Belgium - Tourism and Travel

The Kingdom of Belgium is located in western Europe, on the coast of the North Sea.

Brussels is the capital of Belgium as well as the home of the headquarters of the European Union.

Belgium has an area of 11,784 square miles (30.520 square kilometers).

The country's terrain includes low sand dunes along the coast that lead to a narrow belt of reclaimed land and the fertile Flanders plain.

The Ardennes Plateau, which is covered with forest, is in the south.

The Maas, or Meuse, River and the Rhine River both flow through Belgium. Their parallel valleys were created during the last Ice Age, when an ice sheet deflected the Rhine from its former course.

A network of canals in Belgium provides links between the ports of Ostend, Zeebrugge and Antwerp and many cities in the interior of the country.

Hautes Fagnes, an upland region that is the highest place in Belgium, is full of bogs and streams caused by low temperatures combined with high levels of rainfall. Hautes Fagnes is now a nature reserve.

Summers in Belgium are cool, and winters are mild.

10,647,000 people live in Belgium.

The country has a large urban population.

58% of the people are Fleming and 33% are Walloon.

Dutch, French and German are official languages.

88% of the population is Roman Catholic.

Belgium has a large service sector.

The agricultural sector is relatively small, but large enough to provide for most of the country's food needs.

Reclaimed land in the center of Belgium is very fertile and is used for arable farming and flower cultivation.

Belgium does not have many mineral resources and must import raw materials for use in manufacture and processing.

There are coalfields in the north.

The euro is Belgium's official currency.

Belgium has a parliamentary system of government.