France
Germany
Luxembourg
NetherlandsCaesar conquers the Belgae
Julius Caesar began his conquest of the Belgae, a group of tribes he described as the bravest of the Gauls. The land became part of the Roman province of Gallia Belgica.
Western Europe
Belgium
A small kingdom at the crossroads of Europe, with medieval market squares, three official languages, world-famous chocolate and a beer for every occasion.
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Overview
Belgium at a glance
Belgium sits in the Low Countries of north-western Europe, between the Netherlands, Germany, Luxembourg and France, with a short sandy coast on the North Sea. The north is flat and low, with dunes, polders and old trading cities, while the south rises into the wooded hills, caves and river gorges of the Ardennes.
The land was home to the Belgae, a people Julius Caesar fought in the first century BC. In the Middle Ages the cloth towns of Flanders were among the richest in Europe. Spain, Austria, France and the Netherlands ruled here in turn, and so many wars were fought on its soil that Belgium was called the battlefield of Europe. It became an independent kingdom in 1830.
Today Belgium is a federal parliamentary monarchy of about 11.9 million people. Dutch is spoken in Flanders in the north, French in Wallonia in the south, German in a small area in the east, and the capital Brussels is officially bilingual. Brussels is also home to the main institutions of the European Union and the headquarters of NATO.
CapitalBrussels
PopulationAbout 11.9 million
Official languagesDutch, French and German
CurrencyEuro (€), since 2002. Before that, the Belgian franc
AreaAbout 30,700 km²
GovernmentFederal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. As of September 2026 the head of state is King Philippe
Highest pointSignal de Botrange, 694 m, on the High Fens plateau in the east
Main riversThe Meuse (925 km long) through Wallonia and the Scheldt (about 360 km long) through Flanders, both flowing on through the Netherlands to the North Sea
NeighboursThe Netherlands, Germany, Luxembourg and France by land. The United Kingdom lies across the North Sea
Drives on theRight
Calling code+32
The story
A short history of Belgium
Belgium's story runs from Caesar's wars with the Belgae, through the rich cloth towns of Flanders and centuries of foreign rulers, to independence in 1830, two world wars and a new role at the heart of the European Union.
57 BC AD 843 The Treaty of Verdun
The grandsons of Charlemagne divided his empire into three kingdoms. Flanders, west of the Scheldt river, went to the western kingdom that became France, while most of today's Belgium fell to the middle kingdom.
1302 The Battle of the Golden Spurs
Flemish town militias won a surprise victory over an army of mounted French knights. Flanders, rich from its cloth trade, was then one of the wealthiest areas in Europe.
1500 Charles V is born in Ghent
The future Emperor Charles V was born in Ghent on 24 February 1500. He came to rule Spain, the Holy Roman Empire and the Low Countries, and in 1549 he made the Seventeen Provinces of the Low Countries a single unit.
1585 The fall of Antwerp
After a siege of more than a year, Antwerp surrendered to Spanish forces on 17 August 1585. The south stayed under Spanish rule, while the north went on to become the independent Dutch Republic.
1815 The Battle of Waterloo
On 18 June 1815 Napoleon was finally defeated at Waterloo, about 15 km south of Brussels. The Congress of Vienna then joined Belgium to the Netherlands in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands.
1830 The Belgian Revolution
In August 1830 an opera audience in Brussels spilled into the streets singing patriotic songs, and a revolt against Dutch rule followed. A provisional government declared independence on 4 October 1830.
1831 Leopold I becomes king
On 21 July 1831 Leopold of Saxe-Coburg was sworn in as the first King of the Belgians. The date is now Belgium's National Day.
1839 The Treaty of London
The Netherlands and the great powers of Europe recognised Belgium's independence and promised to guard its neutrality. Germany's breach of this promise in 1914 was Britain's stated reason for entering the First World War.
1908 Belgium takes over the Congo
King Leopold II had ruled the Congo Free State as his private possession, and many Congolese were killed by his agents for failing to deliver enough rubber and ivory. After an international outcry, the Belgian state took it over in 1908 as the Belgian Congo.
1914 Germany invades Belgium
In August 1914 German armies crossed neutral Belgium to attack France. Belgian forces held them up at Liège and on the Yser, and much of the Western Front ran through western Belgium for four years.
1940 The second German invasion
On 10 May 1940 Germany invaded again. After 18 days of fighting the army and King Leopold III surrendered, and Belgium was occupied until the Allies liberated it in 1944 and 1945.
1957 A founder of the European Community
Belgium was one of the six founding members of the European Economic Community, set up in 1957, which grew into today's European Union. Brussels later became home to its main institutions.
1958 Expo 58 and the Atomium
From April to October 1958 Brussels hosted a World's Fair on the Heysel plateau. Its centrepiece, the Atomium, still stands as a symbol of the city.
1960 Congo becomes independent
The Belgian Congo became independent in 1960. Rwanda and Burundi, which Belgium had governed since the First World War, followed two years later.
1993 Belgium becomes a federal state
After decades of tension between Dutch and French speakers, a series of reforms ended with the 1993 reform that made Belgium a federal state of communities and regions.
At the table
What to eat in Belgium
Belgian food combines the refinement of French cooking with the hearty dishes of Flanders. Belgians love seasonal produce: grey shrimp from the North Sea, white asparagus, endive and mussels. Fries, waffles, chocolate and beer are famous far beyond the country, and beer is matched to a meal almost like wine: wheat beer with fish, blond or tripel beer with chicken, dark beer with red meat and fruit beer with dessert.
Main courseRecipe
Mussels with fries
moules-frites or mosselen met friet
All of Belgium, especially the coast; also popular in northern France
A big pot of mussels steamed with onions or shallots and celery, often with white wine or beer, served with a separate bowl of crisp fries so that they do not go soggy. It is often called Belgium's national dish.
Moules-frites is a seasonal dish, eaten above all when mussels are in season. The mussels usually arrive at the table in the pot they were cooked in.
See the recipe
Ingredients
- 2 kg fresh live mussels
- 2 shallots or 1 onion, finely chopped
- 2 sticks of celery, finely chopped
- 30 g butter
- 200 ml dry white wine, or a light Belgian beer
- A handful of chopped parsley and black pepper
- Fries and mayonnaise, to serve
Method
- Rinse and scrub the mussels in cold water and pull off any beards. Throw away any with broken shells, and any open mussel that does not close when you tap it. People with a shellfish allergy should not eat this dish.
- Melt the butter in a large pot with a lid and cook the shallots and celery gently for 5 minutes until soft.
- Turn up the heat, add the wine and the mussels and put the lid on. Cook for 5 to 7 minutes, shaking the pot now and then, until the shells open.
- Throw away any mussels that stay closed. Season with pepper and scatter over the parsley.
- Serve in the pot with a bowl of hot fries and mayonnaise on the side.
Snack
Belgian fries
frites or frieten
All of Belgium
Thick potato fries fried twice, first at a lower heat to cook them through and then hotter to make them crisp. They are sold at fry shacks called friteries or frietkoten, in a paper cone with a spoonful of mayonnaise or one of more than a dozen other sauces on top.
Belgians often say fries were first made in the Meuse valley before 1680, when frozen rivers meant no fish to fry. Historians doubt the story: the manuscript behind it has never been produced, and potatoes probably reached the area only around 1735.
Main courseRecipe
Flemish beef and beer stew
carbonade flamande, stoofvlees or stoverij
Flanders, now eaten all over Belgium
Beef slowly stewed with onions in a dark Flemish beer, thickened with a slice of bread spread with mustard. A little brown sugar and vinegar give the sauce a gentle sweet and sour taste. It is served with fries, boiled potatoes or stoemp.
Every region and family has its own version. Some cooks add prunes, gingerbread or speculoos biscuits to the pot.
See the recipe
Ingredients
- 1 kg stewing beef, such as chuck, cut in large cubes
- 3 onions, sliced
- 30 g butter and 1 tablespoon oil
- 1 tablespoon plain flour
- 500 ml Flemish brown ale (oud bruin) or another dark beer
- 2 slices of bread, spread thickly with mustard
- 2 bay leaves and a few sprigs of thyme
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar and 1 tablespoon cider or wine vinegar
- Salt and black pepper
Method
- Season the beef with salt and pepper. Brown it in batches in the butter and oil in a heavy casserole, then set it aside.
- Cook the onions in the same pot over a low heat for about 15 minutes until soft and golden. Stir in the flour.
- Put the beef back, pour in the beer and add the herbs. Lay the bread slices on top, mustard side down.
- Cover and simmer very gently for 2 to 2.5 hours, stirring now and then, until the meat is very tender and the bread has melted into the sauce.
- Stir in the sugar and vinegar, taste for salt and pepper and serve with fries or boiled potatoes.
Main courseRecipe
Ghent waterzooi
Gentse waterzooi
Ghent, in East Flanders
A creamy soup-stew of chicken or fish with carrots, leeks, celery and potatoes, enriched at the end with cream and egg yolk.
Waterzooi was first made with river fish. The usual explanation for the switch to chicken is that the rivers around Ghent became too polluted for fish.
See the recipe
Ingredients
- 4 chicken legs or 800 g chicken thighs
- 1.2 litres chicken stock
- 2 carrots and 2 leeks, cut in thin strips
- 2 sticks of celery, sliced, and 1 onion, chopped
- 4 waxy potatoes, peeled and cut in chunks
- 30 g butter
- 150 ml single cream and 2 egg yolks
- Chopped parsley, salt and pepper
Method
- Simmer the chicken in the stock for about 35 minutes until cooked through. Lift it out, remove the skin and bones and pull the meat into large pieces.
- Meanwhile soften the onion, carrots, leeks and celery in the butter for 10 minutes without browning.
- Add the vegetables and potatoes to the stock and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes until the potatoes are tender. Put the chicken back in.
- Whisk the cream and egg yolks in a bowl, then whisk in a ladle of the hot soup. Pour this back into the pot and heat gently, stirring, until the soup thickens a little and is steaming hot all through. Do not let it boil.
- Season, sprinkle with parsley and serve in deep plates with bread.
Main courseRecipe
Endive with ham and cheese sauce
chicons au gratin or gegratineerd witloof
All of Belgium
Heads of Belgian endive, each wrapped in a slice of ham, baked under a cheese sauce until golden. The slightly bitter endive and the rich sauce make a classic winter dish.
Belgian endive is grown in the dark from a stored chicory root, which keeps its leaves pale and closed. The method was developed in Belgium in the 1850s, and one story credits a gardener at the Brussels Botanical Garden.
See the recipe
Ingredients
- 8 heads of Belgian endive
- 8 slices of cooked ham
- 40 g butter and 40 g plain flour
- 500 ml milk
- 150 g grated Gruyère or other hard cheese
- A pinch of nutmeg, salt and pepper
Method
- Trim the base of the endives. Simmer them in salted water for about 15 minutes, or steam them, until tender. Drain very well and squeeze gently, as they hold a lot of water.
- Heat the oven to 200°C. Melt the butter, stir in the flour for 1 minute, then whisk in the milk a little at a time and simmer until thick and smooth.
- Take the sauce off the heat and stir in two thirds of the cheese, the nutmeg, salt and pepper.
- Wrap each endive in a slice of ham and lay them in a buttered baking dish. Pour over the sauce and sprinkle with the rest of the cheese.
- Bake for about 25 minutes until bubbling and golden. Serve with mashed or boiled potatoes.
Side dishRecipe
Stoemp
stoemp
Brussels and Flanders
Potatoes mashed together with one or more vegetables such as carrots, leeks, spinach or cabbage, often with a little cream or bacon. It is served with sausages, bacon or a fried egg.
The name comes from the Brabant dialect and is pronounced roughly 'stoomp'. Stoemp with carrots is called wortelstoemp.
See the recipe
Ingredients
- 1 kg floury potatoes, peeled and cut in chunks
- 500 g carrots, sliced, or 2 leeks, sliced
- 1 onion, chopped
- 40 g butter and 50 ml single cream or milk
- Nutmeg, salt and pepper
Method
- Boil the potatoes and carrots together in salted water for about 20 minutes until soft. If using leeks, soften them in a little of the butter instead.
- Meanwhile cook the onion gently in half the butter until soft.
- Drain the potatoes and carrots well and mash them roughly with the rest of the butter and the cream.
- Stir in the onion (and leeks, if using) and season with nutmeg, salt and pepper.
- Serve hot with grilled sausages or crisp bacon.
Starter
Grey shrimp croquettes
croquettes aux crevettes or garnaalkroketten
The Belgian coast
Crisp breaded croquettes with a thick, creamy béchamel filling full of small North Sea grey shrimp, served with a slice of lemon and fried parsley.
In Oostduinkerke on the Belgian coast, a few fishermen still catch shrimp on horseback, riding through the shallow sea with nets. It is the only place in the world where this is still done.
Main course
Liège meatballs
boulets à la liégeoise
Liège
One or two large meatballs in a sweet and sour brown sauce called sauce lapin, made with sirop de Liège, a thick fruit syrup, onions, vinegar and raisins. They are served with fries.
Sirop de Liège, made by boiling down fruit juices until thick, is also eaten as a spread, like jam.
Snack
Liège waffle
gaufre de Liège
Liège
A small, rounded, chewy waffle made from a rich yeast dough like brioche, with nuggets of pearl sugar that caramelise in the iron. It is eaten plain, often warm from a street stall.
Visit Belgium says it was invented in the 18th century by the cook of the Prince-Bishop of Liège.
Dessert
Brussels waffle
gaufre de Bruxelles
Brussels and Ghent
A large, light and crisp rectangular waffle with deep pockets, made from a yeast batter. In Belgium it is dusted with icing sugar; in tourist areas it may come with cream, fruit or chocolate.
Belgian-style waffles were shown at Expo 58 in Brussels and became a hit in America after the 1964 New York World's Fair.
Snack
Speculoos biscuits
speculoos or speculaas
Flanders and the Low Countries
Thin, crunchy spiced biscuits flavoured with caramelised sugar and cinnamon, often pressed in wooden moulds with pictures such as Saint Nicholas. Belgians traditionally bake them for Saint Nicholas Day on 6 December.
Around 2007, Belgian companies started selling a spread made from crushed speculoos biscuits, which is now sold around the world.
Dessert
Belgian pralines
pralines
Brussels, now all of Belgium
Bite-sized chocolates with a soft filling, sold in boxes by famous houses such as Neuhaus, Leonidas, Godiva and Côte d'Or and by many small chocolatiers.
Jean Neuhaus II, grandson of the shop's founder, made the first filled chocolate pralines in the family shop in the Galeries Royales Saint-Hubert in Brussels in 1912. In 1915 he and his wife Louise Agostini created the ballotin, the folded box that stops the chocolates being crushed.
Snack
Cuberdon
cuberdon or Gentse neus
Ghent
A purple, cone-shaped sweet with a thin crust made with gum arabic and a soft raspberry-flavoured centre.
In Dutch it is nicknamed 'neuzeke', little nose, because of its shape. It keeps for only about three weeks before the inside starts to crystallise.
Dessert
Rice tart
tarte au riz or rijstevlaai
Verviers, in eastern Belgium
An open tart filled with thick, creamy rice pudding, loved across eastern Belgium and the neighbouring parts of the Netherlands and Germany. Flemish versions add custard to the filling, Walloon versions only eggs.
Recipes for rice tart go back to at least 1604.
Drink
Trappist beer
Trappist
Abbeys in Flanders and Wallonia
Strong, rich ales brewed within the walls of Trappist monasteries under the monks' supervision, with the profits going to the community and to charity. As of 2026 five Belgian breweries carry the official label: Westmalle, Westvleteren, Chimay, Orval and Rochefort.
Belgium makes more than a thousand different beers, and almost every style is served in its own shaped glass, which Belgians say brings out the flavour.
Drink
Jenever
jenever, genièvre or peket
All of Belgium; in Liège it is called peket
A juniper-flavoured spirit, the forerunner of gin, traditionally sold in stoneware jugs and served ice cold in a small glass filled to the brim.
Tradition says the first sip is taken without lifting the full glass: you bend down to the table and sip. Anyone who does not drink alcohol can politely say no.
Table manners
- Before a meal, Dutch speakers say 'Smakelijk' and French speakers 'Bon appétit' (enjoy your meal).
- When glasses are raised, French speakers say 'Santé!' (cheers).
- Each Belgian beer is served in its own glass, and bars take care to use the right one.
- Fries are traditionally eaten with mayonnaise, not ketchup, often from a paper cone with the sauce on top.
- With mussels, the fries come in a separate bowl so that they stay crisp.
Cities
12 cities to know
Belgium is small, so its cities are close together and linked by train: the Flemish art cities of Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp in the north, bilingual Brussels in the middle, and the river towns of Wallonia, from Liège and Namur to Dinant, in the south.
Brussels Capital
Brussels-Capital Region
The capital, where French and Dutch are both official. About 1.25 million people live in the Brussels-Capital Region, made up of 19 municipalities. It is home to the European Commission, the Council of the EU and NATO.
- The Grand-Place
- Manneken Pis and the Atomium
- Art Nouveau houses and comic strips
Antwerp
Antwerp Province, Flanders
A port city on the Scheldt river with about 565,000 people, the most populous single municipality in Belgium. Its port is the second largest in Europe after Rotterdam, and the city is a world centre of the diamond trade.
- The diamond trade
- The Cathedral of Our Lady
- The painter Rubens and the 1920 Olympic Games
Ghent
East Flanders
A lively university city where the Leie and Scheldt rivers meet. In the 13th century it was one of the biggest cities in Europe north of the Alps, and Emperor Charles V was born here in 1500.
- The Gravensteen castle
- The Ghent Altarpiece by the Van Eyck brothers
- The ten-day Gentse Feesten festival
Bruges
West Flanders
One of the best-preserved medieval towns in Europe, with canals, cobbled streets and step-gabled houses. Its historic centre has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2000, and it is often called the Venice of the North.
- The Belfry on the Markt
- Canals and lace
- The Procession of the Holy Blood
Liège
Liège Province, Wallonia
A big, lively city on the Meuse, for centuries the seat of the powerful Prince-Bishops of Liège, and later a centre of steel and coal. Its modern railway station was designed by Santiago Calatrava.
- The 374 steps of the Montagne de Bueren
- Liège waffles and boulets
- The 15 August street festival
Namur
Namur Province, Wallonia
The capital of Wallonia, where the Sambre river flows into the Meuse. A huge citadel watches over the town from a rocky spur between the two rivers.
- The Citadel of Namur
- Its belfry, a UNESCO site
- Jousting on stilts
Leuven
Flemish Brabant
A university town about 25 km east of Brussels. Its university was founded in 1425, making Leuven the oldest university city in the Low Countries, and the world's biggest brewer has its headquarters here.
- The Gothic Town Hall with 236 statues
- KU Leuven university
- The Great Beguinage
Mons
Hainaut
The capital of the province of Hainaut, near the French border. It was European Capital of Culture in 2015, and NATO's military headquarters for Europe, SHAPE, is just outside the town.
- The Doudou festival, with Saint George fighting a dragon
- Its Baroque belfry
- The Neolithic flint mines at Spiennes
Ostend
West Flanders
The best-known seaside resort on the Belgian coast, once called the queen of Belgian seaside towns. Ferries sailed from here to Dover from 1846, and a coastal tram runs along the whole coast.
- Beaches and the seafront promenade
- The painter James Ensor
- Fish and seafood
Ypres
West Flanders
A small town, called Ieper in Dutch, that was almost completely destroyed in three great battles of the First World War and then rebuilt. In 1915 the German army first used poison gas in the Second Battle of Ypres.
- The Menin Gate and the Last Post
- The Cloth Hall and the In Flanders Fields Museum
- The Cat Parade every three years
Dinant
Namur Province, Wallonia
A small town squeezed between the Meuse and tall limestone cliffs, with a citadel on top reached by 408 steps. Adolphe Sax, inventor of the saxophone, was born here.
- The onion-domed Collegiate Church
- The house where Adolphe Sax was born, now a museum
- The very hard couque de Dinant biscuit
Mechelen
Antwerp Province, Flanders
A historic city between Brussels and Antwerp. In the early 16th century it was the capital of the Low Countries under Margaret of Austria, and in 1559 it became the seat of an archbishop.
- St. Rumbold's Cathedral tower
- The world's leading carillon school
- Kazerne Dossin memorial
Landmarks
Places everyone should see once
Brussels
The Grand-Place
The central square of Brussels, surrounded by the Gothic Town Hall with its 96-metre tower and richly decorated guildhalls. Most of the square was destroyed by French bombardment in 1695 and rebuilt within a few years. Every two years in August it is covered by a carpet of flowers.
UNESCO World Heritage
Brussels
The Atomium
A 102-metre steel structure built for the 1958 World's Fair. Its nine spheres, each 18 metres across, form the shape of an iron crystal magnified 165 billion times. Escalators and a lift lead to exhibitions and a restaurant with a view over Brussels.
Brussels
The Horta Museum
The house and studio that the architect Victor Horta built for himself in Saint-Gilles between 1898 and 1901, full of flowing Art Nouveau curves, iron and light. It is one of four Horta town houses on the UNESCO list.
UNESCO World Heritage
Bruges
The Belfry of Bruges
An 83-metre medieval bell tower on the Markt, first built around 1240. Visitors can climb its 366 steps, and its carillon of 47 bells gives concerts on several mornings a week. The tower leans 87 cm to the east.
UNESCO World Heritage
Ghent
The Gravensteen
A stone castle with a moat, built in 1180 by Count Philip of Alsace. Later it served as a mint, a court, a prison and even a cotton mill, before it was restored around 1900. Today it is a museum.
Antwerp
The Plantin-Moretus Museum
The home and printing works of Christophe Plantin and his family, one of the great printing houses of the 16th century. It holds the two oldest surviving printing presses in the world and became a museum in 1877.
UNESCO World Heritage
Ypres
The Menin Gate
A memorial arch in Ypres bearing the names of more than 54,000 Commonwealth soldiers who died nearby in the First World War and have no known grave. Every evening at 8 pm the traffic stops and buglers play the Last Post, a ceremony first held in 1928 and played every evening since 1929, except during the German occupation in the Second World War.
UNESCO World Heritage
Leuven
The Great Beguinage of Leuven
A quiet neighbourhood of almost 100 houses and about 300 apartments, founded in the 13th century for the beguines, a community of religious women. It is one of the largest beguinages left in the Low Countries and now belongs to the university, which uses it mainly to house academics.
UNESCO World Heritage
Namur
The Citadel of Namur
A vast fortress on a rocky spur above the meeting of the Sambre and the Meuse. It was rebuilt many times, strengthened by the Dutch engineer Coehoorn and the French engineer Vauban, and is now open to visitors.
Near Brussels
The Lion's Mound at Waterloo
A 43-metre man-made hill topped by a lion statue, completed in 1826 on the battlefield of Waterloo south of Brussels, where the Prince of Orange was wounded in 1815. A climb of 226 steps gives a view over the whole battlefield.
Fun facts
Things you might not know
- 01
The saxophone was invented by a Belgian. Adolphe Sax, born in Dinant in 1814, patented it in 1846.
- 02
Tintin, the young reporter who travels the world with his dog, was created by the Belgian artist Hergé, whose real name was Georges Remi. He first appeared on 10 January 1929 in a supplement of a Belgian newspaper, and his adventures fill 24 albums.
- 03
The idea that the universe is expanding and began from a single 'primeval atom' was put forward by Georges Lemaître, a Belgian priest and professor at Leuven, in 1927 and 1931. It later became known as the Big Bang theory.
- 04
The Flemish mapmaker Gerardus Mercator, born in 1512 in Rupelmonde, south-west of Antwerp, published his famous world map for sailors in 1569 and was the first to call a book of maps an 'atlas'.
- 05
Manneken Pis, the little bronze statue of a boy in Brussels, has a wardrobe of about 1,000 costumes. The statue on the street is a copy; the original from 1619 is kept safe in the Brussels City Museum.
- 06
Filled chocolate pralines were first made in Brussels by Jean Neuhaus in 1912.
- 07
After the election of June 2010, Belgian parties took 541 days to form a new federal government. In the meantime the outgoing government kept the country running.
- 08
Voting is compulsory in Belgian national elections, so turnout is among the highest in the world.
- 09
In Oostduinkerke, on the Belgian coast, shrimp are still caught by fishermen on horseback. As of 2021, 17 of them were still active.
- 10
Belgian French has its own words for some numbers: 'septante' for 70 and 'nonante' for 90, where people in France say 'soixante-dix' and 'quatre-vingt-dix'.
- 11
In 2011 Belgium brewed 1,132 different beers, and Belgium has more than 2,000 chocolatiers, large and small.
- 12
Brussels hosts the European Commission, the Council of the European Union and the European Council, as well as the headquarters of NATO.
- 13
The first Olympic Games after the First World War were held in Antwerp in 1920.
Words
20 words to start with
Dutch as spoken in Flanders, the north of Belgium (often called Flemish). The pronunciation guides are simple approximations for English speakers; capital letters show the stressed part. Pronunciation is written the way it sounds; the capital letters show where the stress goes. Audio is coming soon.
Basics
- jaYAHyes
- neeNAYno
- hallohah-LOWhello
- alstublieftAHL-stuu-BLEEFTplease (polite)
- dank u welDAHNK uu VELthank you very much (polite)
- pardonpar-DONexcuse me
Food and drink
- waterWAH-tuhrwater
- bierBEERbeer
- broodBROTEbread
- koffieKOFF-eecoffee
- kaasKAHScheese
Getting around
- treinTRAYNtrain
- busBUSbus
- stationstah-SHONstation
- linksLINKSleft
- rechtsREGHTSright
Shopping
- goedkoopghoot-KOPEcheap
- duurDUURexpensive
Time
- vandaagvahn-DAHGtoday
- morgenMORE-ghuntomorrow
Say it like a local
Useful phrases
French as spoken in Brussels and Wallonia, the south of Belgium. The pronunciation guides are simple approximations for English speakers; capital letters show the stressed part.
Bonjour
bawn-ZHOOR
Hello, good day
Greeting anyone during the day, and always when you walk into a shop
Bonsoir
bawn-SWAHR
Good evening
Greeting someone in the evening
Bonne nuit
bon NWEE
Good night
Saying goodnight before bed
Au revoir
oh ruh-VWAHR
Goodbye
Leaving a shop, a café or people you don't know well
Salut
sah-LUU
Hi, or bye (informal)
With friends and family
Comment allez-vous ?
koh-mahn tah-lay VOO
How are you? (polite)
Asking an older person or a stranger how they are
Bien, merci
byang, merr-SEE
Fine, thank you
Answering 'How are you?'
Enchanté
ahn-shahn-TAY
Nice to meet you
Meeting someone for the first time (a woman writes enchantée)
S'il vous plaît
seel voo PLEH
Please
Asking for anything politely
Merci
merr-SEE
Thank you
Thanking anyone
De rien
duh RYEHNG
You're welcome
Answering when someone thanks you
Excusez-moi
ehk-SKEW-zay MWAH
Excuse me
Getting someone's attention, or getting past people
Parlez-vous anglais ?
par-lay VOO ahng-LEH
Do you speak English?
Before asking for help
Je ne comprends pas
zhuh nuh KOHM-prahn pah
I don't understand
When you can't follow what someone says
Où sont les toilettes ?
OOH sohn leh twah-LET
Where is the toilet?
In a café, restaurant or station
Combien coûte ceci ?
kom-BYAN koot suh-SEE
How much does this cost?
Shopping at a market or in a shop
L'addition, s'il vous plaît
lah-dee-SYOHN, seel voo PLEH
The bill, please
Asking for the bill in a restaurant or café
Bon appétit !
bon ah-pay-TEE
Enjoy your meal
Before eating with others
Santé !
sahn-TAY
Cheers!
Raising a glass for a toast
Local tips
Before you go
Mind the language
Language is a sensitive subject in Belgium. Dutch is the language of Flanders in the north and French of Wallonia in the south, while Brussels is officially bilingual but mostly French-speaking. English is widely spoken in Flanders and in tourist areas of Brussels, but less so in Wallonia, where a few words of French help.
Emergency number: 112
Dial 112 for police, fire or ambulance. It is free and works across the European Union, and operators can help in English.
Priority to the right
Belgians drive on the right. At crossroads with no signs or markings, traffic coming from the right has priority, even from a small side street, so drive carefully in towns. Speed cameras are common, and using a phone while driving is illegal unless it is hands-free.
Low emission zones
Brussels, Ghent and Antwerp have low emission zones. If you bring your own car, register it on each city's website before you drive in.
Tipping is optional
Service is normally included in the bill in Belgium, so a tip is not expected. Rounding up or leaving a little extra is a friendly way to say you were happy.
Carry your passport and watch your bag
UK travel advice says visitors must carry their passport at all times. Pickpockets work in crowded places, including Brussels-Midi station and international trains to Paris and Amsterdam.
Train discount for over-65s
The train is the easiest way to see Belgium's cities. Travellers aged 65 and over get 40% off the standard fare on Belgian trains, at any time of day. Buy your ticket before you board, at the station, from a machine or in the SNCB app, because tickets bought on the train cost more.
Sources (64)
- Belgium (Wikipedia)
- History of Belgium (Wikipedia)
- Signal de Botrange (Wikipedia)
- Meuse (Wikipedia)
- Scheldt (Wikipedia)
- Telephone numbers in Belgium (Wikipedia)
- Belgae (Wikipedia)
- Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (Wikipedia)
- Fall of Antwerp (Wikipedia)
- Battle of Waterloo (Wikipedia)
- Treaty of London (1839) (Wikipedia)
- Expo 58 (Wikipedia)
- Atomium (Wikipedia)
- Belgian cuisine (Wikipedia)
- Moules-frites (Wikipedia)
- Carbonade flamande (Wikipedia)
- Waterzooi (Wikipedia)
- Liège waffle (Wikipedia)
- Brussels waffle (Wikipedia)
- Stoemp (Wikipedia)
- Cuberdon (Wikipedia)
- Neuhaus, chocolatier (Wikipedia)
- Speculaas (Wikipedia)
- Rijstevlaai, or tarte au riz (Wikipedia)
- Trappist beer (Wikipedia)
- Belgian endive (Wikipedia)
- French fries (Wikipedia)
- Brussels (Wikipedia)
- Antwerp (Wikipedia)
- Ghent (Wikipedia)
- Bruges (Wikipedia)
- Liège (Wikipedia)
- Namur (Wikipedia)
- Leuven (Wikipedia)
- Mons, Belgium (Wikipedia)
- Ostend (Wikipedia)
- Ypres (Wikipedia)
- Dinant (Wikipedia)
- Mechelen (Wikipedia)
- UNESCO World Heritage Centre: Belgium
- Grand-Place (Wikipedia)
- Manneken Pis (Wikipedia)
- Menin Gate (Wikipedia)
- Gravensteen (Wikipedia)
- Plantin-Moretus Museum (Wikipedia)
- Lion's Mound (Wikipedia)
- Horta Museum (Wikipedia)
- Belfry of Bruges (Wikipedia)
- Citadel of Namur (Wikipedia)
- Groot Begijnhof, Leuven (Wikipedia)
- Oostduinkerke (Wikipedia)
- Adolphe Sax (Wikipedia)
- The Adventures of Tintin (Wikipedia)
- Georges Lemaître (Wikipedia)
- Gerardus Mercator (Wikipedia)
- Belgium (Wikivoyage)
- Dutch phrasebook (Wikivoyage)
- French phrasebook (Wikivoyage)
- dank u wel (Wiktionary)
- santé (Wiktionary)
- smakelijk (Wiktionary)
- bon appétit (Wiktionary)
- VRT NWS: NMBS voert nieuwe tarieven in (6 October 2025)
- GOV.UK foreign travel advice: Belgium, safety and security
