The Sleep Well (10) at 23 rue du Damier (00 32 2 218 5050) has twin rooms at €15.25 (£9) per person per night, plus an extra charge of €3.50 (£2.20) for sheets. If you haven’t booked, try the tourist office in the Grand’Place, where occasional bargains are available, such as a room at the Hotel Astoria (11) at 103 rue Royale (00 32 2 227 0505) for €65 (£41), including breakfast.TAKE A RIDE The Visit Brussels Line (00 322 513 77 44; ) is a hop-on, hop-off bus service that stops at 14 sights in the city Tickets cost €12.50 (£8) and are valid for 48 hours Buses set off every half-hour from Central station (2). The service runs from the end of March until early November.WINDOW SHOPPING The morning flea market at the Place du Jeu de Balle (12) offers an extraordinary collection of tat that is more of a spectator sport than a retail opportunity; but the weekend market in the Sablon tends to be more antiques than junk. Rue Neuve (13) is the main shopping street, a pedestrianised thoroughfare full of cheap boutiques and a single department store, Inno; most of the designer shops are around Avenue Louise (14).

The one thing that is really worth investing in is chocolate, and there are chocolatiers on almost every street corner: Neuhaus, Godiva and Leonidas all have branches around the city.LUNCH ON THE RUN Place Jourdan (15) is full of venues for a quick lunch, including Da Pippo Pizza, and a good brasserie, L’Esprit de Sel, nearby Best of all is the round kiosk in the centre of the square. This is the Maison Antoine; chips have been served here for 50 years, and it was recently voted the best friterie in Belgium. Eat them with meat or mussels, or in the traditional Belgian way, with mayonnaise.CULTURAL AFTERNOON The art nouveau style took hold in Brussels when, in 1893, the architect Victor Horta built the organically inspired Hotel Tassel (16) at 6 rue Paul-Emile Janson. There are a number of superb art nouveau buildings in the city, of which the best is the dazzling Mus?Horta (17), at 25 rue Americaine (00 32 2 543 0490).

Inside, the art nouveau movement is brought to life by swirling iron stairways and delicate woodwork. It opens 2pm-5.30pm daily except Mondays, admission €4.95 (£3).TAKE A HIKE The Atelier de Recherche et Action Urbaine runs art nouveau walking tours at weekends during the summer, usually starting around Easter and continuing until September. Find out the full details from 00 32 2 219 33 45 or .AN APERITIF The decor and ambience make the superb Caf??opole (18) at 31 Place de Brouck? an elegant place to stop for a drink. Here you can run through the card of Belgian beers at the undemanding price, for such glittering surroundings, of €3 (£1.85) or €4 (£2.50) a glass. But if you are really serious about the local drink, make for De Ulti? Hallucinatie (19) in rue Royale or A la Mort Subite in rue de la Montagne-aux-Herbes-Potag?s (20).DINING WITH THE LOCALS Brussels prides itself on having more restaurants than Paris. Whether this is correct doesn’t really matter: the city certainly boasts many superb places to eat. To be dazzled by what can be done with mussels – the national dish – go to Chez L? (21) in the rue des Bouchers (00 322 511 14 15), one of the few reasonably priced restaurants in an otherwise touristy enclave; it is also an institution.