AFP, Brussels :
Gone are the usual snap-happy crowds on Brussels’ famed Grand Place, visits to the Atomium monument have plummeted and hotel rooms are empty.
Two weeks after the Belgian capital was hit by terror attacks, the country’s tourist industry is in despair.
As Belgium struggles to move on from the March 22 Islamic State suicide bombings that struck Brussels airport and a metro station, killing 32 people, the financial impact of the attacks is weighing on the economy.
For some holidaymakers not scared away, the chance to explore the city’s delights undisturbed during the normally busy Easter holiday period has been an unexpected boon.
“We like it. There’s not too many people and we can take great pictures,” said a smiling Lucien Liu from China as he marvelled at the near-deserted Grand Place square with its celebrated 15th-century Gothic city hall.
Danish tourist Jeppe Strauss, in town for a few days with friends, said they had encountered no queues at the museums.
“It made our trip a lot more pleasant since we did not have to spend a lot of time waiting,” he told AFP on a street lined with waffle and chocolate shops.
Gone are the usual snap-happy crowds on Brussels’ famed Grand Place, visits to the Atomium monument have plummeted and hotel rooms are empty.
Two weeks after the Belgian capital was hit by terror attacks, the country’s tourist industry is in despair.
As Belgium struggles to move on from the March 22 Islamic State suicide bombings that struck Brussels airport and a metro station, killing 32 people, the financial impact of the attacks is weighing on the economy.
For some holidaymakers not scared away, the chance to explore the city’s delights undisturbed during the normally busy Easter holiday period has been an unexpected boon.
“We like it. There’s not too many people and we can take great pictures,” said a smiling Lucien Liu from China as he marvelled at the near-deserted Grand Place square with its celebrated 15th-century Gothic city hall.
Danish tourist Jeppe Strauss, in town for a few days with friends, said they had encountered no queues at the museums.
“It made our trip a lot more pleasant since we did not have to spend a lot of time waiting,” he told AFP on a street lined with waffle and chocolate shops.
