Both hotels and tourist attractions breathed a sigh of relief this summer as visitor numbers have recovered following a disastrous 2016

The tourism sector in Brussels is looking back on a successful summer, according to the local hotel association. Hotels reported average occupancy rates of 70%, while museums and other attractions also saw strong visitor numbers.

The industry is coming back from a disastrous 2016, suffered serious losses because of the terrorist attacks in Paris and Brussels. This year, figures for July and August were back at 2015 levels. That year was a record in some respects, according to Rodolphe Van Weyenbergh of the Brussels Hotel Association.

“We’ve seen tourists making their way back to Brussels since the start of the year, slowly but surely,” Van Weyenbergh said. “The trend continued into the summer.”

Tourist attractions and museums also saw an increase in visitors. The Royal Museums of Fine Arts welcomed 43% more visitors than last year – 77,000 in the two summer months. Mini-Europe (pictured) saw an increase of 31% on last year, mainly tourists from India, Spain and Germany. And the museums in Jubelpark passed even 2015 numbers, with 4,000 more visitors than that year.

Photo: Michael Kramer/Wikimedia