Visit Brussels’ Flower Carpet in mid August

Every two years a colourful ‘Carpet of Flowers’ covers the cobbled stones of the Grand Place in Brussels and this summer, between 14 and 17 August, a display - themed on 18th century French patterns - of some 800,000 begonias will transform this spectacular square.

In addition, visitors can view the flower carpet from the balcony of the City Hall (for a small charge) and enjoy a sound and light show each evening. 

This makes August 2008 a great time to go on a city break to Brussels; the carpet is there for three days and four nights, and has been created every few years since 1976. Made with begonias, which are grown in the Ghent region of Belgium, which are actually a native of the West Indies.

A city of more than 1 million inhabitants, Brussels is also very tourist friendly, with plenty of places to stay, eat and visit. Tourist attractions include the Atomium, over 40 museums and the European Parliament. Famous foods of the region include chocolate, waffles and Belgium is of course famous for its beer. Each beer has its own glass, and the law is such that each beer must be served in that particular glass, and there are 125 different breweries, producing up to 1000 different brands.

Belgium is particularly suited to short breaks from the UK because of its elative closeness and good transport links by ferry (a short drive north from the French ferry ports), Eurotunnel, air and Eurostar (just 1hr 51 from London!). All this makes short break holidays easy to achieve, whether you choose independent travel or book a package through a city breaks specialist.

Ashley is working for a travel company. She specializes in planning and scheduling various short break holidays and weekend breaks for families, frequent travellers and couples in Europe. For further information she recommends a visit to http://www.citiesdirect.co.uk