Hi! We are travelling to Brussels this year to live there. Where is the best place to live for a couple with a little baby, if we were to work at the airport? Central Brussels, Overijse, Tervuren, Waterloo........? Are there places we should avoid due to crime etc....?
Belgium - 4 Answers
Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
Well, all depends on what you have and want to spend for rent. If you have an unlimited budget try : Genval, Waterloo, Tervuren, Overijssche. All posh places for yupies with an unlimited budget. Rents are skyrocketing there. And all are places at the SOUTHside of Brussels meaning you have to commute about an hour to the airport. And all are in pinewood surroundings which in winter make for particulary icy roads. Places to avoid: yes definitely there are some places to avoid; but any real estate agent worth his salt would not even dream of showing them to you. You would not ask a Manhattan real estate agent to show you a duplex in Harlem or the Bronx would you? Why dont you try Diegem (lots of Nato people live there, middle to higer middle class) and it is about 5 minutes from the airport. Lots of corporate offices are located there too: Exxon Inc. for example. Welcome to Belgium.
2 :
It depends on what you want, I lived in Krainem, (quite near Teruven )that wasn't too bad commuting, it is a suburb and quite posh, if you want city life (also lovely) Park Cinquantire is lovely, and not as expensive as the suburbs.. which has a dual carriage way straight into the ring road.. so North East Brussels.. Brussels is fantastic.. enjoy your time there.. I am jealous!! (scharbeck isn't so good..I would keep away!!) (please excuse the spellings.. I haven't lived there for a few years!! x
3 :
stay away from schaarbeek, and anderlecht. Uccle is one of those super yuppy places but its in the south, I was born there, and my family is from waterloo(and asebroek in the "far" west). There is an american school in waterloo-braine l'alleud so there are a lot fo americans there. Unfortunately Zaventem is in the north. You coudl try hoegarden, or woluwe st. pieters/ pierre. if you move to the suburbs its best that you live in the flemish brabant, they are richer and respond well to foreigners that aren't muslim (same mentality in the south but they aren't rich). everybody gave you a list of several communities, but the reality of it is that brussels is made up of 19 of them, and there are tons of towns around it so this is actually a relatively small pool of names. good luck (bring a rain coat)
4 :
It depends on what you like : downtown or suburbs, or even the countryside ? And of course it depends on your budget. If you prefer downtown, then be aware that there is a good train connection to the airport (every 20 minutes, and takes 15 minutes). Else, Evere in Brussels suburbs, or Diegem or Kraainem or Overijse, as already mentionned. Some people say Schaerbeek is not good, but there are fine places in Schaerbeek as well. Tervueren, Genval, La Hulpe are very nice areas with a lot of trees, there you need a car. Waterloo is nice, with a big English speaking community, but the traffic to the airport and back from the airport in the evening will drain your energy... Belgium is small, so you may even consider living near Leuven.
