Brussels shuts both tourist offices amid budget cuts
The Brussels regional tourist office, visit.brussels, is definitively closing the doors of its two offices in the region on Tuesday, including the one on the Grand-Place itself. The closures result from savings imposed by the Brussels Capital Region government.
The tourist office on the Grand-Place has existed since the 1960s and is a remnant of the "Belgique Joyeuse" era around Expo '58 at the Atomium, but must now shut down due to austerity measures by the Brussels government. According to employee and trade unionist Martin Dekeyser, Brussels is "losing a piece of history" with its closure.
In total, the Brussels regional tourist office must hand back two-thirds of its subsidies, forcing it to close both of its offices in the region. According to Dekeyser, the impact of the closures will become immediately tangible for visitors.
"The tourist office was able to provide tailor-made guidance to tourists, have a quick chat and send them on their way with a smile," Dekeyser explained. "This artisanal dimension of the tourist office will no longer be found here."
"Every tourist who arrives here tomorrow will have to do without any information."
Brussels is mainly known for its European institutions and does not have immediately recognisable landmarks such as other European cities, Dekeyser added. The offices helped guide visitors in the right direction. "Every tourist who arrives here tomorrow will have to do without any information. Only Google or the search engines can help them."
The closures follow other cutbacks to the city's tourist offices that have been imposed in recent months. In April, the Brussels government decided to close at least 14 of its 33 overseas trade and promotion offices, including those in Milan, Barcelona, Geneva and Shanghai, as part of a wider plan to achieve budgetary balance by 2029.
© BELGA PHOTO ERIC LALMAND
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