Mini-Europe to stay at Heysel in new Neo centre

Mini-Europe, the theme park at Heysel in Brussels that contains miniatures of European landmarks, will be kept in the new Neo shopping and leisure centre planned for the site. The water park Océade will remain open until at least October 2018.

“We can guarantee [Mini-Europe’s] activities on the site, with an eye on new attractions planned for Neo,” said Yvan Mayeur, mayor of Brussels-City, which owns the site.

Neo, however, has no place for Océade, said Philippe Close, Brussels councillor in charge of tourism, who is also chair of Brussels Expo, the non-profit behind the NEO project. The agreement with Océade allows it to stay as long as possible without hindering the building plans.

“I’m happy to be able to tell staff that they will be able to carry on for longer,” said Thierry Meeus, CEO of the company that operates both attractions. Océade was originally planned to close at the end of this year.

Photo: Serge/Flickr Commons