This weekend is all about exploring Brussels differently: discover museums after sunset with Museum Night Fever, or enjoy the region's hidden paths and alleyways during the Slow Ways Weekend. Find all our favourite weekend activities below.
Arts, music and culture
Laverock, Art Base, Saturday 19 October
Days in Brussels are getting shorter, and – bar the slightly warmer weather this week – temperatures are becoming autumnal, making it the perfect time to get cosy at Art Base, one of the capital's most intimate music venues, and dream away to some Scottish folk music.
Credit: Laverock
Laverock, a Scots folk group, sing songs by Robert Burns, widely regarded to be Scotland's national poet and bring new life to some of his less familiar verses, all in the Mither Tongue.
Find more information here.
Museum Night Fever, various locations, Saturday 19 October
A night unlike any other! On one occasion every year, during Museum Night Fever, several museums in Brussels remain open until 01:00. For the 17th edition of the initiative, 28 museums will be welcoming late-night visitors.
Soak in the unique atmosphere of Brussels museums by night. Credit: Museum Night Fever
Accompanying this unique occasion is an impressive programme featuring a wide range of events and activities across the participating museums, from a musical behind-the-scenes tour of the Brussels Monnaie Theatre and a wheelchair dancing performance to dance and arts and crafts workshops.
Find more information here.
AFTER REASON, Beursschouwburg, until Saturday 19 October
Beursschouwburg, Brussels' leading venue for progressive events, is teaming up with Goethe-Institut Brüssel for an event that brings together artists and thinkers to explore the uncomfortable clash between racism, colonialism, and outdated ideas that claim to apply to everyone.
Inside the Beursschouwburg. Credit: Belga
The jam-packed programme – including keynotes by leading actors in decolonial conversations, lectures on neo-fascist politics and global injustices, and artistic workshops – addresses the complex but necessary "productive undoing" in response to historical and ongoing injustices.
Find more information here.
Out and about
Woofstock!, Tour&Taxis, Sunday 20 October
The iconic Tour&Taxis venue in the north of Brussels will turn into a paradise for dog lovers, as a new festival dedicated to these pets, as well as lovers and owners of the furry friends, is touching down in Brussels this weekend for its inaugural edition.
Dog plays with a frisbee in Brussels park. Credit: Belga
The event will feature demonstrations, visits to specialised shop stands, a tattoo area, yoga classes with your dog, "puppuccino" tastings at a DoggyBar, free conferences about the four-legged animals and workshops on how to photograph and massage your dog.
Find more information here.
WILD? Exhibition, Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences
Explore the different perceptions of the wild in this temporary exhibition which opens to the public this weekend. It explores whether there is a boundary between humans and wild animals, what place humans occupy in nature, and what their responsibilities are.
Credit: Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences
Across 750 m² of films, multimedia installations, games, interactive elements and mounted specimens, each section creates a unique atmosphere, engaging the visitor's senses and emotions to spark curiosity and critical thinking, challenging visitors' understanding and perception of the concept of "wild".
Find more information here.
Slow Ways Weekend, various locations in Brussels, Saturday 19 and Sunday 20 October
Brussels may be dominated by car-heavy streets in many places, but its alleyways, galleries, passages between buildings, pedestrian tunnels, car-free streets, garden suburbs and country lanes together account for more than 800 kilometres of car-free connections. This weekend, these "slow roads" are being put in the spotlight.
Credit: Brussels Environment
Explore Brussels more peacefully during the Slow Ways Weekend's organised walks along these shortcuts, with trails passing through the various communes and their calmest spaces.
Find more information here.
