Belgian beer isn’t the only thing to raise a glass to in Brussels, the city serves up art nouveau architecture, surrealist art, nature on the doorstep – and the stand where Angela Merkel nips for chips
Charlotte Brontë was famously rude about Belgium, after living in Brussels for a couple of years from 1842. But don’t let that put you off the Brussels Brontë society’s fascinating walking tours, which offer a window into a vanished world. In a couple of hours you can unlock a few secrets, from a hidden bust of Peter the Great, which marks the spot where the drunken tsar fell off a fountain, to the long-demolished boarding school where Charlotte lived, worked and dreamed up novels. Check online for dates. Tours (around €10pp) may be possible for groups of 10 or more.
•thebrusselsbrontegroup.org