Koninklijk Museum Voor Midden-Afrika

Lonely Planet review

Preserved insects, stuffed animals (including a huge elephant), masks, musical instruments, jewellery, and a 22m-long pirogue (canoe) crafted by the Lengola people are among the mind-boggling displays at this extraordinary museum the word's largest collection of such artefacts outside Africa. Most artefacts were plundered during King Léopold II's exploitation of the Congo in the 19th century, something that is, finally, being increasingly addressed through the museum's displays.

The on-site café serves African dishes, along with African beer, which you can walk off on the paths through the adjoining Park van Tervuren.

The museum makes a fascinating half-day trip, starting with the journey itself, on the old yellow tram 44 from its terminus at Montgoméry metro station, to the Dutch-speaking town of Tervuren (14km east of Brussels) along a tree-lined track. En route you pass stately embassies, the ponds at Parc de Woluwé and the northern tract of the Forêt des Soignes. It's an easy 300m walk from the Tervuren tram terminus to the museum.