We stayed in the Sofitel Europe and I need to say that the hotel is very nice and the rooms are really fantastic. Finally a nice hotel among the old hotels in Brussels. The Sofitel beds are on my opinion the best in the hotel business and bathroom are ultra modern. The decor and furniture are also ultra modern and really nice. Breakfast is good for choice but book it into your rate. The bar is nice, try the club sandwich, fantastic even if it is15 euro. Position of the hotel is very good for business and also for tourist (taxi or bus to center). Place Jourdain is full of nice restaurants. I know that this is a five stars hotel but you need to try the best frites (french fries) in Brussels at the kiosk called Antoine opposite the hotel on the other side of the square. You need to wait but they are fantastic!
The only problem I can find in this hotel is that on a week-end is under-staffed at reception and bar, so service could be a bit slow. Apart from this it is a really fantastic hotel.

We were travelling through Europe for a week in October and decided to extend our stay and travel through Brussels on the way back to the ferry.
We travelled from Milan to Brussels in one day on the motorbike and as you can expect was very tired on arrival at the hotel. The night porter and receptionist couldnt have been more friendly or helpful.
The hotel itself was very modern and welcoming. We booked a superior room which was very spacious with an excellent shower!!!
The furniture and fitting were of a very high standard and the breakfast (which was included) was excellent.
We asked the staff for recomendation for somewhere to eat as it was very late when we arrived and the area they suggested was vibrant and livley which is just waht we needed. We would not have found it but for their directions.
A most excellent hotel and I would highly recommend it.

I have stayed here a couple of times and both have been miserable experiences. They seem to have an arrangement with travel agents to give British officials visiting Brussels the worst possible deal. For example, they refuse to give a bed and breakfast rate in spite of the fact that our subsistence is based on bed and breakfast being provided, so we are unable to claim for it, and they are charging huge amounts for the room. This leaves the choice of either being out of pocket by €25 or going hungry. When I raised this with the rude, supercilious staff (they seem to clone them),along with the fact that the rooms are freezing cold and dirty and the drinks machines never work, compounding the fact that that one is kicked out hungry in the morning, the attitude was "tough". They did eventually say they would get back to me but never did.

My impression is that if you are British you are made to feel unwelcome from the moment you step through the door to the moment you leave, cold and hungry, the next morning.

I am asking my union to advise any colleagues to boycott this hotel for business travel. I certainly would not want people travelling for pleasure to have this sort of experience.

The Sofitel Europe Brussels is located in an area outside of city centre close to the European Institutions. It can be reached from the airport with the Airport Bus (no. 12) or via metro (stop Schumann). A taxi to city centre is around €10 or take the metro costing € 1.50.

Only open a year or so the hotel is very modern and functional. The common areas are spacious and airy. My check in was unfortunately delayed as the hotel was full the night before and housekeeping had not been able to clean rooms. At 10.30 am this appeared a bit unusual. The concierge asked me to have a coffee in the bar which I did (though as a Sofitel Privilege customer I was expecting that the hotel offer this for free rather than charging me €6 for coffee, but that’s a minor gripe).

About 45 minutes later my room was ready and check in was very efficient and lasted less than 2 minutes. An offer to bring my luggage up was made which I declined as I did not have much. The room (210) was again modern and very comfortable. The room had a large work desk with sufficient electric outlets and access to internet (wired and wifi, though both cost an outrageous €19 for 24h), a large armchair, fresh coffee maker and a small fridge containing complimentary mineral water. Unfortunately no mini bar was available though apparently drinks could be ordered from the bar. A lot of thought went into the design of the rooms as these were certainly not the biggest in the world but very functional and they look great, including a proper 40 inch flat screen TV.

The bathroom was large and included a spacious shower room with the usual high quality Sofitel toiletries, bathrobe and slippers.

Breakfast differed between weekdays and weekend. On weekdays it is the usual buffet affair with good quality items whereas on the weekend hot breakfast is served on order. Consider having the French toast, it is absolutely delicious.

My room was a very competitive €125 per night booked on the Sofitel website. The hotel excels with the small touches like putting Neuhaus chocolates in the guest rooms (there is a shop in the hotel) and providing a second clean/towel service with the turn down service.

Overall I highly recommend to hotel to business and tourist travellers alike.