I arrived in Brussels expecting immigration delays and a quick onward journey to Amsterdam. Instead, I cleared passport control in three minutes, was quoted more than €900 to change my Eurostar ticket, and ended up spending an unexpected night exploring a city I had never really seen before.
An Unexpected Night In Brussels
After landing in Brussels, I was bracing for long immigration lines under Europe’s new Entry/Exit System (EES), but the immigration line was deserted and the machines were off…I was out in three minutes.
I didn’t have a hotel booked…because the plan was not to stay in Brussels. I had a 5:20 am Eurostar train booked to Amsterdam then a connecting flight on KLM to Los Angeles and my hope was to hop on an earlier train to Amsterdam and spend the night at an airport hotel there to make the following morning less stressful.
From the airport, the train into the city center was easy, though I got off at the wrong stop initially (I stepped off at Brussels Central but Eurostar departs from Brussels Midi/Zuid).
At the station, I approached the Eurostar office where there was quite a line for the impending departure to London. Waiting my turn, I asked about an earlier departure and was directed to the Air France/KLM office, which was located on the other side of the station.
I found it and was directed into an office, where an agent looked up my ticket…and quoted a price of over 900€ (on an award ticket no less) to change my ticket. No thanks. I figured with a “Eurostar Premiers ticket I could take an earlier train, but as on flights, “standby” is not a thing in Europe (yet).
That left me with a bit of a dilemma as to where to stay, which I will address in my next post.
After dropping off my stuff (and my Delhi Belly was still pretty bad…like really bad) I set out for a walk through the city…a city I’ve never previously visited (in past visits, I’ve not strayed far from the airport).
The area around Brussels Midi/Zuid felt like being in an African or Middle Eastern country…from the small grocery stores to the coffee and hookah shops…it was not what I pictured Brussels to be like.
But as I got further into the heart of the city, it soon felt more like Europe, with busy promenades and of course the Grand-Place (Grote Markt) that included the Town Hall, King’s House, and many other ornate buildings.
I walked by the Cathedral of St. Michael and St. Gudula, a prime example of Brabantine Gothic architecture, but it was closed and I could not step inside.
Of course, I had to walk by the Manneken-Pis…the best-known symbol of Brussels.
My stomach was just not agreeing with me, so I skipped dinner and just drank a bottle of water and went to bed early, knowing that I would need to rise around 4:00 am to get my blogging done and catch the train.
I don’t speak French or Dutch (Flemish) and therefore Brussels is not my favorite city, but I suppose I should give the city another try when I have a bit more time…
Beautiful conditions! Now that’s a BlueSky! Sorry to hear about the choo-choo. Nice photo in the reflection!
“My stomach was just not agreeing with me…” Yeesh, you’ve had a rough week, Matthew. And, unfortunately, by the time you return home, the worsening *explosive diarrhea* outbreak awaits you, too!
The area near the train station is super sketch and yeah you do feel like you’re in Cairo or Dakar. Same with a lot of European cities: Paris Gare du Nord is like being transported to Abidjan, Frankfurt Hbf is like Baghdad…
I think that statement regarding the USA might be about more than football (soccer) . . .
For sure.
+1
@Matthew, with Dehli Belly lasting more than 48 hours, I have alwayed Rx’ed either Z-PAK or Cipro and in my experience my patients have improved quickly after starting antibiotics.
I am sure that you are well by now, but in the future, might be worth considering.
I will need to go back to India to review the lounges at DEL I did not get to review this last trip…but when I do, I will certainly bring along the RX!
While speaking the local language makes logistics easier and ability to experience the culture more authentic, but is it really a top criteria of how you determine your favorite cities?
No, certainly not – I love Paris and Amsterdam and can’t speak French or Dutch.
I’m just not a fan of Brussels…not at all.
With respect, seeing a city under the conditions you describe (upset stomach, unplanned stay, unknown areas) is not optimal. Brussels has lovely parks, amazing food, great museums and a lively night life; its suburbs are some of the most affluent in Europe. Before concretizing your opinion, you should plan a longer layover when you aren’t ill and can more fully enjoy. Brussels is not Paris or Vienna but it has a gentle food-based charm all its own.
Excepting chocolate making. we did not enjoy Brussels. We were surprised at how rundown the capital of the EU was.
On the other hand we loved the town of Ghent.
Same. In my previous life I visited several times on business and was never terribly impressed, although there’s an excellent restaurant (Bozar) at the Palais des Beaux-Arts that was a great venue for schmoozing.
For next time- once you check-in/collect that AirRail ticket, KLM doesn’t care or know if you take that Eurostar train the next morning. For next time in a similar situation, you could have just bought a EuroCity ticket at BRU to go straight to AMS with a quick change in Antwerp for around 45 euros.
I tried to check in once it became clear I could not change my ticket and was told that check-in is not permitted more than four hours before departure.
Interesting, have never actually used one of these combo air-rail tickets, although have read a good amount about them, including how to potentially tag a rail leg onto an award booking to CDG or AMS to get lower points pricing. Had you already checked in and gotten a boarding pass for the KLM flight? I wonder how deep the data sharing goes between the two entities- if you never checked in for the Eurostar ticket, does KLM see that and consider it a dropped leg and cancel the rest of the itinerary? My guess would be no, but of course that’s risky.
The cathedral is ugly as heck, but I love the history and architecture. It’s kind of like tattoos, none are good looking, but some are the result of talented artists.
Do you mean the outside or inside?
Outside.
“I don’t speak French or Dutch (Flemish) and therefore Brussels is not my favorite city” Belgium has a lot more English speakers (on a percentage basis) than France. But, I understand wanting to avoid those “miserable fat Belgian bastards.”
“Let’s not call them anything… let’s just ignore them!”
(Oh, I see you’ve adopted that approach for me, now, haven’t you, This comes to mind?)
I spent about 3 minutes total on both EES interactions this Summer. The problem seems to be that it can be painless to waiting hours to still miss your flight depending on location.
Did you end up staying at the Pullman Hotel in the train station? The area is kind of sketchy at (especially at nigh)t, but the hotel is really nice & very convenient for early morning departures.
Even worse. Stay tuned! 😉
So sad to see the state of Europe with half of Syria and Somalia walking around like they own the place.
More of the Islamification of Europe
Even though it’s neither Zurich nor Geneva, Brussels always deserves a visit.
I was just in Barcelona and the Entry/Exit System (EES) caused absolute chaos for arrivals (2+ hours wait for EU passport holders) but far less problematic for non-EU passport holders. Departures seemed to have less wait time. I breezed thru as a US passport holder both times I entered and departed BCN.
How is that possible??? Do they have separate lines? I’ve never heard of the native line being longer.
Yes, there are separate lines. One for EU Passport holders and one for Third Party Passport Holders. Both arriving and departing.
Oh I see yeah that makes sense about the 2 lines. I’ve been to many countries (including 2 european since this rolled out) so I should know. I did not realize the locals also have to use this darned contraption (well, contraptions plural) but that makes sense. What I would really want is a 3rd lane for foreigners who are already in the system – but that’ll never happen and i’ve read half the sites don’t even upload to the database. E.g. I’ve used EES in AMS/AMS and manual in KEF/KEF but I might not even show as a existing customer when I go to FCO/VCE next month! The real irony is that countries are only allowed to “skip” EES during busy periods so people flying at rush hour might get thru faster than people flying offpeak.
Here’s a short Brussels poem from me for readers of LIVE AND LET’S FLY who might be interested: ↓
Still a respectable railroad town
Half French, half Dutch
But it loves Paris much more than Amsterdam
©Güntürk Üstün (2026)
I was just in iceland they were not using ees at all (thankfully). About 5 min each way. Ironic i’ve been praying for egates for years and this is what we get!
The graffiti around Midi/Zuid is really a sight to see.
I spent a night in Brussels solely to visit the Magritte Museum. It was worth it.
I really don’t understand this post. I couldn’t find a last minute ticket from BRU to AMS, changing at Bruxelles Midi, costing more than €99, so where does the insane figure of $900 come from?
Exactly my question.
But I was booked on a KLM Business Class ticket from ZYR-AMS-LAX.
In (British) English, we have a phrase for this: taking the piss
I’ve been under the impression these ZYR train connections to connect at CDG and AMS were specially priced as part of an AF/KLM agreement to reduce short connecting flights out of BRU due to environmental concerns. That may have gummed up any effort to make changes.
Brussels is a dump of a city – one of the least desirable in Europe as a visitor.
Next time just take one of the hourly intercity trains that don’t require a reservation. It’s an hour slower than Eurostar, but you won’t have to be in Brussels.
Central Brussels, and especially around Midi, is very rundown, with the exception of the touristy Grande Place. And dangerous after dark, especially for women. Remember that the Bataclan terrorists cane from the Scharbeek and Mollenbeek neighborhoods. The city suburbs are nice, though. I am surprised you didn’t just speak English – they use it as a neutral language. Also that you didn’t visit the THALYS lounge at MIDI (rather plain, though).
Dude, play the lotteryor something! To get out of passport control in Brussels Airport in THREE minutes?? That’s incredible! As a non-EU national, I HATE arriving in Brussels with the fire of a thousand suns! I last landed there from outside the Schengen Area last May (before implementation of EES, although I did see all the machines) and was greeted with my usual: an infernally-long line and only two “ALL PASSPORTS” booths open. I seriously wouldn’t mind connecting ANYWHERE ELSE the next time I go to Brussels. The immigration officers are incredibly nice, though.