Brussels shopping centres see rise in visitor numbers

Shopping centres in the Brussels region saw increases in visitor numbers last year, with City 2 remaining the biggest draw with 13.6 million visitors – 800,000 more than in 2023.

This makes City 2 the shopping centre with the largest number of visitors in all of Belgium, Bruzz reports.

“On average, 40,000 visitors a day flock to City 2, the equivalent of a sold-out King Baudouin Stadium,” said Sam Perneel, head of retail at shopping property owner AG Real Estate.

The busiest day of the year was Saturday 30 November - the day after Black Friday - with 73,000 visitors.

AG also owns Westland Shopping in Anderlecht, which was renovated in late 2022. In 2023, Westland attracted 20% more visitors and continued that increase last year with another 17% more, accounting for a total of 6.4 million visitors in 2024.

In Schaerbeek, Docks Bruxsel recorded growth from 7.6 to 7.8 million visitors (2.7%), which spokesperson Mathias Blot called “a nice evolution”.

Docks Bruxsel attributes the record number of visitors to its accessibility, with more than 70% of shoppers arriving by public transport.

“The new tram line and the completion of the works have enabled Docks Bruxsel to record unprecedented visitor numbers over the last six months of the year,” said Blot.

“Docks has been around for eight years now and continues to progress steadily. Since the pandemic, it’s been a place for the neighbourhood, with clients coming very regularly. Thanks to our leisure offerings such as the Lego centre, we also attract visitors from further afield, although more than 50% come from Brussels.”

Clothing shops there and overall are doing less well, while hospitality, beauty and electronics offsetting the loss. Docks is also betting on office rentals, including coworking spaces and meeting rooms. The centre aims to attract more than eight million visitors this year.