Belgium is a typically stable, cautiously progressive, western European liberal democracy. The alliance with The Netherlands and Luxembourg became the Benelux Union in 1958, which, in turn, became one of the foundation stones of the European Community. Brussels is the headquarters of both NATO and the EU. Today, the anachronistic images of ‘boring Belgium’ have been well and truly banished over the last decade as the country promotes its key destinations, along with a string of new attractions.

Easy to travel around, this pocket-sized country is divided into the Flemish north (Flemish-speaking) and the Walloon south (French-speaking). Brussels, the capital, is the heart of the country and the European Union. Belgium always had a lot more going for it than the faceless political and bureaucratic buildings that litter its capital with a string of engaging cities in Bruges, Ghent, Liège (and Brussels itself) that offer impressive architecture, lively nightlife, first-rate cuisine and numerous other attractions for visitors. Then there is reinvented Antwerp, now a hotbed of fashion and modern design, and the more bucolic charms of the beauty of the mountainous Ardennes region to the east, as well as the sweeping sand of the coastline resorts of the western seaboard. Belgium is also a land whose specialties include ubiquitous beers, delicate chocolates, moules frites and Belgian waffles.

The principal domestic problem is continuing tension between the Flemish-speaking north and the French-speaking south of the country, known as Wallonia, not forgetting the capital Brussels. However, throughout the years, Belgium has evolved towards an efficient federal system. Five reforms have been necessary to achieve this (in 1970, 1980, 1988-89, 1993 and 2001). In 2005, Belgium celebrated 25 years of federalism and for the first time ever, article one of the Belgian Constitution stated that ’Belgium is a federal state made out of communities and regions’.

Geography
Belgium is situated in Europe and bordered by France, Germany, Luxembourg and The Netherlands. The landscape is varied, the rivers and gorges of the Ardennes contrasting sharply with the rolling plains which make up much of the countryside. Notable features are the great forest of Ardennes near the frontier with Germany and Luxembourg and the wide, sandy beaches of the northern coast, which run for over 60km (37 miles). The countryside is rich in historic cities, castles and churches.