Hotel in Brussels

We are concidering 3hotels in Brussels:Novotel Brussels Centre ,

Novotel off Grand Place and Hotel Astoria.

Which one is better one in terms of central location, safety of the neibougrhood and public transportation?

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Given your criteria, I would say: Novotel GP (5 minutes downhill from Gare centrale), Novotel Brussels Centre (between De Brouckère and Ste. Catherine) and Astoria (nearest metro Botanique).

Although personally, if this was within my reach I would choose the Astoria: I love their public rooms but have no idea how the bedrooms measure up.

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P.S. In case it isn%26#39;t clear, 3 hotels are listed in order of meeting your criteria.

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Do you know if there are a lot of cafes around Novotel GP to have a breakfast since our room would not have breakfast included.

Also we want to take a day trip to Bruges and they do not do hotel pick up from this hotel. They located at Heuvelstraat 8, Rue de la Colline. Do you know how far it is from Novotel GP?

Do you think it is a good idea to take the tour Ghent and Bruges with a tour company or it is better to do it on our own. We have a teenager with us and want it to be interesting for her also.

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I loved the Marriott, I don%26#39;t think you can get a better position and the staff were absolutely fabulous.

tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g188644-d258…

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I recently stayed at the Hesperia Grand Place at 10 r. des Colonies. It was only a block from the Gare Central, a half block from the metro, a block from the cathedral, and 3 short blocks to the Grand Place. The Marriort would be farther away from the Gare Central--about 5-6 blocks but still in an interesting area and near Grand Place.

The Hesperia is a small hotel, not a luxury hotel but very comfortable and I had a charming room. I was on the 5th floor facing the street but it was quiet due to the %26quot;sound proof%26quot; windows. The complimentary breakfast was very extensive and good.

I%26#39;m not familiar with the hotels you mentioned so can%26#39;t compare them in terms of quality. However, the Hesperia was much cheaper (E155/nite/one person) for the time period I was there compared to other hotels I checked out around the Gare Central and Grand Place.

The Hesperia area seemed quite quiet and safe around the Hesperia even when I returned around 11 pm. (One the other hand when I got off the metro at Beurre around 10:30 pm on Anspachlaan about a block up from the Bourse I felt uncomfortable due to the crowds of almost out of control, questionable-looking people who seemed to have been drinking too much). It seemed OK around the Bourse though and also around the Grand Place.

As to organized tours-the Belgian train system is very easy to use, reliable and frequent , so it%26#39;s easy to get to Ghent and Brugge. However, if you want the luxury of not having to find your way and want to have things pointed out and explained, an organized tour will be an advantage. On the other hand you will loose flexibility in terms of time and ability to concentrate where you want it.

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thank you

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1) Do you know if there are a lot of cafes around Novotel GP to have a breakfast since our room would not have breakfast included.

Yes, there must be dozens in the neighbourhood. Depending on what you want for breakfast (bear in mind that in Belgium it is usually %26quot;continental%26quot;, you might like Aroma on the GP itself, or if you want eggs, Mokafé in the Galeries St. Hubert does them.

2) Also we want to take a day trip to Bruges and they do not do hotel pick up from this hotel. They located at Heuvelstraat 8, Rue de la Colline. Do you know how far it is from Novotel GP?

The reason they don%26#39;t do pick up from this hotel is that you are only 2 steps from their office in rue de la Colline! This is the small street leading from rue du Marché aux Herbes to the GP itself.

3) Do you think it is a good idea to take the tour Ghent and Bruges with a tour company or it is better to do it on our own. We have a teenager with us and want it to be interesting for her also.

I avoid organised tours unless they vastly simplify transport, so personally I would do it on my own but in that case I would not recommend doing both on the same day. It may also depend on whether you want the commentary, and on how handy you are at finding your way around on your own, when you will have to take the tram from the station (Gent-St. Pieters) into Ghent and the bus (or 15-minute walk) in Brugge. You can buy train tickets to either Ghent (30 minutes) or Brugge (1 hour) at Gare centrale, from which there are at least 2 trains an hour to coastal destinations like Ostende, Blankenberge, Knokke. I have given prices in previous questions and these also depend on whether you would be going on a weekday or weekend.

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