Mix Brussels – Brussels, Belgium
Where Brutalist Beauty Meets Wellness Wonderland
Why DNA Hotels Loves It
● A remarkable transformation of Brussels’ iconic Royale Belge headquarters into one of Europe’s most ambitious design and wellness destinations.
● Striking Brutalist architecture softened by Lionel Jadot’s warm, tactile interiors.
● A rare hybrid concept where hotel, social club, workspace, restaurant, and wellness centre genuinely coexist.
A Modernist Icon Reborn
Few recent hotel openings in Europe have embraced architecture as boldly as Mix Brussels. Occupying the former Royale Belge headquarters in Brussels’ leafy Watermael-Boitsfort district, the hotel inhabits one of Belgium’s most significant post-war buildings. Designed in 1969 by architects René Stapels and Pierre Dufau, the vast structure was long celebrated as a masterpiece of modernist corporate architecture. Its monumental corten-steel façade, bronze-tinted glazing, exposed structural elements, and powerful geometric forms remain as striking today as they were more than half a century ago. Rather than dilute the building’s identity, the transformation embraces it completely. Mix Brussels feels less like a hotel inserted into an office building and more like a contemporary reinterpretation of the original vision.
Brutalism with a Human Touch
The challenge with many Brutalist buildings is warmth. That challenge was handed to Belgian designer Lionel Jadot, whose intervention introduces texture, craftsmanship, and humanity without compromising the architecture’s strength. Throughout the interiors, timber, leather, stone, textiles, ceramics, vintage pieces, and custom-made furniture soften the building’s industrial bones. Large open spaces remain intact, but now feel welcoming rather than imposing. Natural materials create a constant dialogue with the concrete, steel, and glass structure surrounding them. The result is sophisticated yet approachable. Architectural yet comfortable. Bold without becoming intimidating.
Design as an Experience
One of Mix Brussels’ greatest strengths is the way design extends far beyond the guestrooms. Public spaces unfold almost like a creative campus. Lounge areas merge into workspaces. Restaurants connect naturally with social zones. Art installations, bespoke furnishings, and unexpected design moments appear throughout the building. The scale remains impressive, yet the atmosphere never feels corporate. Instead, the building constantly encourages interaction, discovery, and movement. Every space feels designed to be used rather than simply admired.
Rooms Framed by Architecture
The guestrooms continue the dialogue between modernist structure and contemporary comfort. Large windows flood the rooms with natural light while framing views of the surrounding forest and parkland. Warm woods, soft fabrics, muted colour palettes, and carefully selected furnishings create spaces that feel calm and restorative. Rather than competing with the architecture, the interiors allow the building itself to remain the focal point. There is a confidence to the design that avoids unnecessary decoration. The architecture does the talking.
A Wellness Destination on a Monumental Scale
What truly distinguishes Mix Brussels is the extraordinary wellness offering. Spanning approximately 5,000 square metres, the wellness and fitness facilities are among the most ambitious attached to any design hotel in Europe. The complex includes two twenty-five-metre swimming pools, one indoor and one outdoor, alongside extensive fitness facilities equipped with state-of-the-art training equipment. Guests also have access to saunas, hammams, treatment rooms, an ice cabin, relaxation spaces, and a salt cave designed for restorative therapies. Unlike many hotel spas that feel secondary to the accommodation, wellness here forms a central pillar of the entire concept. Mix is as much a lifestyle destination as it is a hotel.
Food, Community and Creativity
The social energy continues throughout the restaurants and bars. Natural light, generous volumes, and warm materials create spaces that feel lively without becoming overwhelming. Menus focus on seasonal ingredients and contemporary dining, while the atmosphere encourages guests and locals to mingle naturally. This local engagement is one of the project’s greatest successes. Mix functions as a genuine destination for Brussels residents, not merely a hotel designed for visitors. That sense of community gives the building life far beyond traditional hospitality.
A Different Side of Brussels
The location contributes significantly to the experience. Set beside the Sonian Forest, one of Europe’s largest urban woodlands, Mix feels surprisingly removed from the bustle of central Brussels while remaining easily accessible. The surrounding landscape provides a constant visual counterpoint to the building’s strong architectural presence. Forest, water, concrete, steel, and glass coexist in unexpected harmony.
A New Model for Urban Hospitality
Mix Brussels succeeds because it refuses to fit neatly into a single category. It is simultaneously a design hotel, wellness retreat, social club, creative hub, restaurant destination, and architectural landmark. Most importantly, it never feels forced. The various elements support one another naturally, creating an experience that feels contemporary, relevant, and distinctly Brussels. For travellers drawn to architecture, wellness, design, and culture, Mix Brussels represents one of Europe’s most compelling hotel transformations — a modernist masterpiece that has found an entirely new purpose without losing its soul.
