In 2024, visit.brussels orchestrated a series of strategic initiatives to promote Brussels as a top destination, targeting both visitors and tourism professionals. visit.brussels strengthened the capital's image on the international stage through a robust city marketing strategy, international actions and promotional campaigns. These visit.brussels initiatives included efforts focused in particular on mobilising and promoting Brussels' nightlife, notably through the Brussels Night Council.
Image of Brussels
18th
Europe's Best Cities 2023 ranking (top 100)
46 million
impressions for the various 2024 campaigns
100.000 visits
to the Nightlife section of the website (+43%)
In 2024, the main objective was to promote Brussels' unique assets abroad. A promotional campaign, entitled Urself, was launched targeting "originators" in the English, Spanish, Italian and German markets. This initiative generated significant results, with 25.5 million impressions, 51,000 views, and 40,000 unique users on the dedicated website (urself.brussels).
At the same time, efforts were made to mobilise and activate public and private stakeholders via the Steering Committee. This met every six weeks to monitor project progress, share feedback and respond to strategic and creative needs.
Key actions included:
- Developing a shared brand: updating the toolbox, storytelling and visual identity.
- Reprinting the Photobook: produced to accompany Belgium's presidency of the EU and the European elections, in partnership with the Brussels Chamber of Commerce (BECI) and the Commissioner for Europe and International Organizations (CEOI).
- Workshops and information sessions: organisation of "open house" sessions and specific workshops (MICE sector, hospitality, etc.) with the support of Resonance.
These initiatives have boosted the visibility and positive perception of Brussels on the international stage.
Brussels Houses are the result of a collaboration between visit.brussels and hub.brussels to create a space that brings the Brussels community together internationally while promoting the attractiveness and expertise of Brussels. These spaces, in which visit.brussels applied the concepts of the international BRUSSELS brand, embody the image of a dynamic, innovative, creative Brussels that is open to the world. The Brussels Houses in Milan and Barcelona serve as showcases for Brussels' products and lifestyle, offering a sensory insight into the Region through immersive staging and marking an important step in the international promotion of Brussels.
2024 was a year of consolidation for the latest two Brussels Houses which hosted numerous events to promote tourism and the Brussels economy (including two Arty Brussels events in Milan and Barcelona, designed to highlight the contemporary art sector among journalists).
The world's largest forum for real estate professionals, MIPIM, illustrates Brussels' ambitions in the real estate sector. It brings together major players and highlights the Region's development projects in partnership with the Walloon Region and private sector representatives. In 2024, this forum saw the addition of a number of new features including a conference with contributions from the Embuild.Brussels and UPSI/BVS employers' federations, as well as case studies in the form of a keynote speaker (on the MIX project) and a moderator for the round table.
20-minute pitch sessions were held on the Brussels-Capital Region stand. These provided a platform for interested Public Interest Organisations (PIOs) and Brussels-based project developers nominated for the MIPIM Awards. The stand also hosted the Business Review, organised by the SLRB, SAU and Citydev to raise the profile of regional initiatives.
Visit.brussels dynamically promoted the cultural and tourist scene exclusively through in-house communication campaigns, covering aspects such as gastronomy, artisanal shopping and the cultural offer. The marketing strategy has been designed to ensure that each message is delivered to the right audience at the right time to maximise its impact: "the right message to the right audience at the right time".
In 2024, several national and international B2C communication campaigns were carried out to promote Brussels as a must-visit destination. The Winter Campaign showcased the city's assets during off-peak periods, generating 8 million impressions, 72,000 clicks, and 14,500 visits to the landing page, while encouraging a better spread of tourism over time.
The Culture/Lifestyle campaign targeted Belgium, France and Italy, with excellent results in Italy, including 18.8 million impressions, 2.69 million completed video plays and 71,000 clicks, confirming this market's potential.
These initiatives have helped to raise Brussels' profile, engage target audiences and encourage sustainable, quality tourism.
Brussels' nightlife, essential to the Region's attractiveness and the inclusion of young people (aged 18-35), was the subject of a specific visit.brussels strategy. The objective was to position Brussels as a desirable and safe nightlife destination.
The promotion of Brussels' nightlife has increased through social networking campaigns, media partnerships and direct support for clubs, festivals and open air concerts. Events such as Listenfestival, Hangar and Rave Rebels have been a resounding success, while the Volume Pass has begun to generate promising results, supporting clubs and the local cultural scene.
The nightlife section recorded 100,000 visits, up 43% on the 70,000 visits in 2023. The number of page views also rose, reaching 130,000 in 2024, compared with 99,000 in 2023, an increase of 31%. In addition, the number of unique visitors grew by 38% from 60,000 in 2023 to 83,000 in 2024.
These results confirm the growing interest in Brussels' nightlife and the effectiveness of the actions taken to boost its visibility and appeal.
The Brussels Night Council, hosted by visit.brussels, organised seven round tables on a variety of themes designed to promote a dynamic, balanced and safe nightlife for Brussels residents and visitors. This year saw the preparation of the Regional Nightlife Plan (PRVN) for the 2025-2029 legislature. The result of extensive consultation with public, voluntary, institutional and private stakeholders, the plan comprises 14 actions designed to enhance safety and reduce risks, ensure regional governance and greater integration of party venues while limiting disturbances and supporting the nightlife sector.
In 2024, visit.brussels continued to develop its marketing strategy to boost Brussels' attractiveness, using an approach based on customer segment knowledge and customer journey analysis. Two separate marketing plans, B2C and B2B, were drawn up to define the destination's strategic directions and key messages, while a detailed study of 1,200 Belgians laid the foundations for a specific marketing plan for Belgium in 2025.
2024 was also marked by several significant advances, notably the complete revision of our tourism barometers. These were brought together in a single, more intuitive and readable dashboard, designed to provide our partners and employees with as much relevant information as possible.
Visit.brussels has also carried out a number of studies, including a survey on how Brussels residents perceive tourism. These studies assess visitor satisfaction and the perception of tourism among Brussels inhabitants, respectively.
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