Charleroi or Brussels Airport: which one should you choose?

Which airlines and destinations does each airport offer?

Start with the destination, as the two airports do not serve the same airlines.

In our records of flights from 30 October to 9 November 2026, Charleroi had 891 scheduled departures: 740 by Ryanair, 116 by Wizz Air, 31 by Pegasus to Istanbul Sabiha and 4 by Air Corsica to Bastia and Ajaccio.

At Brussels Airport, Brussels Airlines serves more than 90 destinations from its hub, TUI fly Belgium has its base there and Transavia opened a full base this summer. The airport also has 40 non-stop intercontinental destinations. If your city is served by only one of the two, the choice is made. If not, compare the full cost: ticket, bags, journey and parking.

Train, bus or shuttle: how do you reach each airport?

Without a car, Brussels Airport has a clear advantage: its station is beneath the terminal. Charleroi has none.

The A1 bus runs every 15 minutes since July 2026, when TEC withdrew the A2 and A3 routes from Fleurus and Luttre. At Brussels Airport, up to four children under 12 travel free by train with an adult.

If you live around Charleroi, Brussels Airport is still reachable without a car: the airport lists a direct train from Charleroi taking 1 h 35. For Charleroi Airport, by bus or by car, see our access guide.

How much is a week of parking at each airport?

At Charleroi, the official P3 costs €50 for 7 days and the cheapest private car park we track €34.30, checked on 13/11/2026 for a departure on 27/11/2026. Our car park comparison gives the price for your own dates.

At Brussels Airport, the airport's parking page showed these starting prices for a week on 07/11/2026:

These are starting prices for an online booking. The Interparking site for Brussels Airport shows €148 for 7 days at P3 Holiday, without saying whether that is the rate without a booking. For your exact dates, run the search on both sites on the same day.

Very early or very late flights: what are the hours at each airport?

In our records from 30 October to 9 November 2026, the first departure from Charleroi was scheduled at 6:20 am and the last at 10 pm. The 6 am hour is the busiest, with 85 departures over the period, ahead of the 8 am hour (78). For a 6:20 am flight, you therefore need to reach the airport in the middle of the night, by car or on the first Flibco.

Brussels Airport handles night flights. In 2025 it recorded 15,938 commercial movements between 11 pm and 6 am, against a legal limit of 16,000 night slots. Trains to Brussels run from early morning until around midnight, so for a very early flight or a late return, check the SNCB timetable for the day.

Strikes: which of the two airports has been hit harder?

The two airports do not rely on the same service providers, so a strike can hit one and spare the other.

On 9 October the strike was at Alyzia, which handles ground services at Brussels Airport, and Charleroi cancelled nothing. The September dispute, by contrast, involved the controllers based at Charleroi, on strike from 10 pm to 8 am. On a strike day, follow your flight on our delays page.

How early should you arrive, and what about border checks?

Brussels Airport recommends arriving 2 hours before a Schengen flight and 3 hours before a non-Schengen flight. The airport also admits to overly long waits at border control on arrival since the launch of the European Entry/Exit System (EES), which records non-European travellers. It plans eight extra border control positions before the end of the year and six e-gates in early 2027.

For Charleroi, we cover the recommended times and the day's peaks in how early to get to the airport.

In 2028, Brussels Airport will be a fallback

Charleroi is due to close for about eleven weeks between mid-August and late October 2028 to rebuild its single runway. According to Air Journal, airlines will be able to move some flights to Liège or Brussels Airport, and suspend those that cannot be moved.

If you book for that period, check the departure airport shown on your ticket and plan your journey and parking to match. Our guide to the 2028 closure follows the story.