Coming from the airport
Brussels Airport
You can get to Mechelen by train, bus or a rental car. The easiest and fastest way is by train.
By train
Brussels Airport railway station is on level -1. A new, direct express train link will have you in Mechelen Central Station in just eleven minutes! A ticket costs approx. €.
By bus
You'll find the airport bus station on level 0. De Lijn provides a direct bus service to Mechelen station twice an hour, including lines 282, 681, 682, 683 and 686. Bus line 686 only runs on weekdays. The bus journey takes between 45 and 50 minutes. A ticket costs approx. €3.
By (rental) car
At Brussels Airport you will find various car hire companies, including Hertz, Avis and Europcar. On leaving the airport car park, you immediately come to the motorway. Travel towards Antwerp (E19) and take exit 10 (Mechelen-Zuid) or exit 9 (Mechelen-Noord). The journey takes approximately 25 minutes.
Charleroi Airport (Brussels South)
By bus and train
At Charleroi Airport you can buy a ticket which combines the bus to Charleroi-South with the train to Mechelen Central Station. The two ticket-vending machines are located outside the airport, adjacent to Door 2.
Your journey will take approximately one and a half hours. A bus and train combination ticket costs approximately €15. The train to Mechelen leaves twice an hour, as does the bus between Charleroi airport and Charleroi-South station.
By (rental)car
Several car hire companies have desks at Charleroi Airport, including Avis, Europcar and Hertz. On leaving the airport car park, take the E42 direction Brussels and then the N5 direction Waterloo or the A54 direction Brussels. When you get to Brussels, take the ring road and then the E19 direction Antwerp. You then take exit 10 (Mechelen-Zuid) or exit 9 (Mechelen-Noord). The journey takes approximately one hour.
Antwerp Airport
You can save a lot of time both on arrival and departure by using Antwerp's small airport. Distances between the departure lounge and the planes are short, which means you can check in up to twenty minutes before your flight leaves. On arrival at Antwerp Airport you can expect to leave the airport building some ten minutes after landing. From there you can easily get to Mechelen by bus and train.
By bus and train
Bus 14 will take you from Antwerp airport to Antwerpen-Berchem railway station in ten minutes. A ticket costs approx. €3.
From Antwerpen-Berchem station there is a frequent train service to Mechelen, with approximately four trains an hour destined for Central Station. The journey takes between 15 and 20 minutes. A ticket costs approx. €5.
Bus
Train
By (rental)car
Both Avis and Hertz have desks at Antwerp Airport. On leaving the airport, drive straight on into Vosstraat. At the first roundabout turn left into Deurnestraat. At the end turn right into Antwerpsestraat. After approximately 500m turn left into Jozef Hermanslei, and then right into Frans Van Dunlaan. Then get onto the Antwerp ring-road. Take the E19 direction Brussels. Once in Mechelen take exit 10 (Mechelen-Zuid) or exit 9 (Mechelen-Noord). The journey time by car is approximately 25 minutes.
