Experience in Hasselt, Belgium by Alin

What is it like to live in Hasselt? Would you recommend it? What is the city like?

Hello, First of all the weather is very unstable, one day is sunny then 5 days rains, and it really rains a lot. The city is not that big and crowded, it's easy to get accommodated with and the people are nice.

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What is the student lifestyle like in Hasselt?

I personally found here whatever I needed, whether you like sports, trips, social activities and of course party. You definitely will need a bike which you can borrow at the university or you can buy one. Most of people here speak English so you shouldn't be concerned with the language. There are plenty of shops, supermarkets, cinema, pools, parks, etc. A lot of touristic attractions are nearby, by train you can reach in short time most of Belgian cities, as well Netherlands, France, Germany, UK and so on. The city is small there are not a lot of touristic attractions probably Jenever Museum is worthy to visit and few places in the downtown, therefore I recommend you to travel a lot while you are on Erasmus.

How much does it cost to live in Hasselt?

I will start with renting a student room, which will cost you from EUR170 to EUR500/month, depending on the confort level. I personally have a very nice EUR200/month room with no other expenses. So I consider that a room between EUR200-250/month is very suitable to the Erasmus budget.

Is it difficult to find accommodation in Hasselt? Is there any advice you can give?

This depends especially on the period you search for the room. If you start the semester in September I advise you to start looking for a room from July, thus 2 months before.

As an advice: take your room close to the university (the university is not in Hasselt but in Diepenbeek, at about 7 km from the city on its outskirts). But if you stay in Hasselt you have buses for free to the university, or by bike.

Second advice is to take your room where other foreign students live, that way you can enjoy more your stay here, you can contact them.

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What is the food like? What are your favourite dishes?

I like the food here, I usually eat at the university's cafeteria hot food or sandwiches by the way here the food is cheap using the student card as discount, I pay 3 EUR for a meal. They have here foods like: all vegetables and fruits, steak, lasagna, pasta, soups, oven food, fries, deserts, coffee, etc. I simply found everything I wanted to eat. You should try the Belgian fries from "Frituur" (a place only with fries), chocolate, and of course beer. I personally like all the food there, and I cook at home as well.

What places would you recommend visiting in Hasselt?

As I mentioned above Jenever Museum, Hasselt centrum, and that's pretty much it. But travel a lot!

Is it good to eat out in Hasselt? Can you tell us your favourite spots?

Of course is good but avoid restaurants because it is damn expensive, for instance at a restaurant for a steak, glass of wine, dessert you pay 50 EUR. With those money you can eat a month at university's cafeteria. There are few places where students go Fitlink next to university, Venus for pizza and kebab, few fast foods near train station with pizza/student menu.

Is the nightlife good in Hasselt? Where is good to go?

You will have a lot of parties organized by students at Fitlink, or in huge tents, I used to party with my fellas here at one's student house (which is very cheap and fun), The Borly a bar in Diepenbeek where students use to hang out, Versuz, Slices, Irish Pub, The corner, there are a lot of places where you can go. Personally I found Fitlink/tents/home parties the best I had here!

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What advice would you give future students heading to Hasselt?

Make friends, travel, have fun, study. Now it all depends on the person, but Erasmus students usually do all the stuff mentioned above as a group, so it'll be fun. Take a raincoat and winter clothes, it's a good city for sports and so on.

Hope this was helpful if you need any further help PM me and I will do my utmost to help you!