The Royal Gallery of Saint Hubert (Galeries Royales Saint-Hubert) in Brussels was Europe’s first glazed shopping arcade, opening in 1846-47 under a soaring glass-and-iron roof designed by architect Jean-Pierre Cluysenaar. The arcade predates Milan’s famous Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II by nearly two decades.
Stretching roughly 200 meters, the gallery is divided into three connected sections, the King’s Gallery, the Queen’s Gallery, and the Princes’ Gallery, lined with fashion boutiques, chocolate shops, bookstores, cafes, a theater, and a cinema. The arcade itself is open around the clock and free to walk through, though individual shops generally operate from about 8am to 8pm.
About six million people pass through the galleries each year, drawn by the ornate architecture as much as the shopping. The arcade is fully wheelchair accessible and sits just steps from Brussels’ Grand Place, making it an easy add-on to a walk through the historic city center.
