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Huis van Alijn
In a restored 1363 children’s hospice complex, this delightful museum examines how everyday life was lived from the 1890s to 1970s. Although not all is in English, many exhibits are self-explanatory, including quaint recreated shop interiors, photos of wedding fashions, fun 1960s a
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Cathédrale des Sts
Host to coronations and royal weddings, Brussels’ grand, twin-towered cathedral bears at least some resemblance to Paris’ Notre Dame. Begun in 1226, construction took 300 years. Stained-glass windows flood the soaring nave with light, while column-saints brandish gilded tools. An e
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Antwerp Zoo
Splendid animal statues and striking big-cat mosaics welcome visitors to world-famous Antwerp Zoo. Although its one of the world’s oldest zoos (founded in 1843), enclosures in the 10-hectare site are state-of-the-art and the zoo’s breeding program has an international reputation. A
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Domaine Royal
The Domain Royale contains a trio of palace-villas that are home to Belgium’s ruling family. All are out of bounds to tourists, but two or three weeks a year (exact dates are announced each January) you can join the enthusiastic queues to visit the magnificent Royal Greenhouses , d
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Crowne Plaza Hotel
In the 1990s, when excavating for the foundations of the Crowne Plaza Hotel , workers literally hit a wall. This wall, it turned out, belonged to the 10th-century St-Donaas church (where Charles the Good, Count of Flanders is believed to have been assassinated in 1127), which later
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Château de Belœil
Sitting in an artificial lake within a vast manicured park, the Château de Belœil is a regal country palace-house, immodestly seeing itself as the Belgian Versailles. Inside it’s packed with classical furniture and portraiture relevant to the princes ‘de Ligne’, whose scion, Eugène
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Villa Royale Marie
While Belgium’s King Leopold II was playing colonial domination in Congo, his feisty Hungarian-born queen avoided the boredom of Brussels by moving to Spa and riding her horses across the Ardennes. The 1862 Napoleon III–style former hotel where she stayed, is now a minor museum. Th
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Ijzertoren
The unique 1950 Ijzertoren is built of drab, purple-brown brick and topped with power station–style windows. This colossal 84m-high ‘peace’ tower is at once crushingly ugly and fascinating. It’s set behind the shattered ruins of a 1930 original, whose mysterious sabotage in 1946 re
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Fort Thüngen
This squat building is a 1730 twin-towered extension of the plateaus vast complex of Vauban fortifications. It has an interesting museum about Luxembourgs historic defences and also hosts changing exhibitions. If the relevant door is open, climb up onto the roof for an original vie
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De Koninck
Antwerp’s historic brewery – one of the few true city breweries left in Belgium – has recently been refurbished and is both a wonderful temple to the city’s favourite drop and an evocative example of early-20th-century industrial architecture. Self-guided tours begin with interacti
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Silexs
Six kilometres southeast of Mons, a peaceful agricultural scene covers what was a major Neolithic flint-mining site. One of the most impressive shafts is covered by this lightweight metal museum, which gives decent information on how the flint was knapped and made into durable tool
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’t Begijnhuisje
Just inside the main entrance of the begijnhof , this is a charming 17th-century house now converted into an endearing little four-room museum. In the rustic kitchen with its blue and white Delft tiles you’ll see a Louvain stove which extends into the room from the hearth so that p
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Gravensteen
The counts of Flanders’ quintessential 12th-century stone castle comes complete with moat, turrets and arrow slits. It’s all the more remarkable considering that during the 19th century the site was converted into a cotton mill. Meticulously restored since, the interior sports the
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Hoge Raad voor Diamant
To get a glimpse of the amount of diamonds (and gold) being traded, just wander along Pelikaanstraat, Vestingstraat or Hoveniersstraat at any time during the day (on Saturday many shops are closed for Sabbath, the Jewish holy day). These high-security streets are also home to impor
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MAS
Opened in 2011, MAS is a 10-storey complex that redefines the idea of a museum-gallery. Floors are designed around big-idea themes using a barrage of media, from old master paintings through tribal artefacts to video installations. Around half the building hosts special exhibitions
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Burg
Smaller but arguably more impressive than the Markt is the adjoining Burg. For more than five centuries the former palace on this majestic site was the seat of the counts of Flanders. The St Donatian Cathedral also stood here until 1799, when religious zealots tore it down. These d
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Talbot House
This is an unusually light-hearted WWI attraction. Reverend Philip ‘Tubby’ Clayton set up the Everyman’s Club here in 1915 to offer rest and recreation for WWI soldiers regardless of rank. The main 1790 townhouse has barely changed since. The garden is a charming oasis, and visits
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Grottes de Hotton
Hidden beneath partly-wooded hills 1.7km southwest of Hotton, the Grottes de Hotton are some of Belgium’s most awesome caves. Sculpted grottoes sprout pretty stalagmites and weird ‘eccentrics’ – mini corkscrews or horizontal protrusions apparently defying logic. However, the real h
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Place dArmes
Namurs central square has been marred by a 1980s department store yet still features the elegant stone-and-brick Palais des Congrès conference centre, rebuilt in the 1930s with war reparations from Germany (the German army having torched the whole square in 1914). Behind lies the U
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Hooge Crater Museum
In a quaint repurposed chapel on the Ypres–Menen road (N8), this small but characterful two-room museum is entered between assorted WWI sandbags, rusty rail sections and field guns. Inside, uniformed mannequins, arms and assorted memorabilia are ranged in venerable old display case
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