Mini-Europe to stay in Brussels, after all

Mini-Europe might stay at the Heysel complex in Brussels after all, says its owner Thierry Meeùs. It was expected that the famous tourist attraction next to Kinepolis would close at the end of 2020, but that did not happen officially.

Mini-Europe, a village of replicas of some of Europe’s most famed monuments and historical events, is a popular tourist and family attraction. It is in the middle of the Heysel site that is also home to Brussels Expo, Kinepolis and the Atomium.

This is the site of a future major development project called Neo, a new shopping, housing and services complex. Last autumn, Meeùs announced that Brussels-City was jacking up the rental price of the property on which Mini-Europe is located, from €250,000 a year to €350,000.

He refused to extend the contract at that price and announced he would close the attraction as of 31 December. He said that he was considering offers from other cities in Belgium to host Mini-Europe, including nearby Braine-l’Alleud and Leuven.

While the attraction has been closed in keeping with corona regulation, a Mini-Europe spokesperson has now confirmed that the closure is not definitive and that the attraction would probably not move at all. “We are completing negotiations,” with Brussels-City, the spokesperson told Bruzz. “We hope that we can re-open in the spring.”

Brussels-City is not releasing any further details. “We hope to make an announcement about it within a few days,” a municipal spokesperson told the paper.

Photo courtesy Mini-Europe