By train
Louvain-la-Neuve-Université station is directly linked to the railway junction of Ottignies, on the Brussels-Namur railway line, with two trains per hour in each direction, including on weekends.
Attention: Do not confuse Louvain-la-Neuve with Louvain (the French translation of the Flemish city of Leuven), which is another city on another railway line.
- Louvain-la-Neuve is approximately 30 minutes from Brussels; change in Ottignies for the train to ‘Louvain-la-Neuve-Université’. Direct trains take longer.
- If you travel from Namur or Charleroi, change in Ottignies for the train to ‘Louvain-la-Neuve-Université’.
- If you travel from Luxembourg, change in Ottignies (if you take the EC 96 Iris or EC 90 Vauban train that originates in Switzerland, change in Namur for a train to Ottignies).
- If you travel from any other country, change in Brussels-Nord. Otherwise, change in Brussels-Midi, from which depart all trains to Ottignies via Brussels-Central, Brussels-Nord, Brussels-Schuman and Brussels-Luxembourg.
Schedules are available on the SNCB website.
Cost-saving subscriptions are available, including the ‘carte Train scolaire’ and ‘carte “Campus”’.
By car
Take the E 411 Brussels-Namur motorway to Louvain-la-Neuve (not to be confused with Louvain, the French translation of Leuven, located in Flanders): if travelling from Brussels, take exit 8a; if travelling from Namur, take exit 9. At the Nationale 4 roundabout, follow the signs to your Louvain-la-Neuve neighbourhood destination.
By bicycle
There are many ways to get to Louvain-la-Neuve. Moreover, showers have recently been installed for cyclists.
In Louvain-la-Neuve, getting around by bicycle is preferable to driving, with more and more infrastructure available for safely parking your bicycle.
By air
From Brussels Airport (Zaventem), beginning at 5:30 am, you can travel by train to Louvain-la-Neuve. Seven days a week, from 9:00 am to midnight, four trains per hour depart the airport for Brussels-North station, where you have to change trains to continue to Louvain-la-Neuve (not to be confused with Louvain, the French translation of Leuven).
Brussels South Charleroi Airport serves low-cost airlines. It is located 40 km from Louvain-la-Neuve. TEC buses take you from the airport to the Charleroi South station. Trains depart until 9:57 pm to Ottignies, from which a connecting train takes you to Louvain-la-Neuve-Université station in eight minutes.
By Bus
Several TEC lines run between Louvain-la-Neuve bus station and:
- Brussels (Cbis or Conforto Bis line), departing from Roodebeek metro station and stopping at Crainhem metro station (near the UCL Brussels Woluwe campus);
- Etterbeek (C or Conforto line) via la Plaine des manoeuvres, Etterbeek train station, Delta metro station, and Wavre train station;
- Jodoigne (Rapido Bus 1) via Thorembais-Saint-Trond;
- Waterloo (Rapido Bus 3) via Braine-l’Alleud, Ohain, Lasne and Céroux;
- Nivelles train station (Rapido Bus 4) via Genappe and Beaurieux;
- Tourinnes-la-Grosse (Rapido Bus 6) via Hamme-Mille, Grez-Doiceau and Wavre (4 Sapins);
- Wavre and Ottignies (line 20);
- Dion-Valmont (line 21);
- Perwez (line 33) via Chaumont-Gistoux;
- Chastre (line 34) via Walhain, Nil, Corbais and Mont-Saint-Guibert.
Buses operate along these lines only Monday through Friday, except for lines 33 and 34 which operate on Saturday and line 20 which operates Saturday and Sunday. Schedules are available at www.infotec.be or tel. 010 23 53 53.
From UCL Brussels Woluwe
Monday through Friday, the Conforto Bis TEC bus (see above) operates 24 roundtrips per day. During the weekend, take the metro from Alma station, in the heart of the campus, toward the centre of Brussels (line 1, direction Gare de l'Ouest), to Schuman station, from which you take the train for Louvain-la-Neuve. Metro schedules are available at www.stib.be or tel. 02 515 20 00.