The official tourist agency for each country maintains overseas branches that provide excellent in-depth information on a vast array of subjects, including special interests.

U.S. -- Belgian Tourist Office, 220 E. 42nd St., Suite 3402, New York, NY 10017 (tel. 212/758-8130; fax 212/355-7675; www.visitbelgium.com).

Canada -- Residents of Canada call tel. 514/457-2888 to be switched through to the Belgian Tourist Office in New York. For information concerning Brussels and French-speaking Wallonia (not Flanders), francophone Canadians should contact the Office de Promotion du Tourisme Wallonie-Bruxelles, 43 rue de Buade, Bureau 525, Quebec Ville, Quebec, G1R 4A2 (tel. 418/692-4939; fax 418/692-4974; www.belgique-tourisme.qc.ca).

U.K. & Ireland -- Brussels and French-speaking Wallonia (and its German-speaking district): Belgian Tourist Office Brussels & Wallonia, 217 Marsh Wall, London E14 9FJ (tel. 020/7537 1132, brochure line tel. 0800/954 5245; fax 020/7531-0393; www.belgiumtheplaceto.be).

Brussels and Dutch-speaking Flanders: Tourism Flanders-Brussels, 1A Cavendish Sq., London W1G 0LD (tel. 020/7307-7738; www.visitflanders.co.uk).

In Belgium, for Brussels and the French-speaking Wallonia region (and its mainly German-speaking Ostkantone district), contact the Office de Promotion du Tourisme de Wallonie et Bruxelles, rue Saint-Bernard 30, 1060 Bruxelles (tel. 070/221-021, brochure line; Belgium only line 02/509-24-00; fax 02/513-04-75; www.opt.be). This is an administrative office only, and is not open for personal visits.

For Brussels and the Dutch-speaking Flanders region, contact Toerisme Vlaanderen, rue du Marché aux Herbes/Grasmarkt 61-63, 1000 Bruxelles (tel. 02/504-03-90; fax 02/513-04-48; www.visitflanders.com; Métro: Gare Centrale). The office is open for personal visits April to June and September Monday to Saturday from 9am to 6pm, and Sunday from 10am to 5pm; July to August hours are daily from 9am to 7pm; and October to March, it's open Monday to Saturday from 9am to 5pm, and Sunday from 10am to 4pm.

Tourist offices in French-speaking areas are generally called the Office du Tourisme, and in small places the Syndicat d'Initiative. In Dutch-speaking areas, they're called Toerisme "whatever" -- for instance, Toerisme Brugge, for Bruges -- or VVV followed by the place name. In German-speaking areas, offices are called Verkehrsamt.

The Euro -- Belgium's currency is the euro.

Useful Websites

In addition to official tourist organization websites -- such as www.visitbelgium.com, www.opt.be, www.wallonie-tourisme.be, www.brusselsinternational.be, www.visitflanders.com -- there are many other useful sources of online information.

  • Independent Travel Advice: www.trabel.com, www.xpats.com.

  • Hotels and Restaurants: www.hotels-belgium.com, www.resto.be.

Note: This information was accurate when it was published, but can change without notice. Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before planning your trip.