Visit Brussels in May

With its brace of bank holidays May is the ideal month to get away for a little city break, or maybe even use those well deserved days off to extend a longer holiday. And with the weather likely to hold up far better than at home, Paris, Brussels and Lille are ideal destinations for your early summer sejourn. As well as all the usual tourist attractions, there are plenty of special events and festivals happening throughout May, so read on to find out some amazing attractions.

You can travel to Brussels on Eurostar from just £59 return:


Short cinematography

Head to Brussels before 10 May and you can catch the end of their Festival of Short Films. Held in the Cinema Vendôme in Ixelles, the festival presents an intriguing, snappy selection of short films from all over the world and is ideal for any film fans with short attention spans.

Jazz Festivals
May certainly seems to be the month for all that jazz. In Brussels, there is the Jazz Marathon from 29-31 May, a huge jazz party which will have the city hopping and be-bopping for one weekend. More than 450 musicians will perform in the city’s main squares (Grand Place, Place du Grand Sablon, Place Ste-Catherine and Place Fernand Cocq) as well as in 50 venues, clubs and hotels.

Celebrate Diversity
If you happen to be around on 16 May in Brussels, keep an eye out for the annual Brussels Gay Pride parade. It’s pretty hard to miss. The floats will leave from Boulevard Anspach, between the Bourse and Place Fontainas (in the direction of Gare du Midi), starting at 14.00 for an entertaining and colourful parade which winds its way through the streets of the centre of Brussels to the sound of music.

Whatever your reason for travelling to Brussels, nothing beats simply sitting on the Grand Place or Grote Markt enjoying a Belgian beer.

I also recommend a visit to the quirky Theatre Toone to see a performance of the wonderful wooden puppets. You can find their programme at www.Toone.be





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