Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium
The Basics
The Royal Museums comprise the Old Masters Museum, Modern Museum, Magritte Museum, and Fin-de-Siècle Museum, as well as the Wiertz and Meunier Museums. Together, the galleries cover more than 500 years of Western art. The focus is largely on artists from Belgium and the southern Netherlands, with works ranging from the Old Masters to surrealist art and modern sculpture.
Explore the museums independently on a self-guided tour, or hire a guide for deeper insight into the art. If time is limited and you want to weave the museums into a wider itinerary, choose a private Brussels tour that lets you combine your chosen gallery with sights such as the Grand-Place. Alternatively, pass the main museums on a food tour, or take a hop-on hop-off tour to slot a museum visit into your own personal sightseeing schedule.
Things to Know Before You Go
Admission to the four main galleries is ticketed, while entry to the Wiertz and Meunier Museums is free.
On-site facilities at the key galleries include a gift shop and café.
All museums are wheelchair- and stroller-accessible.
How to Get There
The four main museums are all concentrated around Brussels’ Place-Royal and are easily accessible using public transport. Bus and tram stops are nearby, while metro and mainline trains stop at Brussels Central Station, a short stroll away. The Wiertz Museum is a few minutes’ walk from Brussels-Luxembourg station, and the Meunier Museum is served by the nearby Abbaye tram and bus stop.
Trip ideas
When to Get There
The principal galleries are open Tuesday–Sunday, with the Magritte Museum also open on Monday. The four main museums can get busy on weekends and weekday afternoons, so it’s wise to get an early start. The quieter Wiertz and Meunier Museums are open Tuesday–Friday.
Must-Sees at the Royal Museums
Roam the Old Masters Museum for works by greats such as Bruegel and Rubens; the Fin-de-Siècle for art nouveau masterpieces; the Magritte to chart the Belgian surrealist’s genius; and the Modern Museum to view pieces from the late 1700s onward. If you have time to spare afterward, explore the Meunier Museum’s collection of paintings and sculptures by Constantin Meunier and the works of 19th-century Romantic artist Antoine Wiertz at the Wiertz Museum.
- Things to do in Zaventem
- Things to do in Bruges
- Things to do in Lille
- Things to do in Dordrecht
- Things to do in Rotterdam
- Things to do in Amsterdam
- Things to do in Luxembourg City
- Things to do in Marne-la-Vallée
- Things to do in Paris
- Things to do in Leeuwarden
- Things to do in Stansted Mountfitchet
- Things to do in Horley
- Things to do in Flanders
- Things to do in South Holland
- Things to do in Nord-Pas de Calais
- Sablon District
- Magritte Museum (Musée Magritte)
- Museum of the Turn of the Century (Musée Fin-de-Siècle)
- Musical Instruments Museum
- Grand Sablon Square (Place du Grand Sablon)
- Coudenberg (Former Palace of Brussels)
- BELvue Museum
- Brussels Royal Palace (Palais Royal de Bruxelles)
- MOOF Museum
- Hard Rock Cafe Brussels
- Manneken Pis
- Grand-Place (Grote Markt)
- Choco-Story Brussels: The Chocolate Museum
- St. Michael and St. Gudula Cathedral
- Brussels Town Hall (Hotel de Ville)