Brussels is a city of contrasts, combining contemporary art with a rich historical heritage. A great many museums exhibiting collections on completely different subjects, ranging from art to atomic energy, have become one of the assets of the homeland of Magritte. Museums in Brussels annually attract hundreds of thousands of tourists from all over the world, striking visitors with their diversity and high cultural value. It is simply impossible to go around all the galleries, so we have prepared for you a list of the most attractive museums. And here are the top attractions to visit in Brussels.
Train World (Schaerbeek)
The exhibition tells its guests the history of Belgian rail transport, showing life-size exhibits. Here you can trace the development of the railway industry, see the models of the very first steam locomotives and evaluate the designs of modern locomotives.
Train World will also talk about the development of the Belgian metro. The museum is equipped with multimedia technologies, which allows visitors to familiarize themselves with the exhibits in an interactive mode. This is a cognitive historical attraction that will be interesting to both adults and children.
Visiting hours: 10:00 – 17:00 (Tuesday-Sunday), Monday – day off. Entrance prices are different and depend on the age of the visitor. For children and young people aged 6-26, the ticket price is 7.5 €, for adults 26-65 years old – 10 €, for pensioners over 65 years old – 7.5 €.
Find the museum at Place Princesse Elisabeth 5 | 1030 Schaarbeek, Schaarbeek, Brussels 1030, Belgium.
Museum of Musical Instruments
Even a sophisticated tourist is unlikely to pass by this museum: after all, it is located in a historical building of 1899, the unique architecture of which cannot but attract attention. His collection contains more than 1000 (and in the general fund more than 8000) musical instruments of various cultures and eras.
At the entrance, visitors are given an audio guide, so that everyone has the opportunity to listen to the sound of the exhibits and to fully enjoy the art of different nations. The Brussels Museum of Musical Instruments often hosts concerts, which only enhances the impression of the tour. The presented exhibition will be interesting not only to music lovers, but also to ordinary tourists and even children.
Opening hours: 9:30 – 17:00 (Tuesday-Friday), 10:00 – 17:00 (Saturday, Sunday), Monday – day off . Admission for children under 18 is free. For adults 19-64 years, the ticket price is 10 €, for pensioners (65+) – 8 €.
Address: Rue Montagne de la Cour 2, Brussels 1000, Belgium.
Museum of Natural Sciences
It will delight its visitors with the largest exhibition of dinosaur skeletons in Europe. A separate hall of the complex is dedicated to the history of the evolution of mankind. Of interest is the collection of seashells, stones and minerals. Temporary exhibitions are often held within the walls of the building, among which one can find expositions of butterflies, spiders, beetles, reptiles and frogs.
In the museum you can also find fragments of moon rocks, fragments of earthly mountains and parts of meteorites that once fell on the territory of Belgium. Most of the expositions presented are complemented by interactive equipment, which makes the process of familiarization with exhibits much more fun.
Visiting hours: 9:30 – 17:00 (Tuesday-Friday), 10:00 – 18:00 (Saturday, Sunday), Monday – day off. Ticket price for adults is 7 € (only the main collections) or 9.5 € (main + temporary exhibitions), for children 6-17 years old – 4.5 € or 7 €, for pensioners over 65 – 6 € or 8.5 €.
Address: Rue Vautier 29, Brussels 1000, Belgium.
Royal Museum of the Army and Military History
The Royal Museum of the Army and Military History is the real kingdom of military art, where thousands of military artifacts are presented, including weapons and armor of various eras, uniforms, orders and medals of Belgian soldiers, aviation objects, etc. The World War I hall will be especially interesting for a Russian tourist, where exhibits are presented for each participating country, including Russia, in the section “Treasures of the Russian Empire”.
Special attention in the royal gallery deserves the aviation hall, which has a huge collection of military aircraft from different eras. In the section devoted to World War II, you can get acquainted with installations of military events and evaluate the exhibition of tanks. The Royal Museum will be a real find for history buffs.
Opening hours of the Royal Museum of the Army and Military History: 9:00 – 17:00 (Tuesday-Sunday), Monday – day off . The cost of a ticket for visitors 26-65 years old is 5 €, 6-26 years old and over 65 – 4 €.
Address: Parc du Cinquantenaire 3 | Jubelpark, Brussels 1000, Belgium.
Rene Magritte Museum in Brussels
The Rene Magritte Museum is part of the Royal Museum of Fine Arts. The collection, located on three floors, includes about 200 expositions that reflect the work of an outstanding artist. The famous Rene Magritte worked in the style of surrealism and made a great contribution to Belgian art. The Magritte Museum in Brussels, in addition to painting, presents a complete set of documents and letters related to the work of the master.
The building has many rooms, each of which demonstrates the work of Magritte related to certain periods of his life. Due to the individual illumination of paintings in the cameras, a special atmosphere is created that allows visitors to enjoy Magritte’s creativity and enjoy his art.
Opening hours: 10:00 – 18:00 (Wednesday-Sunday), Monday, Tuesday – days off . The following admission prices are indicated on the Magritte Museum website in Brussels : ticket for adults – 8 €, for children and adolescents (under 23 years old) – 6 €.
Magritte’s exhibits are located at Rue Esseghem 135 | Avenue Woeste, Yette, Brussels 1090, Belgium.
Royal Museum of Fine Arts
The Royal Museum of Fine Arts in Brussels is a cultural complex consisting of several museums, including galleries of old and modern art, as well as the famous paintings of Magritte. It combines the collections of artistic masterpieces, among which are the works of outstanding artists such as Rembrandt, Brueghel, Rubens, etc. The collection of the Royal Museum of Brussels is quite extensive, and in order to have time to get acquainted with all its exhibits, it is better to plan a visit in advance.
Three separate exhibitions of the royal complex are dedicated to the work of Antoine Wierz, Constantine Meunier and Rene Magritte. Of interest is the architecture of the building itself, as well as its exquisite interior with stucco molding and sculptures. Thanks to convenient signs and leaflets with a plan of expositions, visitors can easily navigate in the royal galleries.
Opening hours: 10:00 – 17:00 (Tuesday-Friday), 11:00 – 18:00 (Saturday, Sunday), Monday – day off . Ticket price for visitors 26-64 years old – 13 €, for children and youth 6-25 years old – 3 €, for pensioners over 65 years old – 9 €. Entrance to the museums of Antoine Wierz and Constantine Meunier is free.
The Brussels Royal Museum of Art can be found at Place Royale 3, Brussels 1000, Belgium.
Museum “Autoworld”
It has a rich collection of old and new cars that demonstrate the stages of development of design art. Here visitors have the opportunity to track the history of the creation of various brands, as well as get acquainted with the activities of prominent engineers. Of interest is a small collection of carriages. Motorbike enthusiasts will enjoy the unique exposition of motorcycles from different eras.
Most of the exhibitions presented in the museum work in interactive mode. Often themed exhibitions of famous automobile brands such as BMW, Bugatti, Lamborghini etc. are organized in the institution. Museum exhibits will be interesting not only for adults, but also for children.
Opening hours: 10:00 – 18:00 (Monday-Sunday). Ticket price for adults is 13 €, for senior citizens (65+) – 11 €, for students – 10 €, for children (6-11 years) – 7 €. For an additional fee, the Audioguide service is offered (2 €).
Address: Parc du Cinquantenaire 11, Brussels 1000, Belgium.
Comic book museum
Recommended for all comic book lovers. Here you can trace the history of the industry, get acquainted with the work of Belgian animators and learn the techniques of creating drawings. On the ground floor of the building there is a library where guests have the opportunity to examine the art of comics in more detail.
On the second floor there is an animation hall containing a large number of original works by various authors (mainly Belgian). The main exhibition is on the third floor: it tells about the evolution of Belgian comics. At the entrance to the museum there is a souvenir shop where everyone can buy their favorite comics and related paraphernalia.
Visiting hours: 10:00 – 18:00 (Monday-Sunday). Ticket price: for adults – 10 €, for senior citizens (65+) – 8 €, for youth (12-25 years old) – 7 €, for children (under 12 years old) – 3.5 €.
You can find the Comic Book Museum in Brussels at: Rue des Sables 20, Brussels 1000, Belgium.
This list does not include all the museums of Brussels. The capital of Belgium will be interesting to absolutely any traveler: because if you are not interested in the work of Magritte, you can always go to the car exhibition. As an additional cultural institution, we recommend visiting the Chocolate Museum in Brussels, where you can familiarize yourself with the history of chocolate products and try them out.
Brussels sights and museums from the list on this page are marked on the map.
