On March 22, 2016, the Belgian International Airport (Brussels) was on the front pages of newspapers and in the main news of TV channels. The terrorist act shocked many people who happened to arrive in the Belgian capital through this air harbor. Indeed, according to a survey conducted in 2005, one hundred thousand respondents named Brussels Airport the best in Europe. Well, no one is safe from terrorist attacks. Most likely, the consequences of the explosions will soon be eliminated, and the security of the terminal will be strengthened to prevent such acts in the future. Let's look at what is interesting about this airport with such an eloquent name: "Welcome to Europe".
History
Interestingly, the hub was given to the inhabitants of the Belgian capital by the Germans. At the beginning of World War I, having invaded the country, they urgently built a hangar in an open field for launching airships. This structure passed several times from one belligerent side to another. Every time the Germans got their hangar, they modernized it and equipped the flight area in every possible way.field. The glorious military past of this structure has become a page in the history of aeronautics. After the war, an airport was built here on the airfield. Brussels has finally invested its funds in the arrangement of the hub. Now the air harbor receives about twenty million passengers a year. It is used as their base by such major carrier companies as Brassells Airlines, Lufthansa and BMI. Aeroflot sends its aircraft here from several large cities of the Russian Federation at once.
Airport map
The air harbor of the Belgian capital consists of only one terminal. But don't be fooled. international airport (Brussels), which calls itself the gates of Europe, is multi-level. It consists of zones A and B, and additional compartments will be added to them in the future. But for now, it's simple. "A", connected to the main building by a covered passage, serves passengers traveling to the Schengen countries. "B", on the contrary, is used for international flights to countries that have not acceded to this agreement. Let's start looking at levels. Level -1 is the underground floor. If you want to take a train to get from Brussels airport to the city center (as well as to other settlements in Belgium), then you are here, at the railway station. One floor above (Level 0) is its bus counterpart. Levels 1 and 2 are the arrivals hall. Here you will find a travel agency, stands of various companies where you can rent a car, a post office, ATMs. Level 3 - For outgoerspassengers. The entire floor is occupied by check-in desks for flights. The fourth level is the most beautiful. It is also called the Promenade. It offers a panoramic view of the airfield, and the lion's share of all cafes and shops are located here.
Belgian International Airport (Brussels) Services
It's not for nothing that one hundred thousand respondents to a 2005 survey called this hub the most comfortable in Europe. Since that time, the airport has been constantly modernized and updated. The waiting rooms are equipped with comfortable chairs. Free Wi-Fi is a nice gift from the airport to passengers. Everywhere you will find fountains with drinking water. There are a lot of services in the terminal: the Travelex VAT refund counter (located in the departure area of the non-Schengen zone), post and bank branches, a tourist office, car rental offices, prayer chapels and meditation rooms. The only negative: many of these services are only available until nine in the evening. But the information board is very convenient and understandable. Airport officials make every effort to ensure that the necessary formalities before and after the flight are completed as soon as possible.
Brussels Airport: how to get to the city center
Of course, the easiest way is to take a taxi. Elegant cars of yellow-blue color are waiting for their passengers at the exit from the arrivals hall (on the first level). But such a trip will cost at least forty euros. And not the fact that it will be fast. After all, traffic jams are not uncommon in the capital. Brussels Airport is located inZaventem, which is twelve kilometers from the main city of the country. Therefore, the fastest mode of transport will be the train. The entrance to the station, as we already mentioned, is located right in the airport terminal, at level -1. Trains run every quarter of an hour. They will quickly deliver passengers to all stations in Brussels: Brussels Midi (the main station), North and Central.
How to get to other cities in Belgium
Many tourists traveling to majestic Liege, gingerbread Bruges, romantic Ghent or old Antwerp arrive in Brussels. You can get from the airport to the center not only by train or taxi, but also by bus. Transportation is carried out by two companies. The first, De Lijn, delivers passengers to the Rudebek metro station. The second, MIVB/STIB, sends its buses not to the old city center, but to EU institutions. From Brussels airport you can go straight to Antwerp. The cost of a bus ticket, which can be purchased from the driver, is ten euros. Travel time, depending on traffic congestion, is from thirty-five minutes to an hour. To get to other cities of the country, you must first get to Brussels train stations. But carefully study the schedule at the railway station in the airport terminal. Perhaps the right train will pass through Zaventem.
How to get to another airport in Brussels
The capital of Belgium has another hub. It is designed to receive low-cost low-cost airlines (WizzAir, EasyJet and others). This air harborlocated 60 kilometers south of Brussels, near the town of Charleroi. Unfortunately, there is no direct connection between the two airports. In addition to taxis, there are two ways to get to the low-cost hub. From Zaventem you can take the train to any train station in Brussels. From there you need to get to the Charleroi railway station. Shuttles run from the town to the hub. The second way to get to the airport (Brussels - Charleroi) is combined. By train we get to the Midi station and take the bus.
