One of my traditions when going on a trip is to do some sort of food-related activity that revolves…read morearound a country's specialties. For Belgium, everyone knows that its specialties are chocolate and beer. While doing my research I found this company as it came recommended by quite a few bloggers as well as Brussels' tourist bureau site. Length: 4.5 hours Cost: €80/person This is by no means a cheap tour. However, the amount you get for €80 is quite a lot, especially when you factor in that aside from beer and chocolate you also get to know the history behind two of Brussels' most famous landmarks: Grand Place/Grote Markt and Manneken Pis. Personally after the end I couldn't eat another bite of chocolate and I was pretty buzzed, especially if you take into consideration how strong Belgian beers can be. Julie was my guide. She was also training 2 other guides in addition to managing our group. She was the epitome of a good guide - presented the more "boring" parts of the tour in a fun and engaging way, helped guarded the chocolate from being stolen during the Pierre Marcolini portion of the tour (apparently that chocolate's quite popular) and made sure that everyone's needs in the group were taken care of since some people in our group didn't care for beer. Our group also managed to get along very well. Here are my notes of the stops on the tour along with any chocolate and/or beer that was consumed. -Chocopolis- 1. Traditional dark chocolate, coconut base 2. Mexican chocolate with red pepper 3. Speculoos This particular shop is known for their "bean-to-bar" approach; meaning to say that they take control of the entire process as opposed to getting the starting products from distributors. This shop is also good for vegans or people that need dairy-free chocolate as the owner is lactose intolerant. Base milk is from coconut and is used in all the chocolate. I liked the pepper chocolate the most. -Meert- 1. Ginger and yuzu juice 2. Chinese green jasmine tea Located in the Royal Galleries. Apparently they supply chocolate and pastries for the royal family. We were able to choose 2 chocolates from this shop so I went for the more interesting combinations. -Pierre Marcolini- 1. Ecuador single-origin (floral) 2. Earl Grey Tea 3. Câlin "hug" (almond and hazelnut praline, Quimper wafers and Madagascan vanilla caramel) - family favorite. Also located in Royal Galleries. Pierre Marcolini is a master chocolatier and his products are renowned worldwide because he uses high-quality chocolate in his products. Noteworthy is that other people not on the tour tried to get samples thinking that the store was having a tasting. I was aware of Marcolini as the No1DP gifted me chocolate in the past. Later I bought chocolate for gifts (and myself) in another Pierre Marcolini store but bought a few câlins for myself. -Manneken Pis Cafe- Vedett Blond (on tap) This bar is located next to the (in)famous Manneken Pis statue. A good starter beer that's not too strong. -Atelier Sainte Catherine- 1. India single origin (earthy) 2. Cayenne - citronnelle (lemongrass pepper) 3. Sea salt caramel 4. Irish coffee milk ganache An authorized distributor of Frederic Blondeel chocolate, another master chocolatier. His chocolate was recognized as the winner of the Gault & Millau Chocolatier of the Year, the first year the award was inaugurated. I bought chocolate here the next day as gifts. -Dolle Mol- 1. Golden Carolus Tripel 2. Troubadour Magma The first bar also offered a charcuterie board. I liked the provided celery salt as a flavor enhancer to the cheese. Here we were given our first proper introduction to the Belgian dubbel/triple that the region is so well-known for. Troubadour Magma I ended up liking despite being an IPA because nobody overhops their beer in Belgium. -Benelux- 1. Lindeman's Kriek (lambic) 2. Jambe de Bois Here our group was given an introduction to the lambic beers, which Brussels is well-known for. Lambics undergo spontaneous fermentation using wild yeast strains. Kriek (a sour cherry) tasted like Robitussin, which earned mixed reception from the group but I personally liked it. Jambe de Bois is a triple made in Brussels. -Au Bon Vieux Temps- 1. Westmalle Dubbel (on tap) 2. Rochefort 10 The oldest bar in Brussels, this is where I got my proper introduction to trappist beer. I ended up loving trappist beer so much that my family came back here twice to explore their trappist beer offerings. Rochefort 10 is one of my favorite beers and I had a few more glasses of this over the duration of the trip. With the exception of Marcolini the chocolate shops offered a 10% discount if you bought chocolate from them. Not only did I buy chocolate from the vendors listed here, I also bought a few beers sampled on this tour as gifts. This is the best beer tour I've ever done and one of the best tours I've done in Europe. Many thanks to Julie and the Brussels Journey for putting together a great tour.

So glad we did this tour. Not only did we get to sample and learn about chocolate and beer, but we…read morealso learned about the history of Brussels as we walked along. Our guides, Julia and Andrea were amazing - they consistently checked in with all of us and at least one of them was available if there were some slower member of the groups that wanted to stop to buy chocolate or take pictures. They were also extremely informative - you could tell they loved their jobs. We had several pieces of chocolate at each location and also had a 10% discount at 2 of the locations (definitely came in use). We also had 5-6 beers throughout the tour as well. The world cup final ended up being during our tour and they even provided doggy bags of the beer for those who couldn't bear to miss the game. Definitely recommend.

This was our 2nd walking tour with Sandemans, and it did not disappoint. Tom, the guide, was…read moreknowledgeable, easy to hear and understand, and very entertaining. We plan to do this again when available in other cities.

A very positive experience today with my free walking tour. Sandemans does a very good job with…read moretheir tour guides and having done this in several cities (Edinburgh, Prague, Amsterdam, Madrid, Barcelona), this is one of the best. My tour guide today was Maggie. Maggie is a Brussels native and very cheery. Clearly excited to show people her city, she was positive and outgoing. The tour lasted 2.5 hours, taking us past the highlights of the old city including the famous Mannekin Pis, the Galleries de la Reine, up the Mont des Arts and more. Only one downer in the tour, Maggie spent a good ten minutes addressing the atrocities of the Belgian Congo, a topic that she is clearly passionate about. And yes, the tour is free with the tour guide paid in tips. The solicitation was modest and not too much. Maggie also invited us to the beer tour that night which she would be running. A good time with Sandemans. I'll continue to use their tours in other European cities.

Fen in Ghent is the best! Our tour guide Fen was incredible. Engaging, charismatic, funny and…read moresuper knowledgable. Everything you want in a tour guide and then some! The tour was super informative - since i used to fall asleep in history class it was great to learn so much about Belgium's history and Ghent specifically. The "free" tour (or pay at the end based on how much you liked it) concept is great. Keeps the tour guides interested and excited. Made our trip :) ASK FOR FEN!

Tom was amazing! He was very fun and knowledgeable. The tour was 2.5 hours and was a great intro to…read moreBrussels. Great recommendations of places to go. We had the Leige waffle later on and it was spectacular! Definitely would recommend this tour.

We had the most wonderful tour with Alan upon arriving in Ghent. We love taking a private tour…read morefirst thing to keep us moving and get past the jet lag. This great walking tour combined the history and layout of a city tour with the fun of a food tour-did I mention it was a CHOCOLATE tasting tour?!!! Alan guided us around the old town explaining the history and showing us key sights interspersed with stops at 5-6 (so many I lost count) artisanal chocolate shops where we feasted of pralines (in American parlance-bon bons or filled chocolates ) ranging from caramel to chili/mango, crème brûlée and more. Most were almost too pretty to even eat and we savored every precious bite. The artistry and skill was amazing and the quality super high as Belgiums like FRESH chocolate. This is a must do on your visit!

Very entertaining and enjoyable, learned some things too. Nick is very knowledgeable and…read moreentertaining. Highly recommended.

Loved loved loved the Chocolate Walking Tour with Beni! Beni was so down to earth and casual, she…read moremade the tour fun with her own personal witty comments and insights. You start at the Grand Place and end on the other side. During our tour, we went to a handful of local chocolatiers and learned what makes each shop unique. We then had the opportunity to select 2 chocolates per store. The tour also consisted of a chocolate making workshop, but nothing special here as you can replicate this at home. PRO TIP: Wear comfy shoes and bring a water bottle!

This is a review of the Brussels Lunch Walking Food Tour…read more When visiting London, we decided to take a day-trip to Brussels for the sole purpose of enjoying this well-rated walking food tour experience. We found the amazing reviews on Yelp and TripAdvisor which made our decision a no-brainer. TLDR: - If you think you're going to have a lovely time tasting food at local places, you will be disappointed. - For the first hour 90 minutes we literally walked in a circle around the meet-up point and finally had two chocolate store tastes. - You'll be told "This is a great place for beer!" "This is a great place for fries!" but will not stop to try the beer or fries. - The "Brussels Lunch" is served in a small tour-owned room (far away from everything), not a restaurant. - At 90 minutes we had to ask if there was a restroom, which there was in the tour-owned room (needs some cleaning). - Lack of checking in on guests during the tour to see who may need a restroom, or a break, or a seat or anything for that matter. - Our guide talked so fast we missed half of the valuable things he was sharing. More Details: Our guide was incredibly knowledgeable of the area and had many stories to share with us, but it was not audience centric. It became more about spewing information, dates, facts, details, regardless of anyone being engaged or interested or not. There were several examples where we would come across a business and he would tell us, "This is THE BEST PLACE to get a (beer, fries, etc.) you must come here for the best experience!" and then we'd keep walking, wondering why we weren't stopping to try these special items. Instead of being taken to a local restaurant to try the mussels, we were taken far off the beaten path to their own kitchen where there were 3 tables, tightly packed in a small room. While being told "these mussels do not smell, they're different than anything you've ever tried," we were overwhelmed by how warm the room was, and the overwhelming shellfish smell had us leave the tour immediately. We've been on many food tours across the world, and we just felt completely let down. We decided to leave before receiving their kitchen-prepared food. We are down for lots of walking, taking in sights, learning new things, however this tour was not fun, not pleasant, and just not for us.

A free walking tour?! Count me in! This one in Bruges is quality too. After living here for two…read moremonths, this tour still revealed several new pockets of the small city that I had yet to see. The information was super fascinating and it lasted about two hours. Just show up and enjoy the adventure. Definitely bring cash so you can tip your tour guide (per person).

We went on the historical tour with our guide, Nico!!!! He…read morewas Great!!! He made history very entertaining and memorable! There were people on our tour that had been on the tour the day before and came back with friends, just to hear Nico's information!

I spent an amazing few hours touring Leuven in a group with this company. Highly recommend the…read moreexperience. The founders are young, energetic, well-educated. Great way to get your bearings and learn the details about this great university city.

From the owner: NL: Een vernieuwend perspectief op toerisme en recreatie in en rond onze bierhoofdstad…read more EN: A completely new perspective on tourism and recreation in and around the beer capital. FR: Un tout nouveau point de vue sur le tourisme et les loisirs dans et autour de la capitale de la bière. DE: Eine völlig neue perspektive auf Tourismus und Freizeit in und um die Hauptstadt des Bieres. ES: Una perspectiva completamente nueva en el turismo y la recreación en y alrededor de la capital de la cerveza.

What better way to discover a city than stroll around without getting tired?…read moreThis is what you get with Once upon a time in Brussels! :) but instead of strolling you're actually more rolling ;) on your electric bike that is! Virginie brought this ingenious idea to Brussels nearly 2 years ago. Visiting a city by bicycle is one of the best ways of seeing the place, but with Brussels being so hilly, it wouldn't be a chilled afternoon out. This is where having electrical bicycles that give you that extra little push of help comes in very handy! :) Going around by bicycle you get to see a lot more than by foot and this way Virginie manages to take us to uncommon places a bit further than the city centre! Although, she knows to surprise you in the city centre too! :) yep, the tours of 'Once' are so well put together that they will enjoy and surprise both 1st timers in Brussels and born and bred Brusselairs! :) So, if you're hesitating how to visit Brussels, what to do, which tour is the best, don't look no further, you will find your joy with 'Once'! :D +Virginie is so nice and enthusiastic about her city, she will never hesitate to give you tips about other things to do during your stay once you finished the tour :) some notes to keep in mind: - If you get cold easily and it is not middle of summer and sunny outside, make sure you dress adequately and bring an extra layer, you never know it might come in handy ;) - if you like to be superactive and are looking for a tough physical activity, this is not it! In the end you don't cycle thaaat much, there are a lot of breaks where Virginie will explain you things about the history of Brussels and the surroundings (this is a guided tour in the end, not a bike ride). but you can of course not use the electrical assistance & then the tour will get physical ;)

Thoroughly enjoyed this biking experience. We were a group of four Americans and the only people on…read morethe tour. All different degrees of cycling experience, but everyone felt comfortable with the electric (we actually chose Once Upon a Time over the competitor because you really do need electric bikes in Brussels -- Amsterdam it is not.). Virginie was really friendly and spoke fluent English. Saw some great locations and appreciated her ability to both playfully criticize her city, but also exhibit so much pride for it. Scheduling our tour was fairly easy as she was okay with us paying cash the day of. Apparently bank transfers are a thing in Belgium, but that would have cost us $45 to do ahead of time, so she just trusted us instead. Ask her to take you to the Jean-Claude Van Damme statue.