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Belgium
Airport to Train Station
Liege: Take a taxi to the main train station or some carriers provide a free shuttle bus. Ostend-Bruge: Take the bus from outside the airport to the main railway Station. Brussels National Zaventem: Direct train connections between Brussels Midi train stations and airport train station. Brussels South Charleroi: From South Charleroi station, there are direct bus links to Brussels Midi Station. Takes 1 hour. Usually costs €13.
Tickets & Discounts
10 Journey Card allows you to make 10 single journeys in the class of your choice between the same two stations. Key Card – 10 single trips in either 1st class or 2nd class in a specific area of validity calculated from your station of departure. Rail Pass – With a Rail Pass, you can make 10 single journeys between two Belgian stations of your choice.
Go Pass 10 – 10 separate journeys anywhere in Belgium valid for 1 year from the date of purchase. It doesn’t have a name on it so you can lend it to your friends or let them travel with you on your Go Pass 10 as long as they are also under 26.
SNCB offers a wide variety of Railcards to suit everyone – general city, student, half-time and a whole network railcard.
School Railcard – students under 26 years receive a discount. Children aged under 12 years travel free of charge, when accompanied by an adult. Children under 12 years travelling alone, only pay half price in both classes. Discounts available for large families. Senior ticket offers special rates to those over 65 years old. Reduced prices with pass cards, for example Go Pass 10 and Key Card. Discounts for groups of a minimum of 15 people.
B-Excursions formula includes a return 2nd class train journey, admission to the attractions and the connection by bus, tram or metro, if necessary. B-Excursion ticket includes 2nd class return travel from your station to one of 17 destinations, plus one day’s bike hire.
Weekend ticket offers you a 50% discount in 1st or 2nd class for an outward and return journey. Savings with combined passes for rail travel with bus/tram network.
Seats and Beds – seat reservation is compulsory on all internal trains within Belgium. For domestic trains in Belgium seat reservations are not required. For the trains to and from Brussels airport a supplement is required, which can be bought at the station or in the train. There are some international trains to and from Belgium that require a reservation fee, like the Eurostar to London, the Thalys to Amsterdam or Paris or the TGV to France.
Baggage – You may carry a maximum of three pieces of carry-on luggage, total weight under 30kg. However, in Belgium they are not strict with baggage. If you wish to bring your bike, you can buy a one-day card. Pets are allowed to travel on trains but must not take up a seat and a ticket called a ‘transport of pets’ which is available at b-rail.be
Wi-Fi – is available on board all Thalys trains and on some intercity trains.
Station stuff – Brussels has three main train stations; Nord, Centrale and Midi.
Nord station is the smallest of the stations is situated up north of Brussels. Centrale station is city centre, beside many hostels and hotels. Brussels Midi is the busiest and the first start for many of the intercity, Thalys and international routes.
The Small Print
Tickets can be booked online or purchased at the station. They cannot be bought while on the train. If travelling to Belgium via Eurostar, it’s worth noting that tickets bought for Brussels are automatically valid to any station in Belgium.So you can use any reasonable connecting train service from Brussels to your final destination in Belgium as long as you complete the journey within 24 hours of the Eurostar arriving in Brussels.
Seating Reservations are required for the trains to and from Brussels airport with a reservation fee. To be paid at the station or on the train.
Passengers using international trains to and from Belgium must reserve seating and pay a supplement fee to do so. E.g. Thalys and TGV. For ticket holders it is usually included in your ticket, for pass holders it is a add on extra that can be paid for at the station or online.
