The Waterbus will once again offer passengers a more scenic commute from Vilvoorde to Brussels from Monday.
For commuters with a little extra time, the Waterbus is an ideal travel mode to discover Brussels and its surrounding areas in a fresh way. The Waterbus starts at the Steenkaai in Vilvoorde, just outside of Brussels, and travels ten kilometres at an average speed of 12 km/h to the Sainctelette bridge next to KANAL - Centre Pompidou.
The trip in its entirety — from Vilvoorde centre to the final stop — takes one hour, but the Waterbus stops in several other places along the way, including Parc Drie Fonteinen, the Cruise Terminal in Brussels, Neder-over-Heembeek, Quai de Heembeek and the Van Praet bridge in Brussels.
Schedule and tickets
This alternative mode of transport sails out between 1 May and 31 October and has been growing in popularity in recent years as it offers a relaxing and traffic-jam-free journey. Last year, the Waterbus carried 45,535 passengers, more than during the pre-pandemic year of 2019.
In its early days, when the Waterbus only operated on Tuesdays and Thursdays, it carried around 8,000 people. A year later, Wednesdays were added to the schedule, and since 2017 it has been operating every weekday during these months.
Credit: De Waterbus
It runs every weekday between 09:00 and 18:00, while it runs seven days a week during the same hours between 1 July and 13 August.
“For tourism, it’s a real added value. We see that many people take their bikes on the boat, to go there by boat and return by bike. And vice versa, Brussels people also come to Vilvoorde. It’s a nice excursion," Tine Paredis, Vilvoorde’s councillor for tourism, said.
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The Waterbus is open to all but is especially aimed at cyclists, families and people with reduced mobility who find it difficult to park in the capital. Tickets can be purchased on the official website, costing €3.50 per journey for adults. No reservation is required except for groups larger than 10.
