Up the Rue Royale from Le Botanique into Schaerbeek: a Romano-Byzantine royal church, the 1901 market hall turned arts venue, the Autrique house museum, the Flemish neo-Renaissance town hall on Place Colignon and Josaphat Park.
Best time: Afternoon; end in Josaphat Park before dusk
The route, stop by stop
- 1Le Botanique
Start at the Botanique cultural centre and its garden. 20 min.
- 2Royal Church of St Mary
Romano-Byzantine church built 1845-1888 at the top of Rue Royale. 15 min.
- 3Halles de Schaerbeek
The former Sainte-Marie covered market, inaugurated 1901, now a performing-arts venue; check the programme. 10 min.
- 4Autrique House
Chaussee de Haecht 266, a house museum. 45 min if you go in.
- 5Schaerbeek Town Hall
Flemish neo-Renaissance town hall on Place Colignon, by Jules-Jacques and Maurice Van Ysendyck (1887, rebuilt 1915). 10 min.
- 6Josaphat Park
Finish in Josaphat Park. 30 min.
More walks in Brussels
- Historic core: Grand-Place to the Sablon
- Marolles: view, flea market and old cafes
- Food-grazing walk: Midi Market to Flagey fries
- Ixelles ponds, La Cambre Abbey and the Bois
- European Quarter to the Cinquantenaire
- Old Brussels cafes crawl
- Art Nouveau: Hotel Hannon to Horta's Hotel Solvay
- Comic-strip murals of the old centre
- Sonian Forest: Rouge-Cloitre priory and the Trois-Fontaines ruin