Getting There

By Plane

Flying to Belgium

Brussels National Airport, at Zaventem, 11km (7 miles) northeast of the center city, is Belgium's only significant international airport. It has direct rail connection to Brussels and from there to Bruges, Ghent, Antwerp, and other Belgian cities; to Amsterdam, Rotterdam, and The Hague; and to Luxembourg City.

From the U.S. and Canada -- Carriers with flights to Brussels from cities that include Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, New York, and Toronto are Air Canada (tel. 888/247-2262; www.aircanada.ca); American Airlines (tel. 800/433-7300; www.aa.com); Delta (tel. 800/221-1212; www.delta.com); and United Airlines (tel. 800/538-2929; www.united.com).

From the U.K. -- British Airways (tel. 0870/850-9850; www.britishairways.com); SN Brussels Airlines (tel. 020/7559-9787; www.flysn.com); Virgin Express (tel. 0870/730-1134; www.virgin-express.com); and bmi (tel. 0870/607-0555; www.flybmi.com) fly to Brussels from cities that include Edinburgh, Belfast, Birmingham, Bristol, Glasgow, Leeds/Bradford, London, Manchester, and Sheffield. Ryanair (tel. 0871/246-0000; www.ryanair.com) flies from London and Glasgow to Charleroi.

From Ireland -- Aer Lingus (tel. 0818/365000; www.aerlingus.com) and SN Brussels Airlines (in Britain tel. 020/7559-9787; www.flysn.com) fly from Dublin to Brussels. Ryanair (tel. 01/609-7881; www.ryanair.com) flies from Dublin to Charleroi.

From Australia -- KLM (tel. 1300/392192; www.klm.com) and Qantas (tel. 131313; www.qantas.com.au) fly from Sydney to Amsterdam, where you can transfer for Brussels.

From New Zealand -- Air New Zealand (tel. 0800/737000; www.airnewzealand.com) flies from Auckland to London, where you can transfer for Brussels.

Flying to the Netherlands

Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, 13km (8 miles) southwest of the center city, has quick, direct rail links to Amsterdam's center city; to Rotterdam, The Hague, Utrecht, and other Dutch cities; and to Antwerp and Brussels.

In 2004, the Netherlands flag carrier KLM Royal Dutch Airlines merged with Air France, in what was widely interpreted as a takeover of the Dutch airline by the French one. It remains to be seen what effect control by the lumbering, state-controlled French giant will have on the services of a formerly lean and efficient (but small for a would-be global player) KLM.

From the U.S. and Canada -- Carriers with frequent flights to Amsterdam from cities that include Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Memphis, Montreal, Newark, New York, San Francisco, Seattle, Toronto, Vancouver, and Washington, D.C., are Air Canada (tel. 888/247-2262; www.aircanada.ca); Continental Airlines (tel. 800/231-0856; www.continental.com); Delta (tel. 800/221-1212; www.delta.com); KLM Royal Dutch Airlines (tel. 800/225-2525; www.klm.com); Northwest Airlines (tel. 800/225-2525; www.nwa.com); and United Airlines (tel. 800/538-2929; www.united.com).

From the U.K. -- British Airways (tel. 0870/850-9850; www.britishairways.com), BMi (tel. 0870/607-0555; www.flybmi.com), easyJet (tel. 0905/560-7777; www.easyjet.com), and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines (tel. 0870/507-4074; www.klm.nl) and its subsidiaries KLM Cityhopper and KLM uk, fly to Amsterdam from cities that include Aberdeen, Belfast, Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds/Bradford, Liverpool, London, Manchester, Newcastle, Norwich, and Teesside; KLM Cityhopper flies also from London to Rotterdam; and KLM Exel flies from London to Eindhoven and Maastricht.

From Ireland -- Aer Lingus (tel. 0818/365000; www.aerlingus.com) flies daily from Dublin to Amsterdam.

From Australia -- KLM (tel. 1300/392192; www.klm.com) and Qantas (tel. 131313; www.qantas.com.au) fly from Sydney to Amsterdam.

From New Zealand -- Air New Zealand (tel. 0800/737000; www.airnewzealand.com) flies from Auckland to London, where you can transfer for Amsterdam.

Flying to Luxembourg

Luxembourg Airport is 6km (4 miles) northeast of Luxembourg City.

From North America -- You can fly to Brussels and Amsterdam, and transfer for Luxembourg City.

From the U.K.. -- British Airways (tel. 0845/773-3377; www.britishairways.com) flies from London to Luxembourg City. Luxair (tel. 01293/596663; www.luxair.lu) flies from London and Manchester to Luxembourg City.

From Ireland -- Aer Lingus (tel. 0818/365000; www.aerlingus.com) and Luxair (tel. 44-1293/596663 in Britain; www.luxair.lu) fly from Dublin to Luxembourg City.

From Australia -- KLM (tel. 1300/392192; www.klm.com) and Qantas (tel. 131313; www.qantas.com.au) fly from Sydney to Amsterdam, where you can transfer for Luxembourg City.

From New Zealand -- Air New Zealand (tel. 0800/737000; www.airnewzealand.com) flies from Auckland to London, where you can transfer for Luxembourg City.

Getting There by Train

Rail service to the Benelux countries from major European cities is frequent, fast, and generally inexpensive compared to air travel.

Direct, though relatively slow, international trains connect Luxembourg with Brussels, Amsterdam, Paris, and Cologne. None of the high-speed international trains -- Eurostar, Thalys, TGV -- serve Luxembourg City.

Getting There By Bus

Eurolines has the most comprehensive bus network in Europe. For reservations, call tel. 08705/143219 in Britain; tel. 02/274-13-50 in Belgium; or tel. 020/560-8788 in the Netherlands. Or book online at www.eurolines.com.

Luxembourg City can be reached by Eurolines bus from London, with two departures a day, and from Amsterdam, both via Brussels. Travel time is 13 hours from London and 7 hours from Amsterdam.

Getting There By Car

The Benelux countries are crisscrossed by a dense network of major highways connecting them with other European countries. Distances are relatively short. Road conditions are excellent throughout all three Benelux countries, service stations are plentiful, and highways have good signs. Traffic congestion in both Brussels and Amsterdam, however, can cause monumental tie-ups -- in these two cities, it's best to park your car at your hotel garage and use local transportation or walk (the best way, incidentally, to see either city).

Via The Channel Tunnel From Britain -- The fast and efficient Eurotunnel (tel. 08705/353535 in Britain; www.eurotunnel.com) auto-transporter trains transport your car through the Channel Tunnel from Folkestone, England, to Calais, France (a 35-min. trip). Departures are every 15 minutes at peak times, every 30 minutes at times of average demand, and every hour at night.