Travel Risk Atlas

Belgium

Western Europe · Capital Brussels

Level 2 United States Exercise Increased Caution FCDO United Kingdom No advisory against travel Green Netherlands Green — you can travel Level 2 Canada Exercise a high degree of caution AA Germany No warning in force

Each opens that government's own advisory for Belgium — the authoritative version, updated far faster than this page.

14.5 Very low risk
Atlas Risk Score · 34th safest of 220
white concrete buildings
Photo: Stephanie LeBlanc / Unsplash

Belgium is a safe country with one persistent and well-documented problem: theft. Brussels has among the highest pickpocketing rates in western Europe, concentrated in the stations, the metro and the Grand Place.

The other reliable complaint is the restaurant strip near the Grand Place, where aggressive touting and inflated bills have been a fixture for decades despite periodic crackdowns.

Where the risk actually is

Risk is rarely spread evenly across a country. The base colour is the code the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs gives Belgium as a whole; shaded regions are those the UK Foreign Office names in an advisory against travel.

Antwerp — No specific warningBrussels — No specific warningEast Flanders — No specific warningFlemish Brabant — No specific warningFlemish Brabant — No specific warningHainaut — No specific warningHainaut — No specific warningLiege — No specific warningLimburg — No specific warningLimburg — No specific warningLuxembourg — No specific warningNamur — No specific warningWalloon Brabant — No specific warningWest Flanders — No specific warning
What governments advise No specific warning

What the warnings actually cover

  • Whole country — No specific warning. No government currently advises against travel to any part of this country. The colour reflects general caution levels only, not a warned area.

Shading marks whole regions named in an advisory, but a warning is often narrower — a border strip, one road, or a single city. Read the wording, and check the official advisory linked below.

What drives the score

Each pillar is scored 0–100 against every other country. Longer bar = more risk.

Natural hazards
10% of score · mainly flooding
35/100
84th of 220
Political stability
10% of score
29/100
54th of 220
Crime
15% of score
15/100
25th of 220
Official advisories
25% of score
13/100
85th of 220
Road & transport
10% of score
12/100
42nd of 220
Health & medical
15% of score
7/100
25th of 220
Conflict & terrorism
15% of score
2/100
30th of 220
Women's safety
not in the score
45/100

Biggest factor here: natural hazards. Earthquakes, floods, cyclones, drought and tsunami exposure.

Practical facts

The things worth knowing before you land.

Emergency number
112
Single European emergency number — police, fire and ambulance, free from any phone
Currency
EUR €
Euro — no conversion from the eurozone
Languages
Dutch
French, German
Visa (EU passport)
Visa free
US: 90 days visa-free · UK: 90 days visa-free
Population
11.9m
World Bank 2025
Capital
Brussels
Driving
On the right
5.8 road deaths per 100k
Power
Type C, F
220-240V
Safely managed water
100%
Widely available · of residents, not a tap-water verdict
Dialling code
+32
GDP per capita
$61k
A rough guide to price levels
Visitors a year
9.3m
International arrivals, 2019

When to go

Average daytime high and nightly low for Brussels, over 2010-2019. Bars are rainfall; the colour band is how hot the days get.

Mildest and driest around May to September.

Daytime high cold mild warm
Top figure is the average daytime high, below it the average nightly low, and millimetres of rain under each bar. Figures are the average daytime high; bar heights are the month's rainfall. Shaded months are the mild, drier ones. Source: NASA POWER daily observations, 2010-2019, public domain.

Common scams in Belgium

Patterns reported repeatedly by travellers and local police. None of this is about individual businesses — it's about set-ups you can learn to spot in seconds.

Rue des Bouchers restaurant touting

Brussels, the streets immediately behind the Grand PlaceVery common

Waiters physically block the pavement and steer passers-by inside. Bills include items not ordered, seafood priced by weight at unexpected rates, and covers or service added twice.

How to avoid it: Do not eat anywhere you were pulled into. Prices must be displayed outside — read them, and check the bill line by line before paying.

Sources Belgium FPS Economy — consumer rights UK FCDO Belgium — safety and security

Station and metro pickpocketing

Brussels-Midi, Central, Nord; metro lines 1 and 5Very common

Teams work the escalators, ticket halls and crowded carriages. Luggage theft at Midi during Eurostar arrivals is the specific pattern.

How to avoid it: Bag in front and closed, nothing in back pockets, luggage strapped or held. Be most careful in the moments you are distracted by tickets or maps.

Sources Belgian Federal Police

Car break-ins

Brussels, Antwerp, GhentCommon

Vehicles with foreign plates broken into for luggage, in street parking and hotel car parks alike.

How to avoid it: Never leave luggage in a parked car, even briefly and even in the boot. Use guarded parking where it exists.

Sources Belgian Federal Police

Risk hotspots

Specific places that come up again and again — either in government advisories or in traveller reports. Everywhere else in Belgium is not automatically fine, but these are the areas worth a plan.

Brussels-Midi station Pickpocketing

The single worst spot in the country for theft from travellers, especially luggage taken from arriving international trains.

Rue des Bouchers Street crime

Aggressive touting and inflated bills a hundred metres from the Grand Place. Long-standing and repeatedly reported.

Molenbeek and parts of Anderlecht Street crime

A reputation out of proportion to the risk to visitors. Ordinary urban property crime rather than anything aimed at tourists.

Brussels-Midi is the problem station

Bruxelles-Midi/Brussel-Zuid handles Eurostar and Thalys and has a long-standing reputation for theft, particularly from arriving passengers managing luggage. Bags are taken from beside seats, from overhead racks in the final minutes before arrival, and on the platform.

Keep bags physically attached to you on international trains as they approach Brussels, and do not put a bag down to look at a departure board.

Compare with neighbours

Sources for this page

Vaccinations, malaria and outbreaks. This atlas does not give medical advice — it is personal, it changes, and it is the one thing worth getting from a doctor. Both national services publish current advice for Belgium:

CDC Travelers' HealthTravelHealthPro (NHS/UKHSA)

Check the official advisory before you book. This page reflects data as of August 2026. Advisories change without warning, and only your own government's advice affects your travel insurance.