Brussels skyline and views - part 1
PLACE POELAERT, TOUR DU MIDI, FINANCE TOWER


Brussels is a mostly flat city, but is also has some hills, the city center actually consist of a lower and an upper town. Around Place Poelaert and Mont des Arts you can watch great views of Brussels. Since Brussels is a financially and politically very important city, it has a few tall buildings and skyscrapers, more then the average European city actually. There is a large, growing CBD (Central Business District) just to the North of the city center, the only one in Belgium. Here you will find the Finance Tower (Tour Finances), that is the city's 2nd tallest building in Belgium (145m), but the tallest if you count the mast on top (174m).
But the tallest building in Belgium officially, the 150m tall Tour du Midi, you will find in the Midi district to the soutwest of the city center. Both the tallest buildings are pretty old, but their exteriors have been recladded and modernized. At the river, pretty close to the CBD, you will find Up-site that is about being completed during our visit (2014), a mixed use 42-storey, 142m tall skyscraper. Other notable skyscrapers in the CBD is Dexia Tower, a 37-storey glass skyscraper with diagonal lines, Belcago Towers, 2 glass towers with a skybridge and a mast and some early 1970s buildings like World Trade Center and Manhattan Center. Many of the skyscrapers of Brussels have glass facades. Just southeast of the CBD, you find Madou Plaza, a 34-storey from
2004 and Tour Astro from 1976. You will also find several tall hotels and office buildings spread out over the city.

In the Old Town, the only fairly tall buildings are the Town Hall -that is totally dominating, King's House and the St Michael's Cathedral. In the suburbs you will find Belgium's tallest structure, Sint-Pieters-Lieeuw TV tower (300m), and in the outskirts there are some fairly tall churches, like the Basilica of the Sacred Hearts. The futuristic, 102m tall, Atomium from 1958, is probably Brussels most famous structure on the skyline, but it is located in the far Northern outskirts, so it is not included in any skyline. From Atomium you can take the elevator to an observation deck inside one of the sphere. Except for that, there are no major observation decks in skyscrapers and towers in Brussels, that is a shame since the city has a pretty interesting skyline after all.

The huge EU buildings are rather built on the length then height however; for example Espace Léopold, the largest complex consist of 3 rows of buildings, about 400m wide and has about 15 floors, that could be really tall if built on the height. It could also have spared many old buldings from being demolished if it was built upwards instead.

 

VIEWS FROM PLACE POELAERT:

The free panorama elevator that leads down to the lower part of the city. There is a skybridge that leads to the elevator. From this spot you have great views of Brussels; to the right you see the tallest skyscraper of Brussels, Tour du Midi.

Tour du Midi (Zuidertoren), Belgium's tallest building to the roof height (here seen from Place Poelaert). It was built 1962-67, has 38 floors and is 150m tall to the roof. Until 1972 it was also the tallest building in the EU (before it was surpassed by Tour Montparnasse in Paris). It was drawn by Michael Jaspers & Partners and is situated right next to Gare du Midi, the large railway station southwest of the city center. It was built for the national pensions services. In 1996 the exterior was modernised, and recladded with glass.


The National Basilica of Sacred Heart (Basilique Nationale du Sacré-Coeur) is a roman catholic art deco church on Koekelberg hill in the West outskirts of Brussels. It is one of the largest churches in the world. Unfortunately we had no opportunity to visit it. The coppar roof is 80m high. Work begun in 1905, but the church wasn't completed until 1970.

 


Rue de MinimesFinance Tower (far right) is taller then Tour du Midi if you count masts.


 
Tour du Midi, Belgium's tallest   The Hotel, formerly Hilton (30 floors, built 1967)   Dexia Tower (2006) and Sheraton

 
View from the skybridge   View from the skybridge   View towards Atomium


The Town Hall in the Old Town with modern buildings in the background

 


Skyline with churches and highrises. Chapel Church (left), Tour Sablon (middle), unknown church (right).The skybridge with the elevator to the Lower Town and Tour du Midi


Since the Palace of Justice is situated between the upper and lower part of the city, there is a height difference at 20m.

 


Place Poelaert with Palace of Justice

Palace of Justice

 

Brussels Business District
QUARTIER NORD, FINANCIAL DISTRICT, FINANCE TOWER, DEXIA TOWER, MANHATTAN CENTER

Just to the North of the old city center, Brussels financial district is situated with its glass and steel skyscrapers and trafficated roads. The area is called Quartier Nord (Northern Quarters). This is where you find Belgium's tallest buildings, except for Tour du Midi (the tallest one) that is south of the city center. The Finance Tower is the tallest building in Belgium if you count the mast, and the diagonal Rogier (Dexia) Tower, the glass skyscrapers of World Trade Center, Belgacom Towers and the modernist Manhattan Center complex can be found here, as well as the large shopping mall City 2, large international chain hotels and sculptures. There are also blocks with old buildings close to the skyscrapers.
It is also here you find the large North railway station (Gare du Nord) and Jardin Botanique (the Botanical Garden).

The skyline of Brussels Business District. Chaotic traffic jams are common, like here on Boulevard du Jardin Botanique.
The skyline of Brussels Business District from the left: Sheraton, Dexia Tower, Covent Garden B, Belgacom Towers


Finance Tower (Tour Finances) is Brussels second tallest skyscraper, after Tour du Midi, at 145m to the roof. If the mast is counted, it is the tallest (174m).

 


Finance Tower was completed in 1985, but in 2008 the whole exterior was recladded in a more modern colour and the external elevator was removed. It has 36 floors.


Base of Finance Tower


Belgacom Towers. Two telecom office buildings from 1996 connected by a skybridge. Here seen from the train.

 


Belgacom Towers, the tallest is 138m tall


The flagpole on top of Belgacom Towers

 
Place Charles Rogier with Sheraton, Dexia Tower, Covent Garden        

 

VIEWS FROM MONT DES ARTS (KUNSTBERG):

Views towards the Old Town and the Town Hall from Mont des Arts (Kunstberg). The landscaped garden in the hills of Mont des Arts, right above Place de l'Albertine.

The top of the Town Hall at Grand Place with the golden spire of the archangel Michael slaying the dragon.

 

Brussels Central Station is situated right next, below to Mont des Arts. The tracks are built underground. The skyscrapers in the background is Sheraton and Dexia Tower. Congress Palace and Place Royale



Old Town, Town Hall and Basilica of the Sacred Hearts (Sacre-Coeur) seen from Mont des Arts a beautful summer evening at dusk.

 


Place Royale


Town Hall and Basilica of the Sacred Hearts seen from Mont des Arts

 

 

VIEWS FROM THE ROOFTOP OF MUSEUM OF MUSIC INSTRUMENTS (MIM, OLD ENGLAND BUILDING):

 
Museum of Music Instruments (left)   Mont des Arts   Back street

 
The terrace of the Old England building. The building also has a rooftop café   Town Hall and Sacre-Coeur    

 
Music instruments of MIM   Music instruments of MIM   Art nouvau interior of MIM

 
Old town/City center seen from the rooftop of MIM   Music instruments of MIM   Place Royale from MIM

 

AROUND THE ROYAL PALACE AND PLACE DU TRÔNE:

 
Place du Trône (Troonpleis) with the 25-storey Bastion Tower from 1970   Place du Trône, Rue Ducale towards Tour Madou   Place du Trône

Rue Royale with views towards the lower part of the city where the Old Town is situated (note the Town Hall to the far right). The sculpture is Baron Horta, the architect that designed many of Brussels jugend buildings, some at Grand Place. The quarters are called the Royal Quarters and hosts several large art museums.

 

VIEWS FROM THE CONGRESS QUARTERS:

 
Skyline of the Business district seen from Place du Congres   Town Hall and Old Town seen from the St Michael's Cathedral   Centre Monnaie seen from Place du Congres

 

EUROPEAN QUARTER:

Skyline of the Espace Léopold complex that houses the Eurpean Parliament, seen from Place du Luxembourg. The main buildings, called Altiero Spinelli and Paul Henri Spaak, have up to 17 floors, but looks lower because they are so wide.


European Parliament at Place du Luxembourg, seen at sunset.

 


Place du Luxembourg


EU Parliament,Place du Luxembourg


Belview, a tall new(2014) residential skyscraper next to a small park in the Eurpean Quarter. It is 90m and 24 floors tall.

 

Arch of Triumph in Parc du Cinquantenaire (Jubelpark).
Espace Léopold complex. that houses the Eurpean Parliament