I've been to Brussels twice this year. I first visited the city just a couple of days before Valentine's Day, and I recommend the city over this time as it is less crowded and visitors can purchase famous Belgian chocolates. (My second visit was in the middle of the spring after the tourist season had opened up, and the city was noticeably busier but did have a nice atmosphere with the good weather and slightly longer days.) Brussels is an excellent choice to visit during February.
Brussels is known for its chocolate, and it is where the filled chocolate (known as praline) was invented. There are many chocolate shops in the city, and they all catered to Valentine's Day as it is a day to give and receive chocolate from loved ones. There are several chains of chocolate shops in the city, including the ones listed below.
Mary: This chocolate shop has the most delicious chocolate, and this is the brand sold to th Belgian royals. The chocolate is more expensive, but it tastes the best and is the highest quality. This was my favourite chocolate shop, and there's a few of them around the city. The truffles were excellent, but everything is good. I bought a little selction box too. It's not cheap, but it's tasty.
BS40: This is a chocolate shop inspired by Asian flavours. The chocolate was also delicious and very smooth with rich flavours not found in other chocolate shops in the city. It's located on Butter Street, number 40, hence the name.
Elisabeth: This is a chain of chocolate shops, but I didn't think the quality was as good.
Leonidas: This is a well-known chain of chocolate shops for mass-produced treats. The company has been making chocolates since 1913 and is a favourite chain of chocolate shops in Belgium.
Neuhas: This is a large chain of chocolate shops that is mass-produced.
La Belgique Gourmande: This is a chocolate shop on a smaller scale, but it does sell some mass-produced chocolates and other sweets.
Corne Dynastie: This shop is located in the heart of Brussels and was selling a large range and seemd to be popular. I had a hot chocolate here, but I didn't enjoy it.
There are also many more brands and smaller shops and tourists shops selling chocolates.
In addition to chocolates, bakeries also got in on the Valentine's Day trade by adding small hearts to their products.
The cuberones were available to buy from one chocolate shop.
Waffles could be used in place of chocolates for those who would rather not have too sweet a Valentine's Day. "The House of the Waffle" does the best waffles that I tried in Brussels. I had the cream and cherry waffle.
A lot of chocolate shops in the list about can be found in the galleries shopping area.
Some beautiful flowers were starting to come out in bloom.
The city also kept up their decorations.
I snapped some photos of snowdrops and the garden ready to erupt in bloom once the daffodils spring up.
I enjoyed visiting Brussels during Valentine's Day, and it's the perfect place to buy gifts.
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