Page 324 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Belgium & Luxembourg

322  SUR VIV AL GUIDE

TRAVEL INFORMATION

Belgium and Luxembourg both have provide a comfortable and convenient mode
abundant and excellent connections by air, of transport, and are the popular alternative
rail and road. Brussels in particular, as the to air travel. Travellers from Britain can use
capital of the European Union, is the the Channel Tunnel to bring their car with
beneficiary of increasingly tight competition them. Motorways criss-cross the region as
between the airlines, although, as a business- part of a pan-European network – there are
oriented destination, the city is not generally no motorway tolls in either Belgium or
the target of bargain-basement flights. High- Luxembourg, so the main cost of driving is
speed trains, such as Thalys and Eurostar, simply the petrol.

link to Brussels Midi, and,
alterna tively, a bus link to the
Charleroi-Sud railway station
for onward journeys by rail.
Luxembourg’s airport offers
similar facilities, and a bus
service shuttles passengers into
the centre of the city.

Arriving by Train
Brussels lies at the heart of
An aeroplane from the fleet of the Belgian carrier, Brussels Airlines Europe’s high-speed train
networks, connected to
Arriving by Air
airport, Findel, lies 6 km London by the Eurostar
Brussels Airport, serving inter- (4 miles) east of Luxembourg service and to Paris,
national flights, is located City and is served by British Amsterdam and Cologne by
at Zaventem 14 km (9 miles) Airways, Lufthansa, KLM, Swiss the Thalys network. With top
northeast of the city centre. and Vueling. Luxair, the national speeds of 300 kph (186 mph),
Most Belgians, including taxi carrier, flies to various points in these trains offer a viable alter-
drivers, refer to it as Zaventem. Europe and North Africa. The native to air travel, especially
The local international carrier, nearest Ryanair destinations are given that the stations are
Brussels Airlines, connects Charleroi, or Frankfurt in located close to city centres
many cities in the USA, Europe Germany, 200 km (125 miles) and rail travel involves fewer
and around the world. Other east of Luxembourg City. check-in formalities. Eurostar
major carriers using Zaventem trains leave from St Pancras,
include Air Canada, American Airport Facilities London, and take 1 hour 51
Airlines, British Airways, minutes to reach Brussels Midi,
Lufthansa and Delta. However, Zaventem has the full range passing through the Channel
travellers from North America of facilities expected of an Tunnel between Folkestone
may find it cheaper to fly to in ternational airport. Arriving and Calais (France). It is also
another European city (for passengers will also find ATMs, possible to join the Eurostar in
instance, London) and take an foreign exchange booths and Kent – at Ebbsfleet or Ashford.
onward connection. CityJet, coin- and card-operated pay- If travelling on beyond Brussels,
the Flemish airline, flies out of phones. There are efficient and visitors need to purchase
London City Airport to Antwerp. economic rail connec tions into another ticket to their destina-
Among the budget airlines, Brussels every 20 minutes, tion. To reach Luxembourg City
flybe has connections to running through each of the
Antwerp from Manchester and three main train stations (Gare
Southampton. Ryanair’s Brussels du Nord, Gare Centrale and Gare
South Airport is in fact Charleroi du Midi) in turn. The Airport
Airport, 55 km (34 miles) south- Line bus service connects the
east of Brussels; Ryanair services airport to Schuman Metro
run from Edinburgh, Dublin and station and Quartier Léopold
Manchester. Antwerp Airport, station in the EU district. Taxis
6 km (4 miles) from the centre can take longer in heavy traffic,
of Antwerp, is linked to London and cost up to ten times as
and is served by CityJet. much as the train or bus. The sleek high-speed Thalys train, pulling
Luxembourg’s international Charleroi Airport has a bus into a Brussels station

322-323_EW_Belgium.indd 322 18/10/16 3:03 pm
Eyewitness Travel LAYERS PRINTED:
Practical template “UK” LAYER
(Source v1.7)
Date 5th March 2013
Size 125mm x 217mm