city in Wallonia, Belgium

Europe > Benelux > Belgium > Wallonia > Hainaut > Charleroi

Charleroi, located on the river Sambre, is

the third largest municipality and fifth-
largest city of Belgium. It is in Hainaut
province of Wallonia, the French speaking
part of Belgium. A former mining town, it is
viewed unfavourably by most Belgians,
who often look down on Charerloi as a
poor, polluted, derelict, and violent city that
is not attractive at all.
Nevertheless, Charleroi indeed has its
share of attractions, including unique
museums such as the internationally-
acclaimed Museum of Photography. It
played an important role in the
development of the Belgian comic strip
culture, and in the world of modern dance,
Charleroi has also become an important
place due to its yearly festival. Charleroi
also sees a high share of tourist traffic
among Belgian municipalities as it is the
location of the low-cost "Brussels South-
Charleroi airport". While most tourists
head straight from the airport to Brussels
and other locations in Belgium, France and
the Netherlands, the city itself is worth a
go as well.

Understand

A map of the former municipalities, now

parts of Charleroi, and neighbouring ones.
Click the image for a detailed description.

History

While there are remains of human

settlements dating back to prehistoric
times across Charleroi, it is actually a
rather new city. It was only created in 1666
when the Spanish, who then controlled the
Low Countries, started building a fortress
there. It is the then King of Spain, Charles
II, that the name of the town alludes to.
This is why the inhabitants of the town are
often called Carolos.

The city was created at the beginning of a

turbulent period, when it saw itself being
turned over many times between the
Spanish Crown, France, the Netherlands
and the Austrian Empire, before finally
becoming a part of the independent
Kingdom of Belgium in 1830. It was only
then when Charleroi became a boom town,
as the local supplies of coal fuelled rapid
expansion of mining, metallurgy and glass
manufacturing. Charleroi and the
neighbouring municipalities saw an influx
of immigrants from all over Europe,
especially Italians. This community
remains highly influential to this day.

This all came to a halt following the rapid

decline of mining and heavy
manufacturing in the area following World
War II. From the 1970s up until the late
1990s, Charleroi was battling rampant
unemployment, urban decay, and poverty
rates that has seldom been seen in
western Europe, to the point where it has
been compared to many declining cities in
the rust belt of the USA. But since the early
21st century, the city started reinventing
itself, most notably as a hub for modern
industries, such a bioscience, engineering,
and healthcare. However, the biggest
boost to the city came in the resurgence of
its airport, which in turn encouraged the
local government to invest in
transportation (such as modernizing the
railway station and upgrading the city's
light rail system as a new metro) and
tourism.
Comic strip capital

Charleroi lays claim to being one of the

birthplaces of the Belgian comic strip
culture, as the Spirou magazine was
published there first in 1938, featuring
such popular comics as "Lucky Luke" and
"Smurfs". This heritage is subtly reminded
about throughout the city, e.g. at the metro
station Parc you can see Lucky Luke
murals, while further characters await for
you at the Janson station.
Administrative organisation

The present-day Charleroi municipality

actually comprises much more than just
the historic city of Charleroi - it has been
expanded in 1977 to encompass fourteen
other directly neighbouring and farther
small municipalities around the city.
Therefore, there are as many as fifteen
former town halls and fifteen separate
town centres across Charleroi. That way,
Charleroi also became the third-largest
municipality in Belgium, as other large
cities, including Brussels and Antwerp,
remain divided into a number of different
municipalities.
Charleroi is the capital of the
Arrondissement de Charleroi, one of the
seven districts of the province of Hainaut.
The district includes further neighbouring
municipalities, which are not part of
Charleroi. There are about half a million
people living in this district, a densely-
populated and formerly heavily
industrialized area.

Get in

The Brussels South-Charleroi Airport

By plane

1 Brussels South Charleroi Airport (htt

p://www.charleroi-airport.com/en/en-br
ussels-south-charleroi-airport/index.htm
l) (CRL IATA) (a few kilometres to the
north of the city). This airport is
sometimes implied to serve Brussels
even though the distance is some 55 km
(34 mi). Ryanair and Wizzair both fly out
of Charleroi to many European and
North African destinations. Ryanair
serves more than 100 routes from here.

TEC, the regional bus company, operates a

bus line (bus A) between the airport and
the Charleroi-Sud train station. A ticket can
be bought on one of the ticket machines
on the bus stop near the train station or at
the driver when coming from the airport.
The ticket costs €6 (Feb 2023) and the
ride takes 17 min.

Or you take bus line 68 from the Charleroi-

Sud train station to the bus stop 'Gosselies
Saint Exupéry' and walk from there 4 min
to the terminal. The ride takes about 20
min and costs €2.10, €0.50 more if bought
in the bus. (Feb 2023)

Flibco operates buses directly to the

airport from Bruges, Brussels Midi Station,
Ghent, Mons and Lille.

By train

2 Charleroi South station (http://www.

b-rail.be/main/E/) (Charleroi-Sud),
Square des Martyrs du 18 Août, ☏ +32
71 602 294 (tel:+3271602294) . The
main train station of Charleroi is located
on the other side of the Sambre river, on
the opposite of the city centre. Here
starts the A bus line which goes to the
airport. When coming out of the main
building you need to get left to reach the
metro and bus stops. There are self-
service baggage storage lockers
 available for a maximum of 24 hr,
€4.5/small, €5/medium, €5.5/large.
(updated May 2020)

By bus

3 Charleroi South intercity bus station

(Charleroi Gare du Sud), Rue de la

Villette. Flixbus and Co operate here.
(updated Feb 2023)
Get around

3 km Wikimedia maps | Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors

Map of Charleroi

The Charleroi metro system is a mixture of

tram and underground light rail
By public transport

Public transportation in Charleroi is

provided by TEC (http://www.infotec.be/) ,
which is a regional operator responsible
for public transit in all of Wallonia. In
Charleroi, they operate a light-rail Metro
system and bus lines. TEC is an acronym
for Transport en commun which means
public transportation.

TEC Charleroi (City Bus service), Place

des Tramways 9, Tel: +32 71 23-41-11 or
+32 71 23-41-15
TEC Charleroi, Esplanade de la Gare du
Sud, Tel: +32 71 23-41-11. Ticket office
 at the north-west corner of Charleroi-
Sud railway station in the métro léger
station.

The lines of Charleroi metro

By metro

Métro léger de Charleroi, which translates

as "light metro of Charleroi", is a light rail
system that is a combination of
underground rail and street-level tram/light
rail, which is often referred to as a "pre-
metro". In the city centre, it travels
underground over a loop line, while going
into the suburbs it becomes a ground-level
light rail with separate right-of-ways or a
street-level tram using the tracks of
Belgium's former vicinal system.

There are four metro lines in Charleroi, all

sharing the central loop and branching out
to various suburbs and even as far as
other municipalities.

M1 and M2 travel eastwards of the

centre sharing the route, but while M1
reaches as far as Anderlues, the M2
terminates at Pétria in Fontaine-l'Évêque
M3 goes northwards to Gosselies. It is
the newest part of the system, only
 inaugurated mid-2013
M4 goes eastwards to the Soleilmont
intermodal terminus in Gilly

The tourist office at the Charleroi-Sud

railway station has a pamphlet describing
sites and an itinerary along the Charleroi-
Pétria métro léger line. It is effectively a
tour by tram. You will probably want a day-
pass for such an itinerary.

Despite the extensiveness of the system,

there is no direct connection by metro to
Charleroi Airport.
By bus

There are also several bus lines running

across Charleroi.

By taxi

You can also use taxi to travel around in

Charleroi. Taxi2share (http://www.taxi2sha
re.eu) :+ 32 466 041 620 Taxis
bleus/blauw (blue): +32 2 268 0000

See

The town hall of Charleroi

Centre

The centre of Charleroi is relatively

compact and walkable, encompassed
within a ringroad known as the Petite
Ceinture de Charleroi. Because Charleroi is
located on a slight hill, the northern part of
the centre is known as Ville Haute ("upper
town"), and the southern part as Ville
Basse ("lower town").

Ville Haute

The hexagonal Place Charles II marks the

very centre of the city, featuring the
uniquely eclectic Saint-Christophe church,
which has seen additions from just about
every architectural style since it was built
in 1667, and the elegant town hall (Hôtel
de ville) built in 1936 in an eclectic style
mixing Art Deco with classicism. Its hind
side faces the Place du Manège and
features a tall belfry. On the other side of
Place du Manège is the Palais des Beaux-
Arts, featuring a Museum of Fine Arts. The
Ville Haute features numerous wide, tree-
lined boulevards. On one of them, in the
former barracks, you can find Musée des
Chasseurs à pied.

Walking through the streets of Ville Haute

you can admire the architecture of the
golden age of Charleroi, which fell
between the historicizing eclecticism of
the late 19th century and Art Nouveau.
Some of the more interesting buildings are
the 'Maison Maison Dorée at 15 Rue
Tumelaire and Maison des Médecins at 40
Rue Léon Bernus.

1 Musée des Beaux-Arts (https://charl

eroi-museum.be/en/home/) , Place du
Manège 1, ☏ +32 718 611 323 46 (tel:+3
271861132346) .
Jules Destrée Museum - dedicated to
the notable Wallon politician - Hotel du
Ville, Place du Manege, +32 71 86 11
32346
2 Musée des chasseurs à pied (http
s://www.chasseurs-a-pied-belges.be) .
Located in former barracks, this
museum is dedicated to the history of
the chasseurs, the Belgian rapid-action
infantry who played a major and heroic
role in the bloody fighting during the
First World War. The barracks
themselves are named after corporal
Léon Trésignies, a chasseur hero of that
period.
3 BPS22 (http://www.bps22.be) ,
Boulevard Solvay 22, ☏ +32 71 27 29 71
(tel:+3271272971) , fax: +32 71 27 29
70, info@bps22.be (mailto:info@bps22.
 be) . Temporary exhibitions of
contemporary art €6 adult, €4 seniors,
€3 students, under 12 free.

Quai de Brabant over the Sambre

Ville Basse

The most picturesque part of the Ville

Basse is the Sambre, whose right
(northern) bank features the tree-lined
elegant boulevards Quai de Brabant and
Quai de Flandre. The left (southern) bank
is dominated by the Gare du Charleroi-
Sud, the city's main train station, with an
imposing historic building dating back to
1874, the middle of Charleroi's own golden
age, and renovated in 2011.

South

Two of the most interesting attractions in

Charleroi are situated in south of the
municipality, in the former communes that
were annexed by the city - the
internationally acclaimed Museum of
Photography in Mont-sur-Marchienne, and
the former coal mine Le Bois du Cazier in
Marcinelle. The metro system was not
extended in this direction at all, but both
sites can be reached by bus from Gare du
Sud within 15 minutes. There is no direct
bus connection between the two, you are
best advised to go back by bus to Gare du
Sud and change there.

Museum of Photography

The Museum of Photography in Charleroi

4 Museum of Photography (Musée de

la Photographie), 11 Avenue Paul Pastur

(cannot be reached by metro, but can be
reached from Gare du Sud by buses no.
70, 71, 170 and 173. Get off at MONT-
SUR-MARCHIENNE Place; the journey is
less than 15 minutes with either line and
the buses depart frequently), ☏ +32 71
43 58 10 (tel:+3271435810) , mpc-
info@museephoto.be (mailto:mpc-info
@museephoto.be) . Tu-Su 10:00-18:00,
M closed. The renowned Musée de la
Photographie à Charleroi is housed in the
former Carmelite convent in Mont-sur-
Marchienne, expanded by the addition of
a thoroughly modern annex completed
in 2008. It houses extensive collections
of all sorts of photography from all
periods, exhibiting them both as fixed
and temporal exhibitions. Some of them
are exhibited on the outside, in the
convent's park.
Le Bois du Cazier

The former Bois du Cazier coal mine in

Marcinelle was transformed into a
museum complex

The colliery (coal mine) in Marcinelle was

the site of the worst mining disaster in
Belgian history, when an underground fire
claimed the lives of 262 miners. While not
remembered as vividly now, it was a pan-
European tragedy, as the miners stemmed
from 12 different countries, and this was a
pivotal point in the history of coal mining
and heavy industry in Belgium. Mines were
subsequently required to comply with
much more stringent safety standards,
which saw many of them close as being
uneconomical.

Le Bois de Cazier was also closed

subsequently, but rather than being
abandoned, it was turned into a unique
museum complex, with most of it
industrial heritage kept intact or adapted
and a number of artifacts collected, many
kept in working condition. There is the
Industry Museum, which presents not only
coal mining, but also other heavy
industries and the general technological
and social progress of the 19th century.
The Museum of Glass occupies a modern
glass-and-steel addition to the complex,
guiding visitors through a "countdown"
from contemporary glassmaking
technologies to the very earliest ones. In
the workshops, a mixture of historic and
modern machinery is still operated and
blacksmiths continue to forge.

Le Bois de Cazier has also been turned into

a site of remembrance of those who
perished. A striking exhibition inside the
former mine's buildings presenting the
fateful day of August 8, 1956, the extent of
the tragedy and its consequences.
Outside, a park was organized in the 26-
hectar estate of the former mine, with 12
species of trees planted to represent the
12 nationalities who lost their miners in
the tragedy (and the seedlings were
brought from those very countries). There
are also three slag heaps, with the tallest
spoil tip accessible by a modern skybridge,
providing a striking panorama of the
Charleroi area from its 250 metres.

The entrance fee to the site is €6 (€4.50

for students, and €1 less off either if you
are in a group) and includes entry to all
museums. At the site, you can participate
in an organized group tour for €5 every
first Saturday and Sunday of the month, at
15:30. Alternatively, a group of up to 25
people can rent a guide for €45 (covering
entry costs as well), and a further €25 per
group gets you an extra visit to the
workshops. There are special activities
offered at similar fees to organized groups
of schoolchildren. Le Bois du Cazier also
featured event rooms for up to 800 people
for rent, and a souvenir shop.

The site is open Tuesday to Friday from

09:00-17:00, and from 10:00-18:00 on
Saturdays and Sundays. Do note it is
closed on Mondays. There is no metro
connection to Marcinelle, but the bus line
52 from the Gare du Sud takes you to Le
Bois du Cazier.
 Site du bois du Cazier à Marcinelle (htt
p://www.leboisducazier.be/) , 80 Rue du
Cazier, 6001 Marcinelle, ☏ +32 71 88-
08-56 (tel:+327188-08-56) ,
info@leboisducazier.be (mailto:info@leb
oisducazier.be) .
Musée du verre (https://charleroi-museu
m.be/en/collection/collection/) .

Other places of interest

Charleroi Expo (http://www.charleroiexp

o.be/) . It is an exhibition centre with a
year-round programme of themed
events
 ULB Scientific Cultural Centre (https://w
ww.ulb.ac.be/sites/musees/centredecul
turescientifique/presentation.html)
(Centre culturel scientifique de l'ULB).
Musée archéologique

Do

Sunday market on Place Charles II

Markets. If you are in Charleroi on a

Sunday, do not miss the markets that
spread out from Place Charles II over
neighbouring streets.
Cinéma Le Parc, Rue de Montigny 58
2338. A cinema.
Watch football (soccer) at 1 Royal
Charleroi SC (http://www.sporting-charl
eroi.be/hp/fr/hp.asp) , Les Zèbres. Their
home ground (capacity 15,000) is Stade
de Pays de Charleroi, Rue des
Emailleries, 500 m southeast of city
centre. They play in Belgian First
Division A, the country's top tier of
football.
Basketball: Spirou Charleroi play at the
Spiroudrome in Belgium's top-tier
basketball league.
Buy
1 Tropica BD, Rue de Dampremy 39.
The comic strip bookstore with a
selection of albums full of Charleroi-
born characters.
2 Ville 2, Grand Rue 143, ☏ +32 71 28
62 10 (tel:+3271286210) . A mall just
northeast of the centre. (updated Jan
2018)

Eat

Budget

All these are in the city centre:

1 Le Chateaubriand, Rue de Montigny
16. (updated Feb 2023)
2 Sandwicherie l’Impériale, Rue du
Mambourg 8. (updated Feb 2023)
3 Emirdag köftecisi, Bd Jacques
Bertrand 51. (updated Feb 2023)
4 Cappadocia, Bd Jacques Bertrand
64. (updated Feb 2023)
5 La Petite Maison - Küçük EV, Place
de la Digue 33 Kucuk Ev. (updated Feb
2023)
6 Makitime Charleroi, Rue du Pont de
Sambre 6. (updated Feb 2023)
7 Shanghai, Rue de Dampremy 9.
(updated Feb 2023)
Mid-range

8 Le Croc Midi (http://lecrocmidi.be/) ,

Rue du Calvaire 22a, 6041 Gosselies, ☏
+32 71 35 04 58 (tel:+3271350458) ,
info@lecrocmidi.be (mailto:info@lecroc
midi.be) . (updated Feb 2023)
9 La bouche des gouts, Rue Vauban
14. (updated Feb 2023)
10 La Brasserie de la Cour, Rue Emile
Tumelaire 43. French restaurant
(updated Feb 2023)
11 Le Cribbi, Pl. de la Digue 36. African
restaurant (updated Feb 2023)
 12 L'APtit restaurant, Rue du Grand
Central 51. (updated Feb 2023)

Splurge

13 De Vous a Nous (http://www.devous

anous.net) , 42 Rue du Grand Bry, 6110
Montigny-le-Tilleul, ☏ +32 71 47 47 03 (t
el:+3271474703) . In Montigny-le-Tilleul,
a neighbouring commune south of
Charleroi.
14 La Table de La Manufacture

Urbaine, Pl. Emile Buisset 10. (updated

Feb 2023)

Drink
Sleep
Given the short distances to other Belgian
cities, most people staying overnight are
likely to be passengers at "Brussels South"
airport. There are no hotels at the airport
terminal, and reaching those nearby is
difficult without a car. However, several
hotels offer shuttles to the airport.

1 ibis Charleroi Gare, 12 Quai de

Flandre (facing the Gare du Sud and the
bus station just across the river Sambre),
☏ +32 71 206060 (tel:+3271206060) .
Based in a historic building at the Quai
de Flandre, this ibis hotel has an
extremely convenient location. Inside, it
is a standard ibis outfitted according to
the brand's former standards. €59.
2 ibis Charleroi Aéroport, 590
chaussée de Charleroi, 6220 Fleurus (7
km away from the terminal at a motorway
junction), ☏ +32 71 810130 (tel:+32718
10130) . €59.
Hotel de la Basse Sambre, Rue de la
Persévérance 19 (off N90 Rue de la
Basse Sambre), ☏ +32 71 420168 (tel:+3
271420168) . Very basic hotel, good for
main highway, and with luck you'll arrive
not too many weeks after its sporadic
 clean. B&B double €50. (updated Sep
2019)
Park Hotel Airport (https://www.parkhot
elairport.be/) (formerly Piersoulx), Rue
du Grand Piersoulx 8, ☏ +32 71 303140
(tel:+3271303140) ,
info@parkhotelairport.be (mailto:info@p
arkhotelairport.be) . Convenient mid-
range hotel with 20 rooms just north of
airport. B&B double €100. (updated Sep
2019)

It might be possible to stay overnight in

the airport terminal. The Gare du Sud
station building is closed at night, so don't
plan on staying there.
The nearest youth hostels are in Mons,
Brussels and Namur.

Stay safe
Despite its reputation, Charleroi's crime
rate is not exceptionally high. In fact it is
marginally lower than in other Belgian
cities like Brussels, Liège, or Leuven.
Nevertheless, it is better to avoid going
alone or in small groups at night in some
neighbourhoods outside the city centre.
Couillet, Marchienne-au-Pont, and
Marcinelle are the most frequently
mentioned areas to avoid. It is also
advised not to wander around the railway
station at night, unless you're in a group
and know where you're going.

Connect
Charleroi has 4G from all Belgian carriers.
As of July 2022, 5G has not reached the
city.

Go next
Thuin — an attractive town partly set on
a hilltop. It is 20 minutes away by train
from Charleroi-Sud station. For rail fans,
there is a tram museum with operating
historical trams.
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