I had a chance to take the family on a Christmas holiday trip to Belgium, so one of my priorities was to explore the Christmas markets in Bruges and Brussels. I’ve seen some European markets before, in Amsterdam, Frankfurt, and Florence—the way these shacks spring up and create little villages always seems magical.
Bruges
The week leading up to Christmas, Bruges has a festival called De Warmste Week (The Warmest Week—love the ironic name), which includes a bunch of mostly Belgian headline acts for nightly concerts. Franz Ferdinand was one this year. The concerts are free and take place in ’t Zand Square, near the center of town. The mood was absolutely warm, with people dancing in the streets, lovers kissing, and crowded tents serving up mulled wine and hot chocolate, despite the near-freezing weather and rain.
In addition to the festival, we visited two different Christmas markets located in the big pedestrian walkways. These were indicated with signs saying Wintergloed (winter glow). Again, these were free to enter, and had lots of crafts, food, and drinks. Of course, this being Belgium, festival goers were trusted to drink their beer from the proper glasses, made of glass, not plastic. I remember the weather really sucking (I had to buy a new, more water-resistant jacket after 5 minutes outside; luckily there were plenty of stores nearby), but under the wooden shelter inside the market, nobody cared about the rain or cold. Instead, they were dancing and singing to 80’s hits like Nena’s 99 Luftballons.
Brussels
WOW. It’s like the entire city center is transformed to a huge outdoor party called Plaisirs d’Hiver. In the Grand Place, there’s a synchronized light show every 30 minutes after dark, lighting up all the buildings of the square in time with classical music.
The Christmas markets are not contained, but instead appear in several different places—I counted at least five areas that had a bunch of stalls. With the typical weather in Brussels, you might want to order a Vin chaud avec Calvados to warm you from the inside out. The streets are absolutely packed with people, so be ready. I was impressed that people brought their babies in strollers, but I guess you’ve got to get them cultured early!
Other sights in Brussels
- Banksy Museum: Has replicas of the famous English artist.
- À la Bécasse: Old beer hall that serves lambic beers in pitchers, with communal tables.
- À la Mort Subite: Brasserie with a great selection of Belgian beers, and old-school wait staff.
- Sonian Forest: An easy bike ride away from the city, this huge park has an arboretum, lots of walking and bike trails, and a few cafes scattered around.