ANTE Festival: Brussels’ 19th century architectural wonders open their doors in October

Celebrating the Belgian capital’s neoclassical, eclectic and other 19th century styles of architecture, the ANTE Festival returns with a second edition spread over the first two weekends of October.

Offering guided tours of heritage buildings dating from 1780 to 1920 that are usually off-limits to the public, the festival “is full of surprises,” said Marion Alecian, director of urban action group ARAU.

Launched in 2025 following the roaring success of Art Nouveau and Art Deco festival BANAD, held every spring, this sister event honours architecture that is “the backbone of Brussels’ urban landscape,” according to organiser Explore Brussels.

This architectural period in Brussels was characterised by evolutions, transitions, ruptures and major stylistic and technical experimentation.

Over two weekends: 3-4 October in the centre of Brussels, Ixelles, Etterbeek and Woluwe-Saint-Pierre; and 10-11 October in the centre of Brussels, Laeken, Schaerbeek and Saint Josse-ten Noode, the public can participate in guided tours, walks, cycle rides, lectures, cinema and school and family activities such as a treasure hunt in ‘castle Terlinden’.

They can also visit, free of charge, the fascinating Habiter la maison, 200 ans de La Maison des Arts exhibition in the Neoclassical wonder that is Schaerbeek’s Maison des Arts. Complete with a beautiful garden and cafe, this was once the family home of Georges Terlinden, his wife Thérèse Eenens and their nine children.

The 28 interiors included in the programme are extremely varied – from ornate palaces and Saint-Gilles’ austere prison to stately mansions and Brussels’ stock exchange. It also features other hidden gems such as Brussels City Archives, the Masonic Lodge ‘Les Amis Philanthropes’, private dwellings of Paul Saintenoy and Emile Bockstael and Lever House (pictured above) – now a college – with its dark colonial past.

The event not only shows how the old nobility or new industrial bourgeoisie lived, but how they spent their days. Two stand-out visits are the CGER Headquarters – now the Fleur de Ville hotel – and the Etablissements Mouchard & Fils wine cellars, tucked down an Ixelles side street. Another stand-out tour explores the ornate stained glass canopies of Galéries royales Saint-Hubert, the ultimate 19th century shopping experience.

Around 7,800 visitors are expected to take part in 556 guided tours, according to Explore Brussels. This second edition is continuing its mission to “promote, highlight, raise awareness, transit and make accessible an often little known heritage,” the organisation says.

To make the event fully inclusive, the festival also offers adapted visits for hard of hearing, visually impaired and autistic audiences.

While many interiors are fully booked, there is still time to catch spots for some of the festival’s beautiful and fascinating houses. And there is always the possibility to pay on the spot if people do not turn up.

The festival uses a sliding price scale based on the number of guided visits booked for the same person at the same time. One full-price visit costs €13 while five or more cost €9 per visit. The under-26s and job seekers are half price while there is no charge for Explore+ visits and under-12s.

Photos: Hotel Resimont Prague House ©EB Studio Flusser; Atelier Ernest Salu ©EB Sophie Voituron; Lever House HE2B Campus ISIB ©EB Urban A de Ville de Goyet; Loge maconnique Les Amis Philanthropes ©EB Urban media