Violist, let us know about your arrival and departure times (feel free to PM me or toomanybooks). FriendlySkies, we hope you can make it! Others interested, please join us!

To give everyone some idea about plans, at least four of us will be in western Belgium checking out World War I sites and museums in the Ypres area on Thursday afternoon (3rd) and Friday morning. We have a hotel booked in Ypres for Thu night. At least two of us are tentatively planning to attend the Alvinne Craft Beer Festival on Friday afternoon near Avelgem, coming back to Kortrijk on Friday evening and either staying in Kortrijk or taking an evening train to Brussels.

Saturday (5th) is the early morning through mid-day Cantillon Public Brewing Session, which is outstanding, in Brussels. This event only takes place twice per year in the spring and fall and is great fun. If you are not familiar with Cantillon lambics, you are in for a treat as they consistently rank among the top beers in Belgium. Then off via train to the Zythos Beer Festival on Sat (noon-midnight) and Sun. (11:00a until 900p) for those willing to stomach two days. Otherwise, participants can peel off for some great Brussels bar-hopping!

Look forward to meeting many of you!

The plan to run out to Westvleteren for THE BEST BEER IN THE WORLD at the beginning of the trip has to be dropped, as they have just announced they are closed Feb. 28-Mar 5.

Possibly we will look at doing so Monday, March 7. This is the day several folks have been planning for Bruges.

Count me in for at least part of the DO. The ZBF Fest looks like fun and I am planning my trip around it: maybe fly in a day or 2 early and stay a day or 2 later.

:( Pains me to say this, but I will not be able to make it. I watched fares from MCI-BRU for two weeks, and could never get anything below $1,000. I had hoped to pick up some VDB over the last few weeks, but that plan fell through. If this event happens next year, I'll do my best to attend. Hopefully fares will go down a bit, and I'll discover the DO sooner than I had..

I saw a store by the Grand Palace in Brussels (got back last night from BRU) and they had 250 different kinds of Belgian beers.

In addition to the beers, the different foods are very good.

I ended up in BRU after the London DO. What I saved by not going out of LHR paid for the Chunnel ticket, hotel, food & beer. (and I had enough $$ left over to buy my wife some Belgian chocolates :))

I did the same but out of AMS - saved much even including the LHR-AMS flight.

I'll want to discuss this subject before making my plans for next year's London DO -- always interested in saving some $$.

Wow... glad I happened to see this thread!

Put bworrell and bworrell+1 down for some/all of this.

Here's our current plans:

Travel --
Flying into CDG ealry on Mar 3
Brugge nights of Mar 3, 4, and 5
Antwerp night of Mar 6 (anyone else like Antwerp?)
Luxembourg area of Belgium night of Mar 7
Paris night of Mar 8
Flying to Mauritius Mar 9

Events/Dinners --
Mar 3 Dinner -- DeBistronoom Restraurant in Oostende (recently featured in some USA beer mags -- http://www.debistronoom.be)
Mar 4 Early -- Going to beer chocolate store: http://www.hetchocoladehuis.be/page/...de_geschenken/
Mar 4 Day -- Alvinne Beer Festival
Mar 4 Evening -- De Heeren van Liedekercke Restaurant (awesome restaurant that's very well known for beer pairings and cellar http://www.heerenvanliedekercke.be/)
Mar 5 Day -- Brugge exploring or Cantillion Open Brewing Day if we want to drive there
Mar 5 Evening -- Den Dyver Restaurant (incredible beer dinners every night http://www.dyver.be)
Mar 6 Day -- Zythos Beer Festival

Anyone want to join us for any of the other things? We want to do some tours too but haven't figured that out. (Will probably do De Halve Mann tour again since they do it every day)

I am finalizing my plans, but thus far am arriving in Brussels Friday AM (app
10:00) and spending the night in Brussels at the Crowne Plaza - Europa.

Saturday it's the ZBF and spending the night in St Niklaas.

Thus far am thinking it's Sunday and Monday back in Brussels and leaving Tuesday morning.

"makersmark" and I have checked into the Conrad Brussels, Wed. morning.

Heading to Ypres tomorrow, staying at Hotel Ambrosia.

Can communicate by email.

Sitting in the luxurious lobby of the Hotel Ambrosia right now with the_happiness_store, KMA26, and makersmark. Good day trip out here and nice dinner and beers from the grocery store for cheap.

Off to Alvinne tomorrow and ZBF Saturday/Sunday, unless Alvinne is fabulous and we decide to stay. Met a guy on the train who says Alvinne is much better than ZBF.

Conrad Brussels last night was excellent. Buffet breakfast was among the best I have ever had.

Met up w/ lili @ Conrad- appears we're going to Ghent
today. Brussels public trans is crippled by a National Day
of Action - http://www.stib.be/ .

Sat. - plans are Cantillon at about 8:59, then maybe ZBF.
lili's phone doesn't seem to be picking up, so I can't
verify.

Anyone want to meet near Grand Place to head over to Cantillon?

KMA26 and I will meet you in the lobby of the Meridien at 6.

makersmark, KMA26, the_happiness_store, and I are planning to get to Cantillon around 9 am Saturday.