Your First Week in Brussels: A Newcomer's Survival Guide
Your First Week in Brussels: A Newcomer's Survival Guide
The first week in a new city is a blur of admin, jet lag, and figuring out where to buy milk. Brussels is friendlier than most — especially if someone hands you the right order of operations. Here's your day-by-day survival guide for week one.
Before anything: sort your home base
Everything below is easier if you have a stable address from day one. This is the single biggest argument for arriving into a coliving space rather than a bare Airbnb: you land into a furnished room, a working kitchen, wifi, and — crucially — an address you can register at. If you haven't sorted housing yet, our matchmaker quiz narrows 12 operators to your shortlist in a minute.
Day 1–2: Settle and get connected
- Get a Belgian SIM. Pick up a prepaid SIM (Orange, Proximus, BASE, or budget options like Scarlet) from any phone shop or supermarket. You'll need mobile data for maps and admin.
- Sort transport. Download the STIB/MIVB app (metro, tram, bus) and, for trains, the SNCB/NMBS app. You can tap contactless bank cards on STIB gates immediately; get a MOBIB card for a monthly pass once you're settled.
- Find your essentials. Locate your nearest supermarket (Delhaize, Carrefour, Colruyt, or cheaper Aldi/Lidl), pharmacy, and boulangerie. Note: many shops close Sundays.
Day 2–3: The commune (domiciliation)
The big one. By law you must register your address at your commune (municipality) — Ixelles, Saint-Gilles, Schaerbeek, etc. — within 8 working days of arriving.
- Bring your passport/ID, your rental agreement (your coliving operator provides this), and passport photos to be safe.
- You register at the commune of the neighbourhood you live in. A police officer may later visit to confirm you actually live there.
- This unlocks everything downstream: residence card, long-term bank account, health insurance.
Our full registration walkthrough covers the details and paperwork.
Day 3–4: Money and health
- Bank account. You can start with an EU account or a digital bank (Revolut, N26, Wise) on day one, but for a long-term local account you'll usually want your registration underway. See our Brussels bank account guide.
- Health insurance (mutuelle/mutualiteit). In Belgium you register with a mutuelle for healthcare. Pick one (there are several) and start the paperwork — it's needed for reimbursement of doctor visits.
Day 4–5: Get your bearings (and have some fun)
Admin is exhausting; balance it. Spend an afternoon actually enjoying the city:
- Walk the Grand-Place, then escape the tourists toward Sainte-Catherine for a shrimp croquette and a glass of white.
- Get your first frites from a real fritkot (see where locals eat).
- Wander your own neighbourhood until you find your café and your bakery.
Day 5–7: Plug into community
The newcomers who thrive are the ones who don't isolate in week one:
- Say yes to your housemates. If you're in a coliving house, there's almost certainly a group dinner or apéro happening — go, even jet-lagged.
- Follow your commune's events and a couple of newcomer/expat groups.
- Learn five words of French — starting with "Bonjour" before every request. Our slang guide makes you sound less like a tourist fast.
Your week-one checklist
- Belgian SIM + data
- STIB app + MOBIB card
- Registered (or appointment booked) at the commune
- Bank sorted (interim + local underway)
- Mutuelle chosen
- Nearest supermarket, pharmacy, bakery located
- First frites eaten
- Said yes to one social thing
Do those eight things and you've done more in a week than many manage in a month. Welcome to Brussels — you're going to like it here.
Still finding a place? Take the matchmaker quiz, browse all coliving spaces, or read the full moving-to-Brussels checklist.
Ready to find your coliving space in Brussels?