9Hotel Sablon

On a narrow, anonymous-looking road of dull offices, just off Place du Grand Sablon, this hotel is both unexpected and surprisingly cool and contemporary, with a sweeping open-plan lobby full of modern art and sculptures. Rooms are light and minimalist - white floors and walls, big windows, open shelving - with shots of colour in rugs and lampshades. Bathrooms are crisp and modern, though some can be short on storage space. The duplex suites, with their spiral staircase to a mezzanine bedroom, are fun and cosy. Well-placed for the big museums and galleries, and around a 10-minute walk from the Grand Place, it's a good choice if you want somewhere central but quiet. And there's a help-yourself bar, too.