Welcome to the new Eurostar ShortBreaks Ltd programme. We are a specialist tour operator offering quality city-breaks packages by Eurostar to Paris, Brussels, Bruges, Lille and Antwerp. All hotels are individually inspected for quality. Our simple, six step booking process allows for products to be 'dynamically packaged' for your convenience or selected from prepackaged special offers. We are Eurostar's largest direct sell tour operator and are fully bonded by both ABTA and ATOL.
Paris. Sand by the Seine, cinema on Montmartre's steps and parties in the park – slip into summer Parisian-style with a Eurostar short break. Join the locals for free jazz by Parc Floral's lake, dancing at Parc de la Villette's Bals-Concerts, plus salsa, string quartets and steel bands at the ever-popular Fête de la Musique. Late nights call for chilled out days, so laze under a palm tree or play pétanque on the Right Bank's three-mile beach - don't forget your bucket and spade! Then watch the city shrink to the size of a postage stamp from the world’s biggest hot-air balloon at André Citroën park. Have you worked up an appetite? Sniff out fresh fromage at Boulogne Organic Food Market, or feast your eyes on Provençal olives and Périgord foie gras at Granterroirs rue de Miromesnil. Mmmm is for Mediterranean flavours, served on the terrace at ultra-hip Restaurant du Murano. If Paris is too hot to handle, regain your cool at trendy ice bar, Ice Kube, while slinky Le Baron on avenue Marceau – with its vampy red walls, crammed dance floor and chichi clientele - is one place you must party this summer. Return in comfort by Eurostar.
Brussels. Fancy some hot chocolate? Treat yourself to a Brussels summer break with Eurostar. If you'd rather have a cold beer, pull up a pew and sample over 2000 brews among the age-old barrels at the Delirium Café. Ahhh, c'est la vie… If you've done the naughty-but-nice bit, now you have to work off those calories! Get your skates on to join les Bruxellois for a whirlwind Friday-night tour. Or if two wheels are more up your street, cycle the Art Nouveau Trail for a hardcore Victor Horta experience, pausing at BOZAR to discover Duchamp's paintings. Now relax. Join the beautiful bodies on Brussels' beach. Complete with sugary sands and salsa bands, you'd almost think you were in Barbados – except the chocs are better! But it's not all about the sweets - Belgium's spiritual centre melts when the Dalai Lama comes to town. If you're hoping to pick up some spiritual wisdom, you'd better book quickly. Summer nights are spent in front of the big screen at Brussels' drive in, or in search of the hottest sounds. Find them beneath the Chinese lanterns at the Brosella jazz festival and beside Atomium's shiny spheres at Klinkende Munt's open-air concerts. Eurostar gets you there and back.
Lille Lille is a sensory sensation this summer – find out why on a short break with Eurostar to France's Flemish favourite. If you love music in the open air, the world beats at the Mille et Une festival and funky Thursday vibes at Clef de Soleil's concerts might just tickle your fancy. Saturday kicks into gear with a Segway scooter tour of Vieux Lille. Pull up to the Palais des Beaux Arts to catch Caravaggio and other Italian gems, then zip through the backstreets to the Grand' Place to kick back with a beer and indulge in some summertime people-watching. Need a breather? Lille gets its rocks off on Tourcoing's beach. It may not be Saint Tropez, but it does set the scene for plenty of free events - from outdoor movies and live concerts to beach volleyball and sculpture contests. Allez à la plage! On Sunday, sniff out fresh fruit and blooms at Wazemmes Market, pausing at the red-brick Maison Folie for cutting-edge exhibitions. If all that art whets your appetite, fill up on the most creative soup in town at the trendy De l'Art dans la Soupe café. Relax as Eurostar brings you back home.
Bruges (Brugge). is the capital and largest city of the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is located in the northwest of the country. The historic city centre is a prominent World Heritage Site of UNESCO. It is egg-shaped and about 430 hectares in size. The area of the whole city amounts to more than 13,840 hectares, including 193.7 hectares off the coast, at Zeebrugge ("Seabruges" in literal translation). The city's total population is more than 117,000, of which around 20,000 live in the historic centre. Many of its medieval buildings are notable, including the Church of Our Lady, whose brick spire — at 122m — makes it one of the world's highest brick towers/buildings. The sculpture Madonna and Child, which can be seen in the transept, is believed to be Michelangelo's only sculpture to have left Italy within his lifetime. Bruges is also famous for its 13th-century Belfry, housing a municipal Carillon comprising 47 bells. The city still employs a full-time bell ringer, Aimé Lombaért, who puts on regular free concerts.
Other famous buildings in Bruges include: The Beguinage, The Basilica of the Holy Blood (Heilig-Bloedbasiliek). The relic of the Holy Blood, which was brought to the city during the First Crusade, is paraded every year through the streets of the city. More than 1,600 inhabitants take part in this mile-long religious procession, many dressed as medieval knights or crusaders, The modern Concertgebouw ("Concert Building"), The Old St-John's Hospital, The Saint-Salvator Cathedral, The Groeningemuseum, The City Hall on the Burg square, The Provincial Court (Provinciaal Hof), The old city gateways: the Kruispoort, Gentpoort, Smedenpoort and Ezelpoort. Bruges also has a very fine collection of medieval and early modern art, including the world-famous collection of Flemish Primitives. Various masters, such as Hans Memling and Jan van Eyck, lived and worked in Bruges.
Antwerp. is a city and municipality in Belgium and the capital of the Antwerp province in Flanders, one of Belgium's three regions. Antwerp's total population is 472,071 and its total area 204.51 km². Antwerp has long been an important city in the nations of the Benelux both economically and culturally, especially before the Spanish Fury of the Dutch Revolt. It is located on the right bank of the river Scheldt, which is linked to the North Sea by the Westerschelde. According to folklore, and as celebrated by the statue in front of the town hall, the city got its name from a legend involving a mythical giant called Antigoon who lived near the river Scheldt. He exacted a toll from those crossing the river, and for those who refused, he severed one of their hands and threw it into the river Scheldt. Eventually, the giant was slain by a young hero named Brabo, who cut off the giant's own hand and flung it into the river. Hence the name Antwerpen, from Dutch hand werpen — akin to Old English hand and wearpan (= to throw), that has changed to today's warp.
In the 16th century, Antwerp was noted for the wealth of its citizens ("Antwerpia nummis"); the houses of these wealthy merchants and manufacturers have been preserved throughout the city. However fire has destroyed several old buildings, such as the house of the Hanseatic League on the northern quays in 1891. The city also suffered considerable war damage by V-bombs, and in recent years other noteworthy buildings were demolished for new developments. The Antwerp Zoo was founded in 1843, and is home to more than 6,000 animals (about 769 species). It's one of the oldest zoos in the world and is high ranked because of its high level of research and conservation. Central Station is a railway station designed by Louis Delacenserie that was completed in 1905. It has two monumental neo-baroque facades, a large metal and glass dome (60m/197ft) and a gilt and marble interior. Cathedral of Our Lady. This church was begun in the 14th century and finished in 1518. The church has four works by Rubens, viz. "The Descent from the Cross", "The Elevation of the Cross", "The Resurrection of Christ" and "The Assumption". The church, named for St James, is more ornate than the cathedral. It contains the tomb of Rubens. The church of St Paul, has a beautiful baroque interior. It is a few hundred yards north of the Grote Markt. The Plantin-Moretus Museum preserves the house of the printer Christoffel Plantijn and his successor Jan Moretus. The Boerentoren (Farmers' Tower) or KBC Tower, a 26-storey building built in 1932, is the oldest skyscraper in Europe. The Royal Museum of Fine Arts, close to the southern quays, has a collection of old masters (Rubens, Van Dyck, Titian) and the leading Dutch masters. The exchange or Bourse, one of the earliest institutions in Europe with that title, was built in 1872. The law courts, designed by the Richard Rogers Partnership, Arup and VK Studio, and opened by King Albert in April 2006. This building is the antithesis of the heavy, dark court building designed by Joseph Poelaert that dominates the skyline of Brussels. The courtrooms sit on top of six fingers that radiate from an airy central hall, and are surmounted by spires which provide north light and resemble oast houses or the sails of barges on the nearby River Scheldt. It is built on the site of the old Zuid ("South") station, at the end of a magnificent 1.5 km perspective at the southern end of Amerikalei. The road neatly disappears into an underpass under oval Bolivarplaats to join the motorway ring. This leaves peaceful surface access by foot, bicycle or tram (routes 8 & 12). The building's highest 'sail' is 51 m high, has a floor area of 77,000 m², and cost €130m.
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