Brussels on a budget

Advantages: easy to get to, the Grand Place
Disadvantages: Mannakin Pis is dissapointing, takcy tourist shops

...Question What does one do when you want to celebrate finishing the taught part of a Masters degree and want to go away but are so broke even the cheapest trip to Spain is not an option? Answer. Book a very cheap flight for a mini break to Brussels the capital of Belgium. I did this in June 2003 and I had a great time. I flew with Ryanair from John Lennon airport in Liverpool to Charleroi airport in Brussels. Or so I thought it was in Brussels. It was near enough an hour from the airport to Midi railway station. The connecting bus is a rip off at 10 euros. Since there were four of us on the way there we took a taxi that cost us 35 euros. The airfare was really cheap. It only cost £20 for a return fare including all taxes. Due to the European Parliament Brussels has cheap hotels at the weekend instead of during mid week. We were...

duskmaiden 27.06.2003 (30.08.2009) · Read review
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Review of Brussels (Belgium)

Premier Inn, Charing Cross Glasgow

Advantages: Close to town and all amenities
Disadvantages: none

...I have never stayed in the Premier Inn before, but I felt I had to share my experience of the past weekend. The staff in both reception and the restaurant were fantastic, they were really helpful and made you feel right at home. The room and bathroom were both spotless, warm and the freeview television meant that my daughter didn't miss her soaps while she was away. The bed was both big and comfortable and we didn't have any trouble getting to sleep. We opted for the breakfast deal and we were not disappointed, the food was well cooked and warm there was also plenty of choice. Access to the hotel was excellent for both able bodied and non-able bodied people, we didn't have a wheelchair but we did have a six month old baby and a pram, and even though it is situated next to Charing Cross rail station we didn't hear a thing from...

Donnagx2 21.09.2009 · Read review
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Review of Premier Travel Inn Glasgow - City Centre (Charing Cross), Glasgow

Five star luxury in the hear of Brussels

Advantages: Location, size, quality service and comfort
Disadvantages: Some will not like the limited facilities

...I was fortunate enough to stay at Le Meridien, in Brussels a few weeks back after winning a competition. It was a novel situation all round as I would not normally be able to afford to stay at this quite exclusive establishment on my travel and subsistence budget and, even if I were I would be too busy to appreciate my surroundings. I do visit Brussels a lot for work and have stayed in many hotels (I reviewed the Welcome Hotel a while back and this remains one of my personal favourites for my business trips) but this was a nice change and most people enjoy a little bit of luxury once in a while. Ownership The Le Meridien chain is managed by the US based Starwood Group. This also includes the Sheraton, Westin and St Regis chains amongst others. They operate 888 hotels worldwide, 499 are managed and the balance are franchised...

andrewfleminguk 27.10.2007 · Read review
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Review of Le Meridien Brussels, Brussels

A brief bite into Brussels

Advantages: Stunning architecture and lots of lovely different beers and chocolates
Disadvantages: Not a huge amount of well known attractions

...Although Brussels is the capital of Europe, it's often overlooked as a city break location due to it being sandwiched between its more famous neighbours, Paris and Amsterdam. Having lived and worked in Brussels for a year as a student, I have a rather fond regard for the place. I'll freely admit that it has not got as many well known attractions nor the je ne sais quoi of Paris. Indeed, neither has it got the same canal like prettiness or red light risquéness of Amsterdam. However, Brussels has a quaint charm all of its own, superb architecture and buildings, and let's not forget all that gorgeous chocolate and beer. ***SPEAKING THEIR LANGUAGE*** Belgium has a population of 11 million people split between Flanders in the North (where they speak Flemish) and Wallonia in the south (where they speak French). Although Brussels is...

Bollinger28 21.08.2005 (26.08.2005) · Read review
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Review of Brussels in general

Bargain hotel in the heart of Brussels

Advantages: Decent hotel, great price on Expedia
Disadvantages: Will you be able to get the same deal?

...INTRODUCTION Brussels is a handy place to meet if you're in the South Netherlands and your girlfriend is in London. Thanks to Eurostar and Dutch rails, we can both make it there in a couple of hours. My girlfriend managed to get a great deal on a hotel thanks to Expedia, and so here is a review of that hotel, which in my opinion is well worthy of consideration. Seems like the name has slighly changed since this was added to Ciao in 2006, to Eurostars Sablon. I checked the address and I've got the right place! THE LOCATION Hotel Eurostars Sablon is located opposite the Museum of Ancient and Modern Art in the city centre, 500 metres from the Royal Palace. This makes it a very handy location for the tourist areas. We found it a five minute walk to the Central train station, and a ten minute walk to the main tourist area...

larsbaby 05.04.2008 · Read review
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Review of Hesperia Sablon, Brussels

Decent Thai buffet in central Brussels

Advantages: Good buffet food, good price
Disadvantages: Not sure what the a la carte is like

...INTRODUCTION Searching around for Sunday lunch in Brussels, myself and the lady chanced upon the Lotus Bar in the Sablon area near to our hotel. Having walked around for a good half hour looking for something that took our fancy, we thought we'd give this place a bash for the buffet. So here we are. THE RESTAURANT The restaurant was on 2 floors, the entrance being on the upper floor. A red curtain covered the entrance door and the décor was very dark, with black painted tables and chairs. Most of the tables were for 4, and most groups seem to comprise of about this number. The bar was to the left of the entrance, and more or less dominated the upstairs dining area. In fact it is advertised as a cocktail bar on their website, so no wonder it's so big. The loos were very modern, very clean and all polished fittings...

larsbaby 03.04.2008 · Read review
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Review of Lotus Bar, Brussels

Premier DS-5080

Advantages: Cost-effective, lightweight, excellent photo quality
Disadvantages: Disadvantages!?!

...Back in March, I was in need of a digital camera, but was looking for one that wouldn't break the bank...Ideally, the Premier DS-5080 5 Mega Pixel camera is on the market then! For a camera of such image quality, I was somewhat taken aback that the retail price was just shy of the £100 mark. Excellent! The first thing that instantly struck me was the weight of it. Lightweight, if possible to say so, is an understatement! Its thin silver body with sliding lens cover and flat LCD monitor ensure that there is little "excess" materials used in the making of it. As the image of the product shows, it's streamline look is very attractive and pleasing to look at and use. Sliding the lens cover will switch it on and then you have the fun of the very straight-forward menu, that I must confess, I was able to use and navigate around...

carl.mcqueen 13.08.2006 · Read review
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Review of Premier DS-5080

Brussels...its a Grand Place

Advantages: Cosmopolitan with plenty to see and do
Disadvantages: Ridiculous hotel prices midweek

...Some say that Brussels is not the most exciting city in the world, in fact many would say it was downright boring. I say....NON! NON! NON!. While it may not quite compare with say, Paris, New York or Rio, it has a lot going for it. To try and cover all of the sights and attractions of Brussels in one review is impossible. Therefore, I have concentrated on my favourite places in this diverse European capital. ----------------- A Short History ----------------- The first written evidence of the existence of Brussels is from the year 977, when the German emperor Otto 2nd gave Low-Lorraine to Carl of France, who built a fortress there. In the middle of the 11th century the first city walls were built. The city thrived although it was controlled by Burgundy, then the Hapsburgian Empire. In 1695 Brussels was attacked by...

proxam 28.08.2002 · Read review
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Review of Brussels (Belgium)

Premier, not perfect

Advantages: Location, customer service
Disadvantages: Electrical faults, noise

...Like a lot of people I travel regularly for work. Unlike most of them, I also work in the quasi-public-sector and feel obliged therefore to restrict the expense claims to reasonable limits. I have actually been known to stay in a Youth Hostel on a business trip - but generally I opt for what have become known as 'budget hotels' - you know the ones: Premier Inn (a.k.a. Travelinn as was), Travelodge, Innkeeper's Lodge. These are the earthbound equivalents of budget airlines. No frills. But you do expect them to deliver on the basics. Premier is probably my favourite of the three. Maybe that's because they've followed up their rebranding with a full-scale refurb of all their hotels. (Maybe it's because my most usual branch of the competition has particular limitations.) The point of this long lead in is to establish that I...

hiker 01.06.2008 · Read review
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Review of Premier Travel Inn Manchester - City Centre (GMEX), Manchester

Premier Inn - Premier Staff - Happy Enough

Advantages: Price, Location
Disadvantages: No room Service

...and just a stop over we didn?t enquire into anything else that the hotel may offer but I would definitely recommend this to people looking for a weekend break or a wee stop over like ourselves because that?s what its obviously for, its not a resort or holiday place its just somewhere to lay your head, have a few wee drinks and probably some nice food and when they have offers even better, our offer of £29 was excellent as the normal price for a room for a night is £59 so technically we got 2 nights for the price of 1 and saved ourselves a pound woohoo?.I actually think that offer is still running with various locations from the Premier Inn Hotels just check out their website www.premierinn.com Thanks for reading and I appreciate any and all comments received....

purplifried 23.09.2009 · Read review
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Review of Premier Inn, Belfast