€3 De Lijn bus 272 beats taxis if you’re patient
De Lijn bus 272 runs from Brussels Airport (T) toward Brussels via Evere and the Eurocontrol corridor, and it’s the cheap option when the €3 De Lijn ticket undercuts the €45–€60 taxi fare by a lot. This is a regular regional bus, not an airport coach, and it shares stops with commuters heading to offices near Eurocontrol and NATO. If you care more about saving money than shaving off 10–15 minutes, 272 fits that profile.
The 272 stop sits directly outside the arrivals level at BRU, signed as De Lijn along with routes 471, 616, and 651, so you’re not hunting through T for a hidden bay. You’re on the “Brussels” side of the network here, hitting places like Evere and Diegem rather than Leuven or Mechelen. Buses use the yellow De Lijn branding, and 272 shows “Brussel” on the front display, which matters when several lines pull in at once.
Single tickets for De Lijn, including 272, run about €3 when bought via the De Lijn app or ticket machines, versus around €2.50–€2.60 for a 10-ride Lijnkaart if you’re doing multiple airport–Evere runs in a week. The same ticket is valid across De Lijn buses in Flanders, so you can connect at Evere or Eurocontrol without paying extra inside the 60-minute window. Contactless bank card tap-in started rolling out in the Brussels region, so check the validator next to the front door before you sit down.
Frequency on 272 varies a lot: in peak weekday hours you can see headways of roughly 15 minutes around the morning 08:00–09:00 office rush, while late evenings and Sundays can stretch closer to 30 minutes or more. Real-time boards at the De Lijn platform list the next departures by line number, so you can compare 272 with 471 or 620 if you’re flexible on your final stop. Build in extra time at the airport if you’re catching a specific meeting at Eurocontrol or an office park along the route.
Travel time to the Evere/Eurocontrol corridor typically runs 20–35 minutes depending on traffic on the A201 and N2, and the bus can bunch badly during the 17:00–18:30 evening peak when airport shifts change and office workers all pile on. If you need to be in central Brussels around Brussels-Central or De Brouckère within a fixed window, the airport train that reaches the city in about 20 minutes may be a better call even at a higher fare. 272 shines most when your destination is along the northeastern strip rather than in the Grand-Place area.
Board at the front door, validate immediately, and keep luggage tight because 272 is a standard city bus with limited dedicated suitcase space and lots of standing commuters on weekday mornings from about 07:30. Drivers expect you to tap in on the yellow validator within a few seconds; checks do happen, and on-the-spot fines are much higher than the €3 base fare. If you’re coming in late after 22:00, check the De Lijn app or website for the last few trips, since the timetable scales back hard after around 23:00.
Practical tip: screenshot the De Lijn 272 timetable and stop list over Wi‑Fi in T before you walk outside, so you’re not trying to reload the route on a weak 4G signal at the curb with a queue forming behind you.