330 SURVIVAL GUIDE
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elgium and Luxembourg
both have abundant and
excellent connections byair, rail and road. Brussels in
particular, as the capital of the
European Union, is the beneficiary of
increasingly tight competition between
the airlines, although, as a business-
oriented destination, the city is not
generally the target of bargain-basement
flights. High-speed trains, such as
ARRIVING BY TRAINBrussels lies at the heart of
Europe’s high-speed train net-
works, connected to London
by the Eurostar service and to
Paris, Amsterdam and Cologne
by the Thalys network.
With top speeds of 300 kph
(186 mph), these trains offer a
viable alternative to air travel,
especially given that the sta-
tions are located close to city
centres and rail travel involves
fewer check-in formalities.
Eurostar trains leave from St
Pancras, London, and take 1
hour 51 minutes to reach
Brussels Midi, passing through
the Channel Tunnel between
Folkestone and Calais (France).
It is also possible to join the
Eurostar in Kent – at Ebbsfleet
or Ashford. Tickets to Brussels
are valid to any other BelgianLondon and is served by
VLM. Luxembourg’s interna-
tional airport, Findel, lies 6
km (4 miles) east of
Luxembourg City and is
served by British Airways, as
well as VLM Air lines (from
London City Airport and
Manchester). Luxair, the
national carrier, flies to vari-
ous points in Europe and
North Africa. The nearest
Ryanair destinations are
Charleroi, or Frankfurt in
Germany, 200 km (125 miles)
east of Luxembourg City.the EU district. Taxis can
take longer in heavy traffic,
and cost up to ten times as
much as the train or bus.
Charleroi Airport has a bus
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.Thalys and Eurostar, provide a
comfortable and convenient
mode of transport, and are the
popular alternative to air travel.
Travellers from Britain can use the
Channel Tunnel to bring their car with
them. Motorways criss-cross the region
as part of a pan-European network –
there are no motorway tolls in either
Belgium or Luxembourg, so the main
cost of driving is simply the petrol.TRAVEL INFORMATION
ARRIVING BY AIR
The Brussels Airport, serving
international flights, is located
at Zaventem 14 km (9 miles)
northeast of the city centre.
Most Belgians, including
taxi drivers, refer to it as
Zaventem. The local interna-
tional carrier, Brussels Airlines,
connects many cities in the
USA, Europe and around the
world. Other major carriers
using Zaventem include Air
Canada, American Airlines,
British Airways, Lufthansa
and Delta. However, travellers
from North America may find
it cheaper to fly to another
European city (for instance,
London) and take an onward
connection. CityJet, the
Flemish airline, flies out of
London City Airport to
Antwerp. Among the budget
airlines, flybe has connections
to Brussels from Manchester
and Southampton. Ryanair’s
Brussels South Airport is in fact
Charleroi Airport, 55 km (34
miles) southeast of Brussels;
Ryanair services run from
Glasgow, Manchester, Dublin
and Shannon. Antwerp Airport
6 km (4 miles) from the centre
of Antwerp, is linked to
AIRPORT FACILITIESZaventem has the full range
of facilities expected of an
in ternational airport. Arriving
passengers will also find ATMs,
foreign exchange booths and
coin- and card-operated pay-
phones. There are efficient
and economic rail connec-
tions into Brussels every 20
minutes, running through
each of the three main train
stations (Gare du Nord, Gare
Centrale and Gare du Midi)
in turn. The Airport Line bus
service connects the airport
to Schuman Metro station and
th Quartier Léopold station inEurostar logoAn aeroplane from the fleet of the Belgian carrier, Brussels Airlines
The sleek high-speed Thalys train,
pulling into a Brussels station