Belgium and Luxembourg (Eyewitness Travel Guides)

258 TRAVELLERS’ NEEDS

ACCOMMODATION FOR
DISABLED TRAVELLERS

Hotels in Luxembourg and
Belgium take the needs of
disabled travellers seriously.
Most have rooms designed for
wheelchair-bound guests. It is
worth remembering, however,
that many hotels are in historic
buildings and may not be suit-
able. Most hotels allow the
visually handicapped to bring
a guide-dog on the premises.
It is essen tial to ask in advance
about the facilities available.
Bruxelles Pour Tous and the
Access-able Travel Source
have some listings.

TRAVELLING
WITH CHILDREN

Children are welcome in just
about all hotels in Belgium
and Luxembourg. Indeed,
many hotels make a concerted
effort to cater to the needs of
those travelling with children.
Most allow one or two chil-
dren under the age of 12 to
stay in their parents’ room
without extra charge, or to
stay for a small supplement.
Some hotels extend this to
travellers under the age of 16,
or even under 18. When travel-
ling with children, it is worth
booking in advance, so that
the hotel can reserve the room
best suited to their needs.

BED-AND-BREAKFASTS

A pleasant alternative to
staying in a small hotel, B&Bs
are essentially rooms in private
houses and the style of accom-
modation varies considerably,
from the mundane to the truly

special. For instance, some

B&Bs may be in historic

homes, close to a city centre

or set in the countryside, with

antique furniture and high

standards of comfort. Many

are run more like mini-hotels,

with owners who are careful

to provide a high level of

professional service in such

details as the quality of linen

and breakfast. This type of

accommodation best suits the

kind of traveller who enjoys

personal contact with the

owners, who are often excep-

tionally welcoming and a fount

of local knowledge. That said,

some B&Bs are simply rented

rooms in private houses, and

the owners may not live on the

premises at all. Bed & Brussels

specializes in B&Bs for

Brussels; Taxistop has listings

for all Belgium. In addition,

tourist offices can supply lists

of B&B accommodation.

HOEVETOERISME AND

CHAMBRES D’HOTES

There is little to distinguish

chambres d’hôtes (guest

rooms) from B&Bs, but usually

the former denotes something

a little more special – perhaps

a warm welcome in a beauti-

ful farmhouse, a manor house

or a historic building. In the

Flanders region, many farm

B&Bs belong to the movement

known as hoevetoerisme (farm-

stead tourism), under the

umbrella federation Vlaamse

Federatie voor Hoeve- en

Plattelandstoerisme. Its equiv-

alent in Wallonia is Fédération

des Gîtes de Wallonie, which,

like its Flemish counterpart,

also covers self-catering holiday

cottages, or gîtes.

APARTMENT-HOTELS

A number of city hotels offer

apartments rather than rooms.

For instance, the Citadines

com pany has two “apart-

hotels” in Brussels (see p262).

The rooms may be suites, with

a sitting area and kitchen facil-

ities, or the hotel may also

have a breakfast room for

guests. The reception services

can be as minimal as collecting

the key, registering and

paying. Apartment-hotels are

designed for guests staying a

number of days, if not weeks,

but some are happy to offer

accommodation for one night

only. They can be very useful

for families on a longer visit.

YOUTH AND BUDGET

ACCOMMODATION

There are youth hostels in

most major towns and cities:

more than 30 in Belgium and

about 10 in Luxembourg.

These tend to have excellent

modern facilities, reasonably

priced food and the chance of

more privacy than is usually

associated with hostel stays.

Accommodation may be in

double or single rooms, or

in dormitories. Although

called youth hostels, there is

in fact no age limit for guests.

Flanders, Wallonia and

Luxembourg each have their

own youth hotel association.

Members of Hostelling

International, or an equivalent

approved national organization,

will find the rates less expen-

sive than non-members.

There are also numerous

hostel-like budget hotels, par-

ticularly in the popular tourist

cities such as Brussels and

The charming Charles Rogier XI bed-and-breakfast in Antwerp

Porter attending to luggage at
the hotel, Conrad Brussels