanair spins it, AND you have to recheck your luggage AND you can afford it, I would suggest staying at the airport Sheraton instead. It's literally a 30 second walk from the hotel to the departure level of the airport. If you have to check in at 8 am for a longhaul flight, much easier to have coffee or breakfast early at the hotel and walk over instead of taking a train at 7:30 am.
If you only have light carryon and your flight gets into BRU at a reasonable hour (or if you're coming from Charleroi on the bus that dumps you at the Gare du Midi), then stay in town, near the Gare Centrale (Le Meridien, Novotel Grand'Place, etc.). See the GP and the Sablon, have a nice dinner, and catch a morning train.
I like the airport bus and have used it several times, but it has to cope with whatever traffic is out there...the Ring and roads to the airport do get jammed from time to time, esp. in the morning (if you're leaving on a Sunday morning, should be no problem).