Brussels Travelers: Avoid Airport Exchange Bureaus with a Multicurrency Account

Brussels is a card-friendly capital, but its fees can quietly add markups to your budget. To avoid this, it's best to withdraw euros from a local bank ATM and pay by card wherever possible.

The official currency in Belgium is the euro (EUR), adopted in 2002 when the country retired the Belgian franc. The National Bank of Belgium (NBB) puts banknotes into circulation, and the euro is the only legal tender.

For those who prefer physical cash, there are a few reliable options available: exchange counters at the airport and main train stations, as well as the NBB's own counter. Travelex and Ria counters advertise '0% commission' but bake the markup into the displayed rate, which can run 5-12% off the market rate.

Using a debit card for withdrawals is recommended, as credit card cash advances come with high fees and often start accruing interest immediately. ATMs from Belgian banks like BNP Paribas Fortis, KBC, ING Belgium, or Belfius are preferred over Euronet machines, which add operator fees and push dynamic currency conversion (DCC) aggressively.

With a Revolut multicurrency account, users can hold and exchange US dollars to euros in-app at the Revolut rate, then spend at the checkout with a virtual or physical card. This eliminates the need for airport counters and gets competitive rates on currency exchange.