Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Mon-Fri 9:00-17:15, closed Sat-Sun, www.europarl.europa.eu).
An adjacent, bigger-and-even-better center is planned for 2009.
Audioguide tours,
the only way to get inside the European
Parliament, leave from the Info Point office (free, Mon-Thu at
10:00 and 15:00, also at 16:30 July-Aug; Fri only at 10:00; confirm
tour time by calling 02-284-2111, arrive 30 min early, no visitors
under 14 years old).
At the appointed time, enter the main hall through the double
doors and meet your escort, who equips you with an audioguide
and takes you to a balcony overlooking the huge “hemi-cycle”
where the members of the European Parliament sit. Here you'll
listen to a political-science lesson about the all-Europe system
of governance. You'll learn how early visionary utopians (like
Churchill, who in 1946 called for a “United States of Europe” to
avoid future wars) led the way as Europe gradually evolved into the
European Union (1992).
Getting There:
The European Parliament is next to Place du
Luxembourg. From the Bourse in downtown Brussels, take bus
#95; from the museums at the Park of the Cinquantenaire or the
Royal Palace, take bus #27. From Place du Luxembourg, go behind
the old train station and look for the
Info Point
sign.
Park of the Cinquantenaire (Parc du Cinquantenaire)
—he
19th-century Belgian king Leopold wanted Brussels to rival Paris.
In 1880, he celebrated the 50th
anniversary (cinquantenaire) of
Belgian independence by building
a huge monumental arch flanked
by massive exhibition halls, which
today house the Royal Museum of
Art and History, Autoworld, and
the military museum (see next
listings). The Métro stop is 200
yards from the museums (follow signs to museum and walk to the
statue crowning the big arch).
Connecting to Other Sights:
If seeing both the Park of the
Cinquantenaire and the European Parliament, take advantage of
the wonderful public transportation connections that make this
easy. The Métro zips you from the center out to the park in min-
utes (Métro stop: Merode). From the park (Métro stop: Gaulois),
bus #27 runs four times an hour to the Luxembourg stop (for the
European Parliament) and on to the Royal stop (for the Royal
Palace and great nearby museums). It's cheap and easy, plus you'll
feel quite clever doing it.
s
royal Museum of Art and History
—
This is the “Belgian
Louvre,” with an impressive collection split between two wings:
