#37 best destination in the world

 

Hallerbos, Halle

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Best time to travel: mid April-late April
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Ease of travel: Moderate
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $

  • Forest mostly situated in the municipality of Halle, in Flemish Brabant
  • The forest is known in the region for its bluebell carpet which covers the forest floor for a few weeks each spring

Walibi Belgium, Wavre

Best time to travel: April-June, Sept-Oct
Ease of travel: Easy
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $

  • Highly reviewed theme park located in Wavre, where each night ends with a firework show around the lake

Manneken Pis, Brussels

Best time to travel: March-May, Sept-Oct
Walk difficulty: Moderate
Ease of travel: Easy
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $

  • Landmark bronze fountain sculpture in Brussels, depicting a puer mingens or naked little boy urinating into the fountain’s basin
  • Designed by a Brabantine sculptor, and put in place in 1618 or 1619
  • The current statue is a replica which dates from 1965, the original is kept in the Brussels City Museum
  • Manneken Pis is one of the best-known symbols of Brussels and Belgium, as well as an example of folk humor popular in Brussels

Grand Place, Brussels

Best time to travel: March-May, Sept-Oct
Ease of travel: Easy
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $

  • Central square of Brussels, it is surrounded by opulent Baroque guildhalls of the former Guilds of Brussels
  • The Grand Place’s construction began in the 11th century and was largely complete by the 17th
  • In 1695, during the Nine Years’ War, most of the square was destroyed during the bombardment of Brussels by French troops
  • From the mid-19th century, the square’s heritage value was rediscovered, and it was thoroughly renovated
  • Nowadays, the Grand Place is the most important tourist destination and most memorable landmark in Brussels, considered one of the world’s most beautiful squares
  • The square frequently hosts festive and cultural events, among them, in August of every even year, the installation of an immense flower carpet in its center

Atomium, Brussels

Best time to travel: March-May, Sept-Oct
Ease of travel: Easy
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $

  • Landmark building in Brussels, originally constructed for the 1958 Brussels World’s Fair (Expo ’58), and located where the exhibition took place
  • Nowadays, it serves as a museum, an art center and a cultural place
  • Its nine stainless steel clad spheres are connected in the shape of a unit cell that could represent an iron crystal magnified 165 billion times
  • Tubes connecting the spheres enclose stairs, escalators and an elevator to allow access to the six visitable spheres, which contain exhibit halls and other public spaces

Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium, Brussels

Best time to travel: March-May, Sept-Oct
Ease of travel: Easy
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $

  • Group of art museums in Brussels
  • The Royal Museums contains over 20,000 drawings, sculptures, and paintings, which date from the early 15th century to the present

Gravensteen, Ghent

Best time to travel: March-May, Sept-Oct
Ease of travel: Easy
Cost ($-$$-$$$): $

  • Medieval castle at Ghent, that dates from 1180 and was the residence of the Counts of Flanders until 1353
  • It was subsequently re-purposed as a court, prison, mint, and even as a cotton factory
  • It was restored over 1893–1903 and is now a museum and a major landmark in the city