The Royal Greenhouses of Laeken (French: Serres Royales de Laeken / Dutch: Koninklijke Serres van Laken) are a vast complex of greenhouses located in the park of the Royal Palace of Laeken, in the north of Brussels.
The Royal Greenhouses are architectural construction made of metal and glass created by the architect Alphonse Balat, on the initiative of Leopold II at the end of the 19th century. At that time it was an impressive innovation. The king Leopold II was a great plant lover. Some of the current flowers were part of the original plantation of Leopold II. Nowadays, the Royal Greenhouses still have a lot of rare plants.
The most impressive greenhouse is probably the Winter Garden which was built between 1874 and 1876. The huge size of this greenhouse allowed tall palm trees, the majority of them are dated from the time of Leopold II. This greenhouse was used for royal receptions. It is also the first greenhouse of the impressive structure of glass that will be built over thirty years.
How to get to the Royal Greenhouses of Laeken
Address: Avenue du Parc Royal (French) / Koninklijk Parklaan (Dutch) in Laeken.
By train, the Royal Greenhouses of Laeken are near the Station of Bockstael, but it is still 30 minutes walking. If you don’t want to walk, it is recommended to take a bus to the bus stop Serres Royales (French) / Koninklijke Serres (Dutch).
By metro, you have the stop Stuyvenbergh on the metro line 6, located at 30 minutes walk. It is also recommended to take a bus from the metro station to the bus stop Serres Royales (French) / Koningklijke Serres (Dutch).
By tram, you can stop at Araucaria at 15 min walk from the Royal Greenhouses.
By bus, you have a stop directly next to the Royal Greenhouses.
If you come from the center of Brussels (near the Grand Place), it is recommended to take the tram 3 at Bourse (French) / Beurs (Dutch) until the stop Araucaria. The trip will take you around 40 min.
Parking Dynastie
If you come with the car, a parking with a limited number of places is created in front of the Royal Domain during the opening period. A parking for bikes is also created for the event.
Pay attention that there is not other close parking to the site and the site is located in the Low Emission Zone (LEZ).
Visiting the Royal Greenhouses of Laeken
Since a century, the Royal Greenhouses are open to the public during nearly 3 weeks during the spring. It is the only moment that it is possible to visit them.
The opening period can be found on http://www.koninklijke-serres-royales.be/.
During the day, visitors have the choice between a long tour of around 2 hours 30 minutes and a short of around 1 hour and 30 minutes. The long tour starts in the garden of the Royal Domain and lets the visitor admires the Royal Greenhouses from outside. Then the long tour joins the shorter one to visit the inside of the greenhouses.
Some night visits are also available on some days (only the short tour). Some days are also dedicated for visitors with limited mobility with an adapted tour of 2 hours.
The entry and the end of the visits are located at the Honor Gates of the Castle of Laeken.
Tickets
The price of the ticket is 4 € per person and is free for children under 12 years. But booking is mandatory even for children under 12 years.
The tickets are only available on http://www.koninklijke-serres-royales.be/. No ticket are sold on the place.
Opening hours
All the information about the public opening during the spring period are available on http://www.koninklijke-serres-royales.be/.
