HELP we are going to Brussels tomorrow and apparently it's freezing there - 4yo and 9mo in tow

[mrsgboring]

DH very kindly bought Eurostar tickets for Christmas. I've been in denial about the trip ever since. Can anyone reassure me, and any locals give a heads up about what the weather conditions are like?

Should we take our welly boots for the snow??

What shall we do with ourselves (it's a long weekend)? I was thinking of either Atomium (but it ight be too freezing) or the cartoon museum??

Are the restaurants really unwelcoming to children? We have a little foldyup highchair and aren't fazed by that aspect but will we be Frowned At?

Anything else I should know?

TIA

self indulgent bump (cos I am panicking)

You need Portofino!!!

It won't be much colder than the UK, non? I'd plan lots of indoors activities, but I'm sorry I can't be of much help.

Bump!

Oo thanks Franca

DH has been watching the weather forecast and apparently it will be 4 degrees lower, plus snow so it will feel colder than here.

Every time I go to Belgium it is freezing, chucking it down rain and sleet so I should have expected it. Plus it's February, but as I say I've been in denial....

Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr that's freezing! You need to bump this until Portofino sees it, I think she is local.
have you seen this?. I'd love to go to Brussels, by the way

Ooh, we will be in Brussels on Sunday but we are driving on our way to Holland. My feeling is that it is a couple of degrees colder than here so I am planning on thermals, knee socks and walking boots. I never think that wellies are particularly warm and I'm sure the pavements will be clear. We used to live there and in Antwerp so our overnight will just be a big nostalia-fest of showing our boys where we used to hang out in our youth, before they came along! Sorry I can't be much help with places to go and we didn't have children when we lived there so have no idea about the restaurants. Hope someone more knowledgeable comes along to help!

Scareyteacher lives in Brussels - bump!

Franca you star thanks for the link. Scientastic looks ideal - now I remember reading about it in the guidebook way back when.

annh I was thinking walking boots too, though in our recent heavy slushy snow my wellies were star performers. Don't fancy Eurostar in wellies though, I have to say.

Also, bumping for Scaryteacher and Portofino - would love to hear from a local what it's like on the ground.

We're going in walking boots, but oh Brussels dwellers if you're out there, do you think DS1 needs his wellies?

Atomium is a dump with lots and lots of stairs. Avoid.

There is a good museum in Brussels that has lots of dinosaurs, cannot unfortunately recall the name but is is quite well known.

Ooh - sorry didn't see this! Busy in RL over the weekend. Guess I'm a little late now!

Just thought - hopefully you are not travelling home today if you are having a long weekend! I'm not sure how long disruption will be to Eurostar.....

On the off chance that you see this, and need any assistance if you get stranded I have sent you a CAT with my mobile phone no.

Following on from this - I'm in Brussels in a few weeks (ostensibly on my own as DH is at a conference) with DS who is 15 months old. Any locals with tips for places to go, things to see and eating out with a toddler ideas...?

I'll reply when I can get on pc later...

Hello all

Just to say we had a great time in Brussels and got back home safely late yesterday. Of course there was chaos, and we had 3 and a half hours added to our journey but it was not too horrendous in the circumstances and Eurostar were actually very good.

Attila, I kind of agree with you about the Atomium but we were quite glad of the trip out on the tram and general photo opportunity.

Well no one could get on here last night!

I think most places are reasonably child friendly. Dd was 2 when we moved here and we have taken her in lots of cafes and restuarants without incident, even some quite posh ones. Chez Leon (Rue de Bouchers and at Bruparck)is notably child friendly and kids eat free with their parents - though for a 15 month old I guess this is less of an issue.

Things to do:

Definitely have a stroll round the Grand Place and go and be underwhelmed by the Mannekin Pis.

The Museum of Natural History has a fab dinosaur collection and lots of little play areas. The Children's Museum in Ixelles is quite good fun too. Stroll in the Bois de la Cambre. Trip on the metro or tram to Brupark to see the Atomium (better to look at from the outside). At Bruparck there is a food village, a multiplex cinema, a pool complex, playground, merrygoround etc, and Mini Europe which has key European sites in miniature.

The Art Museum and Magritte museum are good, if you like that sort of thing. There is the Parc de Bruxelles up near there which has another very good playground. There are various soft play places but in the week these are generally only open on Wednesday afternoons. Funny Club in Woluwe St Lambert has a cafe and area for small ones.

You can also get the 44 tram out through the forest to Tervuren and the African Museum (full of stuffed dead things - so not to everyone's taste - dd loves it!) but the park that surrounds it is lovely and there is a new cafe by the lake.

And if you are there during the week, I work in the city centre, so if you fancy lunch one day......

Oh this is wonderful, thank you so much! We're there all week, while DH is busy schmoozing, so this will keep us busy. I'm sure the last thing you want is lunch with a 15 month old, you'll end up going back to the office covered in baby food! But, thank you for the offer

I used to work in Brussels (Euroclear) and really miss it. I want Marcolini!

I had 2 interviews with Euroclear. They didn't want me! Mad obviously.

There is probably loads more. I have a family guide to Belgium if you want some more suggestions.

Don't mind babies one little bit, but lunch a suggestion/not obligation... if you wanted some company.....it's always nice to catch up with people from Blighty from my point of view. Happy to provide more info whatever....

In that case, lunch would be lovely, can I take you up on the offer? We're on our own Tuesday - Friday, can I bring you anything? Newspapers/marmite???

Can you do CAT? If so send me a message about when you are coming....and we can sort something out.

I'm glad you had a nice time Mrsgboring. I thought about you on Sunday and felt guilty when we arrived in Bxl in the snow and I felt most unsafe on the pavement! They weren't at all as clear as I had expected although to be fair it continued to snow intermittently for most of the 24 hours we spent there so would have been difficult for them to be clear.

We took the boys around to see various places we had lived etc including my first apartment near Stockel. It was only afterwards that we mused about how we had driven on snow-packed streets in the suburbs which would probably have kept us home here. It's funny how being on holiday makes you forget the usual rules of common sense!