Brussels Beach
It is that time of the year. The liquid in the thermometer is rising and the days grow long, the nights cool down. You long for the breeze in your forehead, the creaking of sand under your sandals. From the 6th of July until the 12th of August, you can be on the beach without leaving the city.
In it’s 17th edition, Brussels Beach welcomes people to enjoy the summer days on the banks of the Brussels canal with a cool drink in their hands, listening to music and admiring the changing colors at sunset, its reflections on the canal. Eating pop corn while watching a movie in open air.
“Bruxelles les Bains was originally conceived by the City of Brussels to create a place where people could chill out if they could not get any holiday,” said Marina Bresciani, Communications Advisor for Bruxelles les bains. “Over the years, the event evolved and the activities have changed a lot. The larger the audience, the happier we are. We welcome everybody.”
Due to its popularity, Brussels Beach wished to expand and areas for the event have been allocated on both banks of the canal. A temporary bridge has been set up to allow easy transit between the two sides. “Various building sites are transforming the neighborhood so we had to find solutions to keep Bruxelles les Bains,” said Bresciani. “The Bridge has a symbolic meaning too, linking the two riversides.” The bridge was designed by the Gijs Van Vaerenbergh architects firm.
For the food lovers, Brussels Beach has plenty of surprises in store. Brussels Mayor, Philippe Close, was proud to announce the culinary offers available in this year’s edition. “In the organization of the event, we’ve had the chance to work with truly committed retailers,” said Bresciani. “Some of them are proposing Jamaican specialities, Indo-pakistani dishes, gourmet burgers 100% Irish beef, fresh pasta ravioli. And these are just a few of them.”
Art fans can amble into the Kanal-Centre Pompidou, just a few meters away, and enjoy some of the exhibitions. With its home in the legendary Citröen showroom, the Kanal-Centre Pompidou will keep its doors open until June 2019. A great opportunity to visit the premises before the conversion works start. Also in the cultural domain, the traditional balades littéraires will take place on the July 22nd and 29th, and August 5th. The participants will take a short boat trip before discovering the work of a writer through the eyes of an expert from the Riches Claires library.
For the youngest ones in the family, several activities will be organized throughout July and August. Concerts, games, clowns, magic, pirates, and much more. There will also be workshops organized by Patrimoine à Roulettes, an association that has been part of the Brussels Beach scene for many years.
For the open air cinema evenings, Rio de Janeiro and Brazilian cinema are the guests of honor. Seventeen screenings will take place on Thursday and Friday nights showing some of the best films, both classics and new releases, on an eight by fifteen meter screen. Cinema Galeries will also screen some of the same films within the cycle: L’heure d’été.
Entrance to Brussels Beach is free, open every day except on Tuesdays.
